Hawk Harrelson has both supporters and detractors in large numbers. Despite being divisive, he is up for nomination in the Hall of Fame.
One of his biggest supporters is current baseball announcer Matt Vasgersian. Vasgersian was on the White Sox Talk Podcast this week and absolutely raved about Hawk.
“Hawk has changed the vernacular of the sport to the degree that Hawkisms have entered your everyday non-baseball conversations that same way,” Vasgersian said. “And somebody who is even unaware of who Hawk Harrelson is, my wife says, ‘He gone.’”
Current White Sox play-by-play man Jason Benetti raved about Hawk in similar ways in an interview on MLB Network previously. It seems his fellow broadcasters are some of Hawk’s biggest fans.
Vasgersian not only thinks Hawk should be in the Hall of Fame, but thinks he is among the great even within the Hall.
“He’s made more of an impact that way than any other broadcaster that’s even in the Hall of Fame currently,” Vasgersian said. “I get so wound up about it. The fact that he’s been on the ballot, he’s been eligible for this very prestigious honor before and for whatever reason, the committee thinks it’s more appropriate to put a guy who’s been dead for 60 years in the Hall of Fame now as opposed to getting Hawk in. He should’ve been in the inaugural class in the Frick wing as far as I’m concerned.”
MLB
Vasgersian waxed poetic in just about every way possible, including taking on Hawk’s homerism.
"I know the backroom conversation is, but oh, he was such a homer,” Vasgersian said. “Well, isn't that the whole doggone point. Isn’t that the idea? Don’t White Sox fans when they turn on a White Sox game want to know the perspective from their own team? So he would root a little bit, ‘Come on Robin, come on Robin,’ the snotty broadcaster who doesn’t think he’s above the fray would say, ‘that’s not the way you’re supposed to play it.’ No, that’s not the way you’re supposed to play it if you’re a national broadcast where you have to do it down the middle, but Hawk works for the White Sox. He was doing the games for White Sox fans and nobody served their home fans better than Hawk Harrelson, ever. Ever in the history of this.”
The extremely kind words continued with Vasgersian saying Hawk is a treasure.
“There will not be another larger than life character like Hawk ever again,” Vasgersian said.
It sounds like Hawk should have Vasgersian introduce him wherever he goes for the rest of his life.
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