Critics praised the Detroit Tigers TV Ernie Harwell died after a nearly year-long battle with cancer, "said Detroit sports stations Association (DSBA) on Tuesday. He was the 92nd
Harwell's 55-year career began in Atlanta in 1946, when he was a sports observer for WSB Radio as a mark off of Emory University. He moved two years later for the Brooklyn Dodgers after the team's radio station was Red Barber sick.
After stints with the New York Giants and Baltimore Oriol, he began his long teamwork with the Tigers - what made his name known to many baseball fans in Michigan and across the nation. Harwell was the voice of the Tigers from 1960 to 2002.
"All of Major League Baseball is in bereavement tonight on learning of the loss of a match for our game, Ernie Harwell. This son of Georgia was the voice of the Detroit Tigers and one of the game's iconic commentators to fans all over America, always represent the best of our national pursuit with its generations of listeners, "said Commissioner Bud Selig.
Said Tigers owner Mike Ilitch: "Ernie Harwell was the most well-liked sports figure in the state of Michigan. He was so indisputable in everything he did - from his legendary TV the way he treated fans and everyone around him. He was truly a chap in every sense of the word. Ernie has a special place in the hearts of all the Detroit Tigers' fans and the memories he created so many of us will never be forgotten. Baseball lost a famous voice tonight, and we have all lost a dear friend. "
"Ernie is probably the most beloved being who has ever been in Detroit by the Detroit Tigers," Tigers Hall of Fame path Al Kalin said after the statement that Harwell would retire in 2002."He is loved by all, and rightly so. He is a great broadcaster, but even a better person. It comes across in his broadcast."
His relaxed manner and love of baseball loved him to Detroit fans, improve the club's finest moments and make their games more bearable.
Even casual root to check Harwell catch phrases: "Looooooong gone!" for a home run, "he stood there like the house by the road and went to go on" for a batter to take a called third strike, and "Two for the price of one!" for a double play.
Foul balls into the stands was "wedged by a man (regardless of the town in the area that came to his mind)."
"I started after I came to Detroit in 1961 or '62 and it just happened by accident," Harwell explained. "I said:" A guy from Grosse Pointe caught that bug ball "and then the next it was taken by a guy from Saginaw, or a woman from Lansing.
The Baseball Hall of Fame honored Harwell in 1981 with the Ford C. Frick Award, awarded annually to a broadcaster for major contributions to baseball.
A life-size statue of Harwell stands at the entrance to Comerica Park press box called "The Ernie Harwell Media Center."
Harwell was born 25 January 1918, in Washington, United States, with a speech error, left him speechless. Through therapy and forced to participate in debate and discussions the classroom, he had overcome the handicap when he graduated from Emory University.
Harwell's survivors include seven grandchildren and seven great-grandchildren.
