The Red Wings staple is set to embark upon his 46th season as the ballpark organist.
ROCHESTER, N.Y. — Fred Costello, Rochester Red Wing organist, starts his 46th year on Opening Day, making him the longest reigning sports organist in history.
The closest to his record before they retired were Nancy Faust of the White Sox, 41 years, Ernie Hayes of the Cardinals, 39 years, Eddie Layton of the Yankees, and John Kiley of the Red Sox, 36 years.
Fred changed the concept of ballpark music in 1977 by drawing on his years playing in night-clubs to create a more modern sound. Fred’s musical background includes performances in Las Vegas, Lake Tahoe, Hollywood, Canada, Mexico and the Bahamas. His jazz group “Fred Costello & Co.” performs in local clubs, concerts and at private functions. Fred, a Syracuse NY native, has been featured as top sports organist on NBC’s Game Of The Week, was elected to the Rochester Walk Of Fame in 1999, given the Charlie Wagner Award from the Press-Radio Club in 2009 and in 2011, Fred received the prestigious “Spirit of the International League Award”. In 2019, he was honored by the Rochester Baseball Historical Society.
Fred Costello’s autobiography, “A LIFETIME OF NIGHTCLUBS & BALLPARKS” is Fred’s story of wanting to be either a baseball player or professional musician. When the dust settled, he became a musician at the ballpark for 46 interesting years.