White Sox broadcasters eligible for Ford C. Frick Award
Fan Votes Through Facebook will Determine Three of 10 Broadcasters on the Final Ballot; Last Time Sox Announcers Are Eligible Until 2016 Vote
CHICAGO - Chicago White Sox television play-by-play announcer Ken "Hawk" Harrelson, color analyst Steve Stone, radio play-by-play announcer Ed Farmer, radio color analyst Darrin Jackson and Spanish play-by-play announcer Hector Molina are all candidates for the National Baseball Hall of Fame's 2014 Ford C. Frick Award for excellence in baseball broadcasting.
The selection process has been revised so that candidates are grouped together by years of most significant contributions. All five of the White Sox broadcasters are part of the "High Tide Era," which considers candidates whose contributions have come during the regional cable networks era, beginning with the mid 1980s through today. Following this year's vote, the next Frick Award winners will come from the "Living Room Era" and "Broadcasting Dawn Era," which will be voted on for the 2015 and 2016 awards respectively.
The "High Tide" voting process is underway and fans now have the opportunity to select three of the 10 finalists for the 2014 ballot through fan voting at the Museum's Facebook page (www.facebook.com/baseballhall). A Hall of Fame research committee will set the remainder of the ballot. Fans can vote for one candidate and can vote up to once per day until the final 10-name ballot is announced in early October.
Hawk Harrelson, who was one of the three broadcasters elected by fans to the Frick Award final ballot in 2007, is currently in his 21st consecutive season in the Sox television booth and 29th overall.
Steve Stone, a nominee for the 2008 Frick Award and television color analyst in his fifth season with the White Sox, spent 20 seasons in the Chicago Cubs broadcast booth prior to joining the Sox.
Ed Farmer, who was named part of the American League's best radio team by USA Today in 2004, is in his 21st full season on the White Sox Radio Network and seventh as the play-by-play announcer.
Darrin Jackson is in his 14th season as a broadcaster for the White Sox and his fifth in the radio booth.
Hector Molina, who also has broadcast games in Spanish for the Chicago Bears and Chicago Bulls, has a broadcast career that spans nearly 30 years - having announced the MLB playoffs and the White Sox World Series in 2005.
The 20-member Frick Award Committee will cast ballots during November, with the 2014 winner to be announced during the 2013 Baseball Winter Meetings from Orlando, Fla., in December.