Will Stone return to the booth in '13?

[DSpivack]

Originally Posted by mahagga73

Grace is awful .

Originally Posted by tstrike2000

It would probably also help if he could lay off the sauce.

No kidding. Not that I watched it any more than a game or two per season, but what from what I gathered that telecast was awful. People think Hawk is unprofessional? The two of them would be giggling the whole entire time.

[GlassSox]

Originally Posted by MUsoxfan

I like Hawk, I really do. His level of passion for the Sox is something I aspire to have. However the Foghorn Leghorn schtick has not only grown tiresome, but has also grown exponentially in the last few years

I agree with you, the schtick is getting old. Perhaps it is time for him to retire.

[SOXSINCE'70]

Originally Posted by RockJock07

I've always liked Len Kasper, Stone is probably just begging for a quality PBP guy to share the booth with.

Whenever he calls a home run, he sounds like Kermit The Frog.No teal intended.

[SOXSINCE'70]

Originally Posted by Dan H

The oldest part of the Hawk's act is the constant battling of umps. We all get frustrated by bad calls, but so what? And to look at almost every strike and ball call during the season would drive me crazy. Hawk's excuse making also drives me crazy.

The umpire bantering is really beginning to piss me off as well.

[Brewski]

Just listening to some playoff baseball with Shulman and Hershiser. Now I think all four of our guys have to go. Those two are PRO's!

[spongyfungy]

Originally Posted by Brewski

Just listening to some playoff baseball with Shulman and Hershiser. Now I think all four of our guys have to go. Those two are PRO's!

Listening to Chris Singleton and Jon Sciambi on the radio. Making the analyst do the play by play was/is a big mistake if you don't have the voice for it. I never had a problem with Singleton's analysis but his play by play was brutal. Now DJ has a bit of experience but I wouldn't mind a booth refresh

[hawkjt]

Originally Posted by SOXSINCE'70

The umpire bantering is really beginning to piss me off as well.

Since they started using the strike zone box at the start of last season,Hawks complaining about balls and strikes has been reduced considerably. He had two blowups this year,and it was on Quintana being tossed out on a umps judgement call,and then a home plate call.

I think Hawks issues with the umps have been muted effectively with the zone box...it had gotten very bad,but now he cannot dispute the evidence.

[SephClone89]

Originally Posted by Brewski

Just listening to some playoff baseball with Shulman and Hershiser. Now I think all four of our guys have to go. Those two are PRO's!

But professional = milquetoast, bland, dime-a-dozen!

[SI1020]

Originally Posted by SephClone89

But professional = milquetoast, bland, dime-a-dozen!

Yes I find Schulman pretty ho hum. I do enjoy Ernie Johnson and his team however.

[rockinrobin2312]

Stone is kind of boring and has a bit of an ego. I won't mind if he's gone. I think the first time he subbed in he yelled "yes!" with Hawk and it sounded weird.

Someone brought up selling tickets. Honestly, even if you hate Hawk, he probably brings in young fans. More than any one more "professional" And unfortunately, the number of young baseball fans ain't the same as it used to be

[Tragg]

Originally Posted by rockinrobin2312

Stone is kind of boring and has a bit of an ego. I won't mind if he's gone. I think the first time he subbed in he yelled "yes!" with Hawk and it sounded weird.

Hawk saying "Yes" sounds weird. Let's get some professional announcers and try to expand this fanbase and act like a first-class organization.

[Konerko05]

I always thought Stone was great with the Cubs, and I was excited when he was joining Hawk.

Since he's been with the Sox, he hasn't really said anything at all. A lot can be blamed on Hawk and his immaturity. More should be blamed on Stone. He still has control over his own actions, and there was plenty of silence he could have filled.

From the get go, he never really wanted to work with Hawk at all. I can't blame the guy, but he knew what he was getting himself into. More effort could have been put forth by Stone to work together. Instead he seemed to pout, and hope the smart fans would know Hawk is making it impossible for him to sound smart. I am sure Hawk probably thinks Stone has an ego problem as well, and I could also see Stone acting like he is better than Hawk. Hawk does nothing to help his cause by constantly repeating dumb phrases with different tones of voice.

So I am pretty much indifferent on Stone coming back. It's nice to have the big name that is respected around baseball who we stole from the Cubs, but we wouldn't miss his insight if the Sox found a professional, compatible partner for Hawk.

I also disagree with everyone saying we need to get rid of Hawk to expand the fanbase. Getting an unrecognizable voice in the booth without a strong identity is going to do nothing to expand the fanbase. Although, Hawk gets plenty of negative attention throughout the country, he is one of the few things in our organization that gives the White Sox a little bit of an identity. In case no one noticed, I think we need that nationally with the state of media coverage. As someone else mentioned, Hawk can also bring in young baseball players as fans, who will learn very early in life many of Hawk's dumb catchphrases. This will give them a reason to turn on a White Sox game.

Also, in regards to the fanbase argument, the Sox television ratings went up this past season again. The problem is not lack of people watching the White Sox, it's lack of people watching the White Sox in the stadium. Getting people in to the stadium has little to do with our announcing team.

I am not totally defending Hawk's behavior at all. I like the guy, and I usually defend him to a degree, but he's slowly losing it. I am just saying Stone is not the talent/angel people are making him out to be in this thread.

[Dan H]

Originally Posted by hawkjt

Since they started using the strike zone box at the start of last season,Hawks complaining about balls and strikes has been reduced considerably. He had two blowups this year,and it was on Quintana being tossed out on a umps judgement call,and then a home plate call.

I think Hawks issues with the umps have been muted effectively with the zone box...it had gotten very bad,but now he cannot dispute the evidence.

I see the opposite. Any time I watch, he is complaining a hole Sox pitcher or hitter is put in. Hawk still does a lot of excuse making.

[Domeshot17]

Originally Posted by Konerko05

I always thought Stone was great with the Cubs, and I was excited when he was joining Hawk.

Since he's been with the Sox, he hasn't really said anything at all. A lot can be blamed on Hawk and his immaturity. More should be blamed on Stone. He still has control over his own actions, and there was plenty of silence he could have filled.

From the get go, he never really wanted to work with Hawk at all. I can't blame the guy, but he knew what he was getting himself into. More effort could have been put forth by Stone to work together. Instead he seemed to pout, and hope the smart fans would know Hawk is making it impossible for him to sound smart. I am sure Hawk probably thinks Stone has an ego problem as well, and I could also see Stone acting like he is better than Hawk. Hawk does nothing to help his cause by constantly repeating dumb phrases with different tones of voice.

So I am pretty much indifferent on Stone coming back. It's nice to have the big name that is respected around baseball who we stole from the Cubs, but we wouldn't miss his insight if the Sox found a professional, compatible partner for Hawk.

I also disagree with everyone saying we need to get rid of Hawk to expand the fanbase. Getting an unrecognizable voice in the booth without a strong identity is going to do nothing to expand the fanbase. Although, Hawk gets plenty of negative attention throughout the country, he is one of the few things in our organization that gives the White Sox a little bit of an identity. In case no one noticed, I think we need that nationally with the state of media coverage. As someone else mentioned, Hawk can also bring in young baseball players as fans, who will learn very early in life many of Hawk's dumb catchphrases. This will give them a reason to turn on a White Sox game.

Also, in regards to the fanbase argument, the Sox television ratings went up this past season again. The problem is not lack of people watching the White Sox, it's lack of people watching the White Sox in the stadium. Getting people in to the stadium has little to do with our announcing team.

I am not totally defending Hawk's behavior at all. I like the guy, and I usually defend him to a degree, but he's slowly losing it. I am just saying Stone is not the talent/angel people are making him out to be in this thread.

Getting Nationality is not going to happen. To be an effective marketer you have to know (1) what you have and (2) who you can sell it to. The White Sox proved in 2005-2006 that they will never be a national team, they won't be media darlings etc. If you can't move into that world coming off a world series title, you never will.

The money they need to make is by picking up fans in the state of Illinois. To pick up more fans, they need to swing fans who are jumping off the Cubs bandwagon during the rebuild, and need to pick up the transplant city fans.

You do not do either with Hawk making the product unwatchable. And that is what Hawk is to any non diehard fan. Crap, he is unwatchable to a lot of the die hards at this point.

Hawk is not the Identity the Sox want. Sox Fans have the reputation, both locally and nationally, as being fickle (nicely put). Because of attendance, we get viewed as fans who just tune out when things are not going right. Hawk is the face of that. He doesn't inspire the fanbase any more, and he turns it off. Announcers do not bring fans to the ball park, but they can turn a consumer away from the entire product. That is what Hawk is doing.

[KingXerxes]

Originally Posted by SephClone89

But professional = milquetoast, bland, dime-a-dozen!

Which may very well be the reason almost every team hires a "boring, dime-a-dozen, bland milquetoast" in the first place.

I have never turned on a television or radio in my life to hear the announcer's opinion. I turn them on to watch/listen to the game. It is about the team after all.

Only with very few exceptions does an announcer ever gain such status as to attract viewers/listeners to hear the announcer himself. Ken Harrelson has never, and will never, gain such status. In forever trying to gain said status, he makes watching a White Sox game (particularly when they're losing) a chore.

Say goodbye to him and hire somebody who will simply compliment what is going on in the game, and not try to become a subordinate story to the game itself.