They are often more beloved than the players themselves, and more durable. The best of them paint an indelible picture of the grand old game with their unique turn of phrase. Their legendary calls become an inextricable part of the most memorable plays of all time. They are baseball's finest broadcasters of all time. See who made the top 10.

Recruited out of college by another radio legend, Red Barber, Scully began announcing games for the Brooklyn Dodgers in 1950. He eventually moved with the team to Los Angeles in 1958 and continues to be one of the franchise's most beloved personalities. Scully, 84, announced on Aug. 26, 2012 that he will be back in the booth for the Dodgers for an unprecedented 64th season. Scully has covered three perfect games, 25 no-hitters, 25 World Series, six Dodgers World Series championships and 12 All-Star Games and his calls are among the most memorable in sports.
 

(Jan. 25, 1918 – May 4, 2010)
Harwell spent 42 of 55 broadcasting years as the voice of the Detroit Tigers, retiring in 2002. He is the only broadcaster ever traded for a player. In 1948, Dodgers president Branch Rickey arranged for Harwell, the announcer for the minor-league Atlanta Crackers, to be sent to Brooklyn to fill in for the ailing Red Barber, in exchange for catcher Cliff Dapper.
 

(Aug. 21, 1924 – June 18, 2002)
Hall of Fame announcer Jack Buck's deep, unmistakeable voice provided him a lifelong career with the St. Louis Cardinals. But Buck wasn't known just for his calls on the diamond. An institution in St. Louis before his 2002 death, he also spent many years calling NFL games and provided the original voice of the NHL's St. Louis Blues.

(Feb. 17, 1908 – Oct. 22, 1992)
Barber, or The Ol' Redhead, called play-by-play for four decades with the Cincinnati Reds, Brooklyn Dodgers and New York Yankees. Barber (shown with Pee Wee Reese and Gil Hodges) recruited a young aspiring broadcaster named Vin Scully for CBS football coverage and eventually invited him into the Dodgers' broadcast booth to succeed Ernie Harwell in 1950.

(Feb. 14, 1913 – June 16, 1996)
Allen, born Melvin Israel, was the voice of the Yankees for decades. Later, he hosted the syndicated This Week in Baseball from 1977 until his death.

(March 1, 1914 – Feb. 18, 1998)
The bespectacled Caray began his colorful career with the St. Louis Cardinals, also spending time in Oakland, before settling in Chicago with the White Sox and ultimately the Cubs. Perhaps more memorable even than his game calling and his signature phrase "Holy Cow" was Caray leading fans in singing "Take me Out to the Ballgame" during each seventh-inning stretch.
 

"Mr. Baseball," a former player known for his self-deprecating wit, began his announcing career in 1971 calling play-by-play with the Milwaukee Brewers, a position he still holds. In April 2010, Uecker underwent successful heart surgery and resumed work three months later. He's also known for his appearance in the motion picture Major League ("Juuust a bit outside").

(March 26, 1936 – April 13, 2009)
Kalas was the play-by-play announcer for the Philadelphia Phillies and the  voice-over narrator for NFL Films productions. He called six no-hitters, six NLCS and three World Series.

(July 31, 1919 – Feb. 20, 2006)
Gowdy began his career as the No. 2 announcer to Mel Allen for New York Yankees. He then had a 15-year tenure as the lead announcer for the Red Sox. He left the Red Sox for NBC Sports, where he called the national baseball telecasts of the Saturday afternoon Game of the Week and Monday Night Baseball and the playoff and World Series telecasts.

(Sept. 25, 1917 – Aug.13, 2007)
Nicknamed "The Scooter", Brooklyn native Rizzuto spent his entire baseball career — 13 seasons as a shortstop and 40 years as an announcer — with the New York Yankees. "Holy cow!"