Hawk and Wimpy Back for a Weekend in Oakland

[trsent]

Anyone else catch any of the White Sox broadcasts last weekend with Tom Paciorek and Ken Harrelson doing the broadcast as Steve Stone couldn't make the trip?

It was the first time in twelve years my favorite broadcasting duo was together in the booth again. Wimpy had done a few broadcasts last year for The White Sox, but not with Hawk.

I know the two of them in real life don't get along very well, but their chemistry in the box together is still amazing that made them my favorite broadcasting duo of all time. They rib on each other and tell baseball stories like no one else can to make a boring game very enjoyable.

[Vintagedeputy]

Ken Harrelson has got to be the worst former player-broadcaster ever. I can't stand listening to him and how he plays up the home team.

[trsent]

Ken Harrelson has got to be the worst former player-broadcaster ever. I can't stand listening to him and how he plays up the home team.

His defense if that The White Sox write his checks so he plays up his employer.

Hard to argue with that explanation.

[mwbosoxfan]

Ken Harrelson has got to be the worst former player-broadcaster ever. I can't stand listening to him and how he plays up the home team.

Vintage, evidently you're not the only one....

GQ Names Hawk Harrelson Worst Announcer In Baseball




Image via Heave The Hawk


GQ released their list of five best and five worst broadcast teams in baseball, and it probably comes at little surprise that White Sox broadcaster Hawk Harrelson ushered his pairing with Steve Stone into the #1 spot for worst broadcast booth. In their summary, which lets partner Stone off the hook entirely, Hawk is taken to task for his unabashed homerism as well as his "folksy" Hawkisms. We agree that listening to Harrelson announce our team's games is insufferable. We don't know which phrase of Hawk's we hate more: "He gone!," "Hang wuf 'em" or "Dagnambit!" They all pretty much suck.

We had hoped that when Stone replaced color commentator Darrin Jackson alongside Harrelson's play-by-play, the long time Cubs announcer could reign in Hawk. For a while, anyway, it seemed to work. But Harrelson continues to become a parody of his former self as the years go by. His "can of Corn" and "ducksnort" have evolved into an entire language that fails logic. Having reached 25 years in the booth for the South Siders, the Sox recently honored Hawk with "Hawk Harrelson Night" on June 8. We can only hope this is a prelude to forcing him into retirement. Whenever that day comes, we'll let out a hearty, "HE GONE!" And apparently we're not the only ones who pine for that day. Until then, we'll keep muting the TV and turning on Jackson and Ed Farmer's call on the radio.

[sox83cubs84]

Hawk Harrelson is a mixed bag for me. I like his retelling of stories from his career as a player (although he goes back to Carl Yastrzemski in this regard way too much). Even the Hawkisms are tolerable for me. His homerism, though, is off the charts for me. There are times where, if the White Sox are getting hammered in a game, you may have as much as 30 seconds of dead air just because Hawk is so bummed at the beating his team is taking.

Another Hawk practice that was distasteful when it was active: his feud with Jay Mariotti, former Chicago Sun=Times writer. Most objective people see Mariotti as a weenie and a rabble rouser, and for whom Hawk was a favorite target. Sadly, rather than take the high road, Hawk woud use his microphone to take rips and shots at Mariotti, reducing himself to Mariotti's level.

Finally, for those of you who can't stand Hawkeroo, there is a website for anti-Hawk fans... www.heavethehawk.com .

Dave Miedema

[gameon]

I too get tired of listening to Hawk with his "Dont stop now boys", whether the Sox are winning or losing, his broadcasts sound all the same. It almost sounds like he just presses the play button on a recorder. His stories are always about Yaz and Ted Williams. On the other hand, when you listen to Steve Stone, it seems like you never hear him repeat anything he's said in a previous game. He is the best announcer the Sox ever had. Lots of knowledge and insight. A true future HOF broadcaster.

[sox83cubs84]

I too get tired of listening to Hawk with his "Dont stop now boys", whether the Sox are winning or losing, his broadcasts sound all the same. It almost sounds like he just presses the play button on a recorder. His stories are always about Yaz and Ted Williams. On the other hand, when you listen to Steve Stone, it seems like you never hear him repeat anything he's said in a previous game. He is the best announcer the Sox ever had. Lots of knowledge and insight. A true future HOF broadcaster.

All true regarding Stoney. I enjoyed him on Cubs telecasts paired with both Harry and Chip Caray. His baseball knowldege is among the best in the game. He'd probably still be there if not for the endless whining from the players on the whopping failure that was the 2004 Cubs. That team's attitude was terrible, with the media and the fans, and Stone, not afraid to call out the uninspired and the callous, was a main target for what I believe was the most fan-unfriendly Cubs team I've ever seen.

Dave Miedema