St. Louis Cardinals TV announcer Dan McLaughlin won't return to booth after DWI arrest
Dan McLaughlin won’t be back on St. Louis Cardinals broadcasts for a 25th season.
McLaughlin is leaving his post as the Cardinals’ play-by-play announcer for Bally Sports Midwest in what has been termed a mutual decision. McLaughlin, 48, was arrested for felony persistent DWI on Dec. 3 in a suburb of St. Louis.
“Dan McLaughlin will not return as the Cardinals television play-by-play announcer on Bally Sports Midwest,” a joint statement from the team and network said. “Dan has been the voice of memorable Cardinals moments for 24 years. We thank him for his contributions to Cardinals baseball, to Cardinals fans and for his many charitable efforts.”
McLaughlin said in a statement that he spent “the last several days reflecting on my steps towards addressing my health and the well-being of my family and me” and that he had come to the conclusion that “my sole focus needs to be on my recovery” and his wife and four children.
Long a St. Louis television fixture, McLaughlin also did play-by-play for St. Louis University men’s basketball games broadcast on the network. He had been part of Cardinals broadcasts since 1999.
McLaughlin’s DWI arrest less than two weeks ago was his third. He was arrested after police got a call about a vehicle driving erratically. Creve Coeur, Missouri, police said he was pulled over after failing to maintain a single lane and then failed a field sobriety test. He was charged with a felony the following day. The charge includes a maximum sentence of four years in prison.
In a statement to the St. Louis Post-Dispatch after his arrest, McLaughlin said there were “no excuses” for what happened. He was arrested in 2010 and 2011 for DWI offenses and was suspended after his second arrest.
No replacement for McLaughlin was announced Thursday.
