Josh Lewin (born ) is an American sportscaster who works as a

play-by-play In Broadcasting of sports events, sports broadcasting, a sports commentator (also known as a sports announcer or sportscaster) provides a real time (media), real-time live commentary of a game or event, traditionally delivered in the present t ...

announcer for the

UCLA Bruins The UCLA Bruins are the athletic teams that represent the University of California, Los Angeles. The Bruin men's and women's teams participate in NCAA Division I as part of the Big Ten Conference and the Mountain Pacific Sports Federation (MPSF ...

football and basketball teams. Josh Lewin and Tom Grieve

Early life and education

Lewin was born and raised in

Rochester, New York Rochester is a city in and the county seat, seat of government of Monroe County, New York, United States. It is the List of municipalities in New York, fourth-most populous city and 10th most-populated municipality in New York, with a populati ...

. He attended Brighton High School before graduating from

Northwestern University Northwestern University (NU) is a Private university, private research university in Evanston, Illinois, United States. Established in 1851 to serve the historic Northwest Territory, it is the oldest University charter, chartered university in ...

in 1990. He is Jewish.

Broadcasting career

Minor league baseball

Lewin got his start in broadcasting as the radio commentator for the

Rochester Red Wings The Rochester Red Wings are a Minor League Baseball team of the International League and the Triple-A (baseball), Triple-A affiliate of the Washington Nationals. They are located in Rochester, New York, and play their home games at Innovative Fie ...

, then the Triple-A affiliate of the

Baltimore Orioles The Baltimore Orioles (also known as the O's) are an American professional baseball team based in Baltimore. The Orioles compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) East Division. As one of the America ...

, at the age of 16, and became the team's regular play-by-play announcer in 1991. With the Red Wings, Lewin was a member of a staff that included

Joe Altobelli Joseph Salvatore Altobelli (May 26, 1932 – March 3, 2021) was an American professional baseball first baseman and outfielder who played for the Cleveland Indians and Minnesota Twins of Major League Baseball. He was also a manager for the San F ...

, Russ Brandon, Glenn Geffner, Joe Kehoskie, and Bob Socci.

Major League Baseball

In 1994 Lewin became the host of the sports call-in show ''Sports Line'' on WBAL radio in

Baltimore Baltimore is the most populous city in the U.S. state of Maryland. With a population of 585,708 at the 2020 census and estimated at 568,271 in 2024, it is the 30th-most populous U.S. city. The Baltimore metropolitan area is the 20th-large ...

. After filling in on

radio broadcasts during the

1995 1995 was designated as: * United Nations Year for Tolerance * World Year of Peoples' Commemoration of the Victims of the Second World War This was the first year that the Internet was entirely privatized, with the United States government ...

and

1996 1996 was designated as: * International Year for the Eradication of Poverty Events January * January 8 – A Zairean cargo plane crashes into a crowded market in the center of the capital city of the Democratic Republic of the Congo ...

seasons, Lewin joined the

Chicago Cubs The Chicago Cubs are an American professional baseball team based in Chicago. The Cubs compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (baseball), National League (NL) National League Central, Central Division. Th ...

' television broadcasting team on WGN in

1997 Events January * January 1 – The Emergency Alert System is introduced in the United States. * January 11 – Turkey threatens Cyprus on account of a deal to buy Russian S-300 missiles, prompting the Cypriot Missile Crisis. * January 1 ...

, before moving on to the

Detroit Tigers The Detroit Tigers are an American professional baseball team based in Detroit. The Tigers compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) American League Central, Central Division. One of the AL's eight chart ...

' TV booth from

1998 1998 was designated as the ''International Year of the Ocean''. Events January * January 6 – The ''Lunar Prospector'' spacecraft is launched into orbit around the Moon, and later finds evidence for Lunar water, frozen water, in soil i ...

2001 The year's most prominent event was the September 11 attacks against the United States by al-Qaeda, which Casualties of the September 11 attacks, killed 2,977 people and instigated the global war on terror. The United States led a Participan ...

Fox Sports Detroit FanDuel Sports Network Detroit is an American regional sports network owned by Main Street Sports Group (formerly Diamond Sports Group) and operated as an affiliate of FanDuel Sports Network. It provides coverage of local sports teams in the sta ...

. In 2000, he was the first-ever recipient of the Ty Tyson Award for Excellence in Sports Broadcasting, awarded by the Detroit Sports Broadcasters Association. Lewin was the TV voice for the Texas Rangers from

2002 The effects of the September 11 attacks of the previous year had a significant impact on the affairs of 2002. The war on terror was a major political focus. Without settled international law, several nations engaged in anti-terror operation ...

through

2011 The year marked the start of a Arab Spring, series of protests and revolutions throughout the Arab world advocating for democracy, reform, and economic recovery, later leading to the depositions of world leaders in Tunisia, Egypt, and Yemen ...

, usually on

Fox Sports Southwest FanDuel Sports Network Southwest is a Texas-based regional sports network owned by Main Street Sports Group (formerly Diamond Sports Group) and operated as an affiliate of FanDuel Sports Network. The channel broadcasts regional coverage of profe ...

but also on local broadcasts for KDFI, KDFW and TXA 21. The Rangers organization announced on October 11, 2010, that Lewin would not be returning as play-by-play announcer for the team. On February 9, 2012, it was announced that Lewin would be joining the New York Mets Radio Network, succeeding Wayne Hagin. He shared play-by-play duties with Howie Rose on Mets broadcasts. Lewin left his position with the Mets following the 2018 season. During the 2019 MLB season, Lewin served as a part-time play-by-play announcer for Boston Red Sox Radio Network broadcasts alongside Joe Castiglione. Lewin was one of the original play-by-play commentators for ''

Major League Baseball on Fox The ''MLB on Fox'' (also known as ''Fox MLB'') is an American presentation of Major League Baseball (MLB) games produced by Fox Sports, the sports division of the Fox Broadcasting Company (Fox), since June 1, 1996. Fox has aired the World Series ...

,'' calling regular season regional games from 1996 to 2011. He started on the fourth regional crew calling games, but by 1999 was promoted to the number three booth where he would remain from 1999 to 2011. He would often fill in for principal play-by-play men

Joe Buck Joseph Francis Buck (born April 25, 1969) is an American sportscaster for ESPN. The son of sportscaster Jack Buck, he worked for Fox Sports from its 1994 inception through 2022, including roles as lead play-by-play announcer for Fox's Nati ...

(with Tim McCarver during the regular season) or Thom Brennaman (with Steve Lyons during the postseason). Lewin left

Fox Sports Fox Sports is the brand name for a number of sports channels, broadcast divisions, programming, and other media around the world. The name originates from Fox Broadcasting Company in the United States, which in turn derives its name from Fox Fi ...

after his contract with

was not renewed.

National Football League

During football seasons past, Lewin served as both a sideline reporter and play-by-play man for ''

NFL on Fox The ''NFL on Fox'' (also known as ''Fox NFL'') is the branding used for broadcasts of National Football League (NFL) games produced by Fox Sports (United States), Fox Sports and televised on the Fox Broadcasting Company, Fox broadcast network. ...

'' and called NFL games for SportsUSA/Jones Radio. From

2005 2005 was designated as the International Year for Sport and Physical Education and the International Year of Microcredit. The beginning of 2005 also marked the end of the International Decade of the World's Indigenous Peoples, Internationa ...

2016 2016 was designated as: * International Year of Pulses by the sixty-eighth session of the United Nations General Assembly. * International Year of Global Understanding (IYGU) by the International Council for Science (ICSU), the Internationa ...

, he was the radio voice of the

San Diego Chargers The San Diego Chargers were a professional American football team in the National Football League (NFL). The Chargers played in San Diego, California from 1961 until 2016, before relocating back to the Greater Los Angeles area, where the franch ...

(he left after the team's move to Los Angeles at the end of the 2016 season). On August 26, 2006, Lewin provided television play-by-play for

' ''Fox Saturday Baseball'' game of the week between the

New York Yankees The New York Yankees are an American professional baseball team based in the Boroughs of New York City, New York City borough of the Bronx. The Yankees compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) Am ...

and

Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim The Los Angeles Angels are an American professional baseball team based in the Greater Los Angeles area. The Angels compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) West Division. Since 1966, the team has pl ...

. That game took place at

Angel Stadium of Anaheim Angel Stadium is a ballpark in Anaheim, California, United States. Since its opening in 1966 California Angels season, 1966, it has been the home venue of the Los Angeles Angels of Major League Baseball (MLB), who relocated from Los Angeles to ...

. When the game was over, he traveled 90 miles down to

Qualcomm Stadium San Diego Stadium was a multi-purpose stadium in San Diego, California, United States. Opened in 1967 as San Diego Stadium; it was renamed Jack Murphy Stadium for sportswriter Jack Murphy (sportswriter), Jack Murphy from 1981 to 1997. From 1997 t ...

San Diego San Diego ( , ) is a city on the Pacific coast of Southern California, adjacent to the Mexico–United States border. With a population of over 1.4 million, it is the List of United States cities by population, eighth-most populous city in t ...

to provide radio play-by-play coverage of the

' NFL preseason game against the

Seattle Seahawks The Seattle Seahawks are a professional American football team based in Seattle. The Seahawks compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the National Football Conference (NFC) NFC West, West division. The club entered the NFL a ...

for the Chargers Radio Network. The two games announced in one day was similar to Ted Leitner's time as announcer for both the Chargers and the

San Diego Padres The San Diego Padres are an American professional baseball team based in San Diego. The Padres compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (baseball), National League (NL) National League West, West Division. ...

when he would broadcast a Chargers game then travel to join the Padres broadcast late in the baseball season.

National Hockey League

Lewin has also subbed in as the

Dallas Stars The Dallas Stars are a professional ice hockey team based in Dallas. The Stars compete in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Central Division (NHL), Central Division in the Western Conference (NHL), Western Conference. The Stars ...

play-by-play man when Dallas's usual lead voice,

Ralph Strangis Ralph Strangis (born February 27, 1961) is a former 7-time Emmy Award (Lone Star) winning NHL play-by-play broadcaster who began broadcasting National Hockey League, NHL hockey in 1990-91 with the Minnesota North Stars. Strangis relocated to Dal ...

, was recovering from a

car accident A traffic collision, also known as a motor vehicle collision, or car crash, occurs when a vehicle collides with another vehicle, pedestrian, animal, road debris, or other moving or stationary obstruction, such as a tree, pole or building. T ...

2003 2003 was designated by the United Nations as the International Year of Fresh water, Freshwater. In 2003, a Multi-National Force – Iraq, United States-led coalition 2003 invasion of Iraq, invaded Iraq, starting the Iraq War. Demographic ...

. He also did play-by-play for '' Fox NHL Saturday'' in 1998 and FSN Detroit's coverage of CCHA hockey.

''The Josh and Elf Show''

On October 29, 2010, it was announced that Lewin would be moving to 105.3 The Fan to host a new show in their 11am–2pm time slot. The new show started on November 1, 2010, with Greg Williams and Richie Witt moving their show to the 2pm–7pm slot. On Monday, November 29, 2010, it was announced Mark "Elf" Elfenbein would be joining the show now named ''The Josh and Elf Show''. Following Lewin's hiring by the New York Mets and departure from The Fan, Elf and friends was launched. Numerous personalities tried out to fill Lewin's spot. He would eventually be replaced by Jane Slater, making it ''The Elf and Slater Show''.

College football

Lewin is employed by the

Big Ten Network Big Ten Network (BTN) is an American sports network based in Chicago, Illinois. The channel is dedicated to coverage of College athletics, collegiate sports sanctioned by the Big Ten Conference, including live and recorded event telecasts, news ...

calling football games. He also has called

Conference USA Conference USA (CUSA) is a collegiate athletic conference of member institutions in the Southern and Western United States. The conference participates in the NCAA's Division I in all sports. CUSA's offices are located in Dallas, Texas. Mem ...

football on Sports USA as well. On June 2, 2016, he was hired to be the play-by-play announcer for the

UCLA Bruins football The UCLA Bruins football program represents the University of California, Los Angeles, in college football as members of the Big Ten Conference at the NCAA Division I Football Bowl Subdivision (FBS) level. The Bruins play their home games off ...

team.

College basketball

Lewin also calls collegiate basketball for UCLA, along with former Bruin standout Tracy Murray. Lewin has made other appearances on Sports USA,

Fox Sports Networks Fox Sports Networks (FSN), formerly known as Fox Sports Net, was the collective name for a group of regional sports channels in the United States. Formed in 1996 by News Corporation, the networks were acquired by the Walt Disney Company on M ...

, the

SMU Mustangs The SMU Mustangs are the sport, athletic teams that represent Southern Methodist University in University Park, Texas, United States. SMU was founded in 1911 and joined the Southwest Conference, competing against Baylor Bears, Baylor, Rice Owls, ...

and

Michigan State Spartans The Michigan State Spartans are the athletic teams that represent Michigan State University. The school's athletic program includes 23 Varsity team, varsity sports teams. Their mascot is a Spartan Army, Spartan warrior named Sparty, and the sc ...

XFL

In 2023 Lewin began hosting the XFL's official podcast called ''XFL Week in Review''.

References

External links

Official Broadcaster Bio on KIOZ 105.3 Website
(Official Chargers Radio Station)
Article "MLB and NFL Announcer Josh Lewin"

{{DEFAULTSORT:Lewin, Josh Living people American radio sports announcers American television sports announcers Baltimore Orioles announcers Boston Red Sox announcers Chicago Cubs announcers College basketball announcers in the United States College football announcers College hockey announcers in the United States Dallas Stars announcers Detroit Tigers announcers Jewish American sports announcers Major League Baseball broadcasters Minor League Baseball broadcasters NFL announcers National Hockey League broadcasters New York Mets announcers Northwestern University alumni San Diego Chargers announcers San Diego Padres announcers Mass media people from Rochester, New York Texas Rangers (baseball) announcers UCLA Bruins football announcers Year of birth missing (living people)