Members of Harrelson's family joined him in the booth in the final innings of the gameGETTY IMAGES
After calling the final game of his 33-year career with White Sox, announcer Hawk Harrelson said he "loved" his time with the team and will "never forget it," according to Phil Rosenthal of the CHICAGO TRIBUNE. Both the Cubs and White Sox "emerged from their dugouts, turned toward the NBC Sports Chicago booth and joined the fans bidding adieu" to Harrelson after the game yesterday. While there was "nothing special" about the game itself, members of Harrelson's family were with him "during the final half inning." Rosenthal: "Mostly, it was typical Hawk." What is "truly unique about Harrelson in vacating his perch is how he is doing it in a way that has enabled his departure to be so celebrated." He "may be gone, but he'll be long remembered" (CHICAGO TRIBUNE, 9/24). In Chicago, Daryl Van Schouwen notes fans "paid tribute on the video scoreboard to Harrelson, who in the seventh inning said he was just then beginning to feel the emotion of the end being close." After a commercial break, it was "time to thank Sox fans one last time" as he signed off. Harrelson: "I love you all, and I always will" (CHICAGO SUN-TIMES, 9/24). Also in Chicago, Jerry Fitzpatrick notes Harrelson will "remain part of the organization as he transitions to the role of White Sox ambassador" in '19, when he "begins his eighth decade in baseball" (Chicago DAILY HERALD, 9/24).
LEAVING A LEGACY: THE ATHLETIC's Jon Greenberg noted that some White Sox fans are "glad Harrelson is done," while others are "wistful." But all "should pay some respect to his career." Even if some people "hate the Hawk, his verbiage has become our vocabulary in Chicago, beyond the confines of just White Sox fans" (THEATHLETIC.com, 9/23). In Chicago, Vinnie Duber wrote what is "important" to Harrelson is that he was "always himself through every minute of his decades in the booth." Duber: "No matter how good it gets, it will be a little less entertaining without Harrelson to call it" (NBCSPORTSCHICAGO.com, 9/23). MLB.com's Scott Merkin wrote there was "never a time when Harrelson has been afraid to speak his mind, about the Cubs, any other opponents or even the umpires" (MLB.com, 9/23). ESPN.com's Jeffrey Kirshman noted after he "proudly refused to evolve as a broadcaster, Hawk's style is now decidedly out of tune with the modern game." Objectivity has "never been a prerequisite for great broadcasting, but few have tested that premise quite as aggressively as Harrelson." Rather than playing along to the familiar rhythm of a baseball broadcast, he is "uncouth, unpolished and aggressively resistant to change" (ESPN.com, 9/22).
