One year later, Hawk Harrelson set to enter Hall of Fame
He should have had his day in the Cooperstown sun last year.
Ken "Hawk" Harrelson will settle for being inducted into the Hall of Fame Saturday in a television-only event.
The 2020 Ford C. Frick Award winner for broadcasters, Harrelson is set to enter the Hall one year late due to the coronavirus pandemic.
"They made the right decision, in my opinion, because I didn't want my family and my friends and everyone else to be exposed," Harrelson said.
In the White Sox's TV booth for 33 years before retiring at the end of the 2018, Harrelson will be inducted along with 2021 Frick winner Al Michaels.
"Hawk changed the way people talk about baseball," Sox chairman Jerry Reinsdorf said.
The Awards Presentation will be held as a television-only event in Cooperstown on Saturday, then broadcast Sunday on MLB Network. The event will also be livestreamed at 11 a.m. Chicago time Sunday on MLB.com and the Hall's Facebook page.
Trying to make the best of a difficult situation, Harrleson said the extra year gave him time to polish his speech.
"Hopefully, after a year and a half, two years, I won't screw it up," he said.