Longtime White Sox voice Hawk Harrelson wins HOF's Ford Frick Award

You can put his plaque on the board.

Longtime Chicago White Sox announcer Ken "Hawk" Harrelson was awarded the 2020 Ford C. Frick Award on Wednesday by the National Baseball Hall of Fame.

Harrelson will accept the honor during the Hall's awards presentation in Cooperstown on July 25, 2020, one day before the induction ceremonies. While he's not officially a member of the Hall of Fame, his plaque will be displayed alongside other Frick winners in the museum's broadcasting wing.

"Hawk is so deserving of this tremendous honor," White Sox chairman Jerry Reinsdorf said, according to James Fegan of The Athletic. "His passion for baseball is unmatched, and he has entertained generations of White Sox fans with his stories, experiences, and insight."

Harrelson spent 33 years as the voice of the White Sox from 1982-2018, a run that was only interrupted by his brief, ill-fated stint as the team's general manager in 1986. As a White Sox broadcaster, he won five Emmy Awards and was twice named Illinois Sportscaster of the Year.

The 78-year-old is best known for his unbridled enthusiasm and love of White Sox baseball - a trait that led to his extreme "homer" style of openly rooting for the team to the point of calling its opponents "bad guys." Harrelson also made waves for his outspokenness on the mic, which included some notable harsh rants against umpires he felt made calls against the White Sox.

Prior to joining the White Sox, Harrelson played in the majors for nine years. He first broke into broadcasting with the Boston Red Sox in 1975 and also spent two years working New York Yankees telecasts in the late 1980s.

Harrelson beat out eight other broadcasters, including Tampa Bay Rays voice Dewayne Staats and his former Red Sox partner, Ned Martin, for this honor.