BILL BROWN

Bill Brown called his final games as the Astros primary play-by-play broadcaster in 2016 after 30 seasons in the booth.

At 18 years of age, Brown landed his first broadcasting job at KDRO Radio in Sedalia, Missouri, doing news and play-by-play for local high school events.  He later graduated from the University of Missouri in 1969.  While in the service, Brown became a U.S. Army broadcast specialist working as a sportscaster for the Armed Forces Vietnam Network in Saigon in 1970-1971.  After leaving the service in 1971, Brown earned a job at WLWT-TV in Cincinnati.  In 1976, Brown earned his first full-time Major League broadcasting job as the television play-by-play announcer for the Cincinnati Reds, where he would remain until 1982. Brown joined the Astros in 1987.

He has received many awards over the years including being inducted into the Texas Baseball Hall of Fame in 2004, receiving the Fred Hartman Award in 2012 and Sportscaster of the Year award in Texas in 2013

Brown is a member of the Advisory Board at Houston Sight and Sound and has been a volunteer reader for 24 years.  He and his wife, Dianne have been involved with “Salute to our Hero’s, a fundraiser for scholarships for the Cy-Fair Educational Foundation for 10 years.  He has also authored and co-written several books.

Bill and Dianne reside in Houston and have one daughter and three grandchildren.