The National Baseball Hall of Fame and Museum announced the ballot finalists for the 2019 Ford C. Frick Award, baseball's highest honor for broadcasters.
Pulling from the "Broadcasting Beginnings" category -- one of three eras considered in a year-to-year rotation -- the Hall of Fame announced the following eight finalists Monday: Connie Desmond, Pat Flanagan, Jack Graney, Harry Heilmann, Al Helfer, Waite Hoyt, Rosey Rowswell and Ty Tyson.
Final voting on these candidates will be conducted by an electorate comprised of the 11 living Frick Award recipients (Marty Brennaman, Bob Costas, Jaime Jarrin, Tony Kubek, Denny Matthews, Tim McCarver, Jon Miller, Eric Nadel, Vin Scully, Bob Uecker and Dave Van Horne) plus four baseball historians and columnists: David Halberstram, Barry Horn, Ted Patterson and Curt Smith. The winner will be announced Dec. 12 at the Winter Meetings in Las Vegas, and will be honored at next summer's Hall of Fame Awards Ceremony on July 20 as part of Induction Weekend in Cooperstown, N.Y.
Desmond called games for each of New York's three Major League teams from 1942-56. Flanagan was among the first to re-create road games from a ticker for Cubs broadcasts, and called the first MLB All-Star Game in 1933. Graney was the voice of the Indians for 21 seasons following his playing career in Cleveland. Heilmann, already in the Hall of Fame as a player, called Tigers games for 17 seasons from 1934-50. Helfer toured the Majors as a voice for eight different teams, and called a total of 14 no-hitters. Hoyt, a Hall of Fame pitcher, parlayed his career as a Yankee into successful broadcast work for the Reds. Rowswell was known to Pirates fans for 19 seasons. Tyson spent 22 in the Tigers' booth, and was one of baseball's first radio voices beginning in 1927.
Costas, now an MLB Network personality, is the most recent winner of the Frick Award, and was honored in Cooperstown this past July.