Longtime New York Mets radio voice Howie Rose is retiring after the 2026 season—and he hopes his decision serves as a lesson for others in the play-by-play industry.

Rose has become synonymous with the Mets. He has served as the team’s radio play-by-play announcer since 1995 and got his start as the Mets pre- and postgame radio host in 1987. This month, he announced that 2026 would be his final season doing play-by-play.

In an interview with Steve Serby of the New York Post, Rose said that he retired because he’s “seen, and heard, too many people on my side of this industry work years beyond what they should have for various reasons.”

“But I think the overriding reason is that I didn’t want to overstay my welcome,” Rose added.

It’s easy for baseball play-by-play commentators to become crucial parts of the teams they call. In their prime, they can call upwards of 140 games a season—far more than the roughly 80 games a basketball or hockey play-by-play announcer might handle. Rose’s “put it in the books” catchphrase after every Mets game is well known even beyond fans of the team.

By extension, it’s easy to imagine how hard it can be for play-by-play announcers to walk away from their teams.

“It’s a hard thing to let go of when people recognize you and smile and thank you for all the great years or however they want to say something complimentary. That can be kind of intoxicating,” said Rose.

We have all struggled to watch longtime announcers, like John Sterling with the Yankees or Bob Costas for TBS, lose a step in their last few years. It’s painful as a fan, and clearly painful for the broadcasters.

Unlike Sterling, who was 85 when he retired midway through the 2024 season, Rose is 72. Nobody seems to be seriously arguing that he has lost his fastball. This is a preemptive step by a play-by-play announcer who is still beloved by Mets fans—one who wants to be remembered at his best.

It’s a move that should resonate across the industry—and one that other beloved voices may want to consider before their own curtain calls.