They should hire Mike North.

 

(I'm kidding)

 

My word. I remember when this was speculated. It was such an awful concept that I think my mind repressed that entire episode. I would rather tune in to MLB Gameday on a cell phone for all 162 games than to Mike North and Hawk. Even hitting mute couldn't save that broadcast.

I've been thinking more about this. I wonder if they had some sort of incident at some point? Some of you guys said one game they didn't speak the first two innings. You have to wonder if Hawk treated Stone lousy and Stone called him on it at some point.

Have you never listened to them? It's been obvious for a long, long time that Stone has no respect for Hawk. Stone's not stupid. He knows Hawk's nothing but a muppet. You can just tell he's biting his lip every time Hawk says something ridiculous. Compound that with Hawk being flat out rude and it's easy to see why Stone's leaving. It's a shame. Stone's good and Hawk's a sham.

 

I'd love for the Sox to do something like ESPN and HBO are doing with boxing. They have 1 pro pbp guy, 1 throwback old school pro and 1 young, new age kind of guy. I'd love to have a traditionalist accompanied by a SABR guy. It'd make for great conversation throughout the game. All of us would learn about baseball philosophy and probably come to respect the different factions of it.

Hate to see Stoney leave only reason to listen to broadcast.

I know some people don't like DJ but I think he is great, he is just so out there and goofy sometimes and Hawk clearly liked being in the booth with him.

He's really the perfect partner since he has no ego himself.

I'd love to have a traditionalist accompanied by a SABR guy. It'd make for great conversation throughout the game. All of us would learn about baseball philosophy and probably come to respect the different factions of it.

 

A good idea on paper, but traditionalists traditionally want nothing to do with metrics. It would probably play out similarly to some of the baseball calls Dan Bernstein fields on B&B.

maybe we should let hawk have his own show like vin scully. that way he doesnt butt heads with another personality and we can get history lessons about how Scooter McGruff was the best damn curveball hitter he's ever seen back when you only needed a liter of petrol to fill up the gas tank of your Model T.

Doubt he leaves, but I've always been a fan of the Yankees' Ken Singleton (fills in for Michael Kay)

 

http://mlb.mlb.com/video/play.jsp?content_id=10296381

I'd prefer a completely different booth next year. Stone working somewhere else. Hawk retiring.

 

Change is good.

Have you never listened to them? It's been obvious for a long, long time that Stone has no respect for Hawk. Stone's not stupid. He knows Hawk's nothing but a muppet. You can just tell he's biting his lip every time Hawk says something ridiculous. Compound that with Hawk being flat out rude and it's easy to see why Stone's leaving. It's a shame. Stone's good and Hawk's a sham.

 

I'd love for the Sox to do something like ESPN and HBO are doing with boxing. They have 1 pro pbp guy, 1 throwback old school pro and 1 young, new age kind of guy. I'd love to have a traditionalist accompanied by a SABR guy. It'd make for great conversation throughout the game. All of us would learn about baseball philosophy and probably come to respect the different factions of it.

 

Is it really that bad and that obvious? I watch quite a few games and never thought it was as bad as you detail. Not saying you are wrong.

What about Frank Thomas? He called some games with Hawk in the past.

 

I don't listen to the games on the radio much, but I've found DJ and Farmer to be rather amusing. I'm not sure how a Hawk/DJ pairing would be again. I always got the impression that Hawk didn't like/respect DJ. And I don't think Hawk goes for the silliness that DJ brings.

So, WHY doesn't he enjoy what he does? Pretty clearly it's Hawk, no?

 

Anyway, time to go get Wimpy.

 

I don't think Stone really enjoys announcing. Even when he was with the Cubs, he was trying to get into ownership and management groups.

What about Frank Thomas? He called some games with Hawk in the past.

 

I don't listen to the games on the radio much, but I've found DJ and Farmer to be rather amusing. I'm not sure how a Hawk/DJ pairing would be again. I always got the impression that Hawk didn't like/respect DJ. And I don't think Hawk goes for the silliness that DJ brings.

 

Frank has gotten better with his time on PGL, but he was probably the worst fill in of all of the fill ins I have heard. Even someone like Mike Huff did laps around him. Putting Frank in a booth for 162 games would be awful.

Frank has gotten better with his time on PGL, but he was probably the worst fill in of all of the fill ins I have heard. Even someone like Mike Huff did laps around him. Putting Frank in a booth for 162 games would be awful.

 

 

If the Big Hurt can still hit I would rather have him playing again

Easy solution if Stone wants away from Hawk.

 

Stone + Farmio again = much better radio broadcast than the current one

 

Hawk + DJ again = Hawk's happy

 

No need to blow the whole thing up, at least not unless Rooney wants back in (he doesn't).

Frank has gotten better with his time on PGL, but he was probably the worst fill in of all of the fill ins I have heard. Even someone like Mike Huff did laps around him. Putting Frank in a booth for 162 games would be awful.

 

Frank doesn't have a good voice for broadcasting, and from what I've seen on CSN, he's just filling a chair and saying words. He brings nothing interesting to the pre and post-games, but they can probably get away with it in that forum. Putting Frank in the booth for 150 games would be a train wreck.

I don't approve of what Hawk does in the booth, or his beliefs about the game...but I would not want him to leave yet.

 

Granted that makes no sense, but I would think others are in that boat w/ me

Steve Stone on the Score right now saying that he wants to be back with the Sox next year. I missed the beginning of it, but he is saying the right things about coming back next year.

"everybody at home believes they can manage. everybody at home thinks they can general manage."

 

Great quote on fans.

"I have a contract with the Chicago White Sox. I fully expect that nothing is really going to happen"

 

Referring to being back for next year.

He was much more ambiguous at the end of the conversation. Honestly I don't know what to make of it. I am going to wait for the podcast and listen to the whole thing again.

He was much more ambiguous at the end of the conversation. Honestly I don't know what to make of it. I am going to wait for the podcast and listen to the whole thing again.

 

 

Stone is a smart guy. A very smart guy. To me (not totally relevant, but a career attorney), he sounded like a smart guy, who has been coached and counseled by his attorney, to preserve all of his options under the governing contracts by saying all of the right things (and, perhaps more importantly, by avoiding saying all of the wrong things).

 

Despite what he says, I'm with many of you who "hear" an absolute awful relationship between Hawk and the man he used to call "The Stone Poney" (and exactly who do you think asked Hawk to stop saying that, hmm?). I'd guess no way does he really want to work with Hawk again, but he's keeping his leverage in this calm before the coming storm of what to do about next year.

 

I'm hoping that he either elects to walk (we know JR and crew rarely if ever will pay for no-play), or that the governing contractual arrangement allows for the deck to be reshuffled (I'd actually like a return to the Farmer-Stone and Hawk-DJ pairings) with or without Stone's approval.

 

But one thing is for certain, a 2013 Hawk-Stone TV pairing would be miserable. For everyone. And since Hawk isn't going anywhere (I'm conflicted about that one), then it's got to be Stone who is out of the TV booth.

He was much more ambiguous at the end of the conversation. Honestly I don't know what to make of it. I am going to wait for the podcast and listen to the whole thing again.

 

He sounds like a guy that doesn't want to put up with Hawk's BS anymore

Hawk should be given a nice severance package, and they should get a new PBP guy in there....and not a former player.

 

Isn't it possible that Hawk is part of the problem with attendance? He turns so many people off that they have a hard time attracting new fans. And he also is so down when the team loses, it makes the fans they have so negative, they don't want to watch them in person.

 

I know the attendance issue is very complex, and it's not the main reason why the Sox don't draw. But I don't think Hawk helps the situation...I think he hurts the team in a lot of ways.

Why do people want Hawk to return if they don't like him? It's like staying married to a girl you can't stand for the kids, even though the kids graduated college. I grew up listening to Hawk too. I used to like him. At this point, he makes watching a broadcast a miserable experience. There's no way I'm going to subject myself to that for another year. But, what are the alternatives?

Hawk should be given a nice severance package, and they should get a new PBP guy in there....and not a former player.

 

Isn't it possible that Hawk is part of the problem with attendance? He turns so many people off that they have a hard time attracting new fans. And he also is so down when the team loses, it makes the fans they have so negative, they don't want to watch them in person.

 

I know the attendance issue is very complex, and it's not the main reason why the Sox don't draw. But I don't think Hawk helps the situation...I think he hurts the team in a lot of ways.

 

I think Hawk attracts fans while not a great announcer the casual fans like him.