MLB Twitter has no sympathy for Hawk Harrelson despite claiming he was forced to retire from broadcasting
Hawk Harrelson's playing days may be too far in the rearview mirror for most modern fans to remember. The South Carolina-born outfielder and first baseman played from 1963 until 1971 and although he finished his career at the relatively young age of 29, Harrelson found a post-career home in broadcasting.
He began covering the Boston Red Sox for WSBC-TV Radio in 1975, and quickly began to gain a large following. This would serve as a springboard for Harrelson's long career in the broadcasting world.
He began working as a play-by-play announcer for the Chicago White Sox in 1982, and remained in the post before being named the Executive VP of Baseball Operations for the team three years later.
Hawk Harrelson returned to broadcasting in 1988 to cover the New York Yankees. He returned to his old job as a White Sox announcer in 1990 and his exhaustive use of catch-phrases throughout his decades-long broadcasting career led to him being crowned the "worst announcer in baseball" by GQ in 2010.
In a recent interview with Foul Territory, he revealed that he did not retire after 33 years of broadcasting in 2018, but was fired.
“I didn’t retire, I GOT retired”
Hawk Harrelson joined #FTLive to take us behind the scenes of his remarkable career https://t.co/0ud9HaCCWi
"“I didn’t retire, I GOT retired” Hawk Harrelson joined #FTLive to take us behind the scenes of his remarkable career" - Foul Territory
During his controversial career, Harrelson attracted his fair share of criticism. Several on-air outbursts and at-times inappropriate comments about umpires led to the White Sox moving to replace the former player.
Best thing Reinsdorf ever did tbh twitter.com/foulterritoryt…
@FoulTerritoryTV However it happened, at least you’re gone
@FoulTerritoryTV If true I applaud the Sox for doing it. Hawk had become a caricature of himself and was a detriment to the broadcast
Joe Benneti was hired by the White Sox in 2016 to cover home games. In 2018, Benneti officially replaced Harrelson as the commentator for the White Sox.
Fans are not exactly taking sympathy on the now-81 year old. Some fans on Twitter have even suggested that the White Sox should have taken Hawk off the air years before they did.
Well it happened about 5 years too late good riddance crusty cowboy twitter.com/FoulTerritoryT…
@FoulTerritoryTV What took the White Sox so long? He should have been gone years ago.
@FoulTerritoryTV He may be a sweet man, but he was not a good announcer. The Sox have one of the better voices in the game w/Benetti.
Harrelson played 900 games in the MLB, mostly for the Kansas City Athletics and Cleveland Indians. A career .239 hitter, he received only one All-Star designation in his career that came during the 1968 season, when Harrelson hit a league-best 109 RBIs.
Hawk Harrelson's departure signals one of the last of a dying breed
Now, more than ever, sports commentators need to be careful not to offend sensibilities. Although Harrelson may have been an entertaining voice, it is no wonder that his team eventually sought out his replacement.