NBC Sports Philadelphia’s Tom McCarthy won’t be calling the Phillies-Nationals series

In addition to being the TV voice of the Phillies, McCarthy is entering his 13th season calling NFL games on CBS.

Phillies broadcaster Tom McCarthy won't be on hand to call the three-game series against the Washington Nationals on NBC Sports Philadelphia.Read moreSTEVEN M. FALK / Staff Photographer

Published Sept. 9, 2022, 6:00 a.m. ET

The Phillies will take on the Washington Nationals in a three-game series that begins Friday night at Citizens Bank Park. But one familiar voice will be missing from the broadcast.

Tom McCarthy, in his 13th season as the team’s television voice on NBC Sports Philadelphia (he spent five years on the radio), won’t be calling the games because he’ll be on CBS broadcasting Sunday’s NFL matchup between the Indianapolis Colts and the Houston Texans at 1 p.m.

Replacing McCarthy in the booth will be longtime Phillies radio announcer Scott Franzke, who also filled in for a game in May when McCarthy attended his daughter’s graduation from The College of New Jersey. Calling the games alongside Franzke on NBC Sports Philadelphia will be John Kruk. Hall of Famer Mike Schmidt, who joins the broadcast for some Sunday home games, won’t be on hand this weekend.

Meanwhile, Franzke will be replaced on the Phillies radio broadcast by Pat McCarthy, Tom’s 27-year-old son, who currently calls games for triple-A Lehigh Valley IronPigs. He’ll be joined by longtime Phillies announcer Larry Andersen, who took a step back this season to only call the team’s home weekend games. As a result, the Phillies have turned to a rotation of four former players — Michael Bourn, Chad Durbin, Erik Kratz, and Kevin Stocker — to call most of the season on the radio.

In addition to the broadcast shuffle, first lady Jill Biden — who grew up in Willow Grove and is a longtime Phillies fan — will be at Citizens Bank Park Friday to watch her first game since moving into the White House.

McCarthy will also miss two Phillies games against the Atlanta Braves on Saturday, Sept. 17, and Sunday, Sept. 18, because he’s scheduled to call the Colts’ Week 2 matchup against the Jacksonville Jaguars on CBS. He’s also scheduled to call a few NFL games on radio again this season for Westwood One, including a Monday Night Football matchup between the Tennessee Titans and the Buffalo Bills on Sept. 19, which happens to be an off day for the Phillies.

This is the ninth season McCarthy has called NFL games on CBS, where he’s paired once again with former New York Giants running back Tiki Barber. Last year, McCarthy got to call a game with top CBS analyst Tony Romo when he filled in for play-by-play announcer Jim Nantz.

“[Romo’s] really easy [to work with] because he’s a normal dude who just loves the game,” McCarthy told The Inquirer following the game. “His knowledge of the game is phenomenal. His recall is kind of like [John] Kruk’s recall, where he just remembers things that I wouldn’t ever be able to remember.”

Philadelphia is set to appear three times on CBS this season — Oct. 12 against the Jacksonville Jaguars, Oct. 30 against the Pittsburgh Steelers, and Nov. 20 against the Colts.

While McCarthy isn’t scheduled to call any Eagles games this season, he did call the Birds’ playoff loss to the Tampa Bay Buccaneers on radio for Westwood One alongside new NBC Sports Philadelphia analyst Ron Jaworski.

“I’ve been really fortunate on a million different fronts,” McCarthy told The Inquirer in January. “I’ve been able to get a lot of [broadcasting] things that I’ve never had before, and I’m extremely grateful. Whatever comes in the future comes in the future. If it doesn’t, it doesn’t. I’m totally fine with that.”