Benetti bolts White Sox, joins Tigers' broadcast booth
The White Sox took another loss Thursday, this one in the TV booth.
It's a big one.
Play-by-play voice Jason Benetti, a lifelong Sox fan and Homewood-Flossmoor High School graduate, is leaving the South Side and heading to Detroit to call Tigers games.
The 40-year-old Benetti grew up idolizing White Sox Hall of Fame broadcaster Ken "Hawk" Harrelson. He was the Sox's lead broadcast voice the past eight seasons.
"What (the Tigers) wanted in an announcer is what I fancy myself as," Benetti said on a Zoom call Thursday. "You can't say no when somebody's ideals are so locked in with yours. People might take that as something against the White Sox. It's not. "It's just sometimes you show up at a place and say, 'Oh my gosh, this is right. And I can't believe it's right, because I'm leaving home.' Please don't underestimate how much I have to feel this to leave there."
In addition to working for the White Sox, Benetti announced college football and basketball games, NFL games and MLB games on national networks.
The heavy workload was problematic at times during his stay with the Sox. Benetti will call a minimum of 127 games each season with Detroit.
"I know what people might say about me leaving and all of that, but the White Sox didn't have to grant permission to have this opportunity," said Benetti, who was born with cerebral palsy. "There are a lot of great people I care about deeply. The White Sox hired me, a person who doesn't walk normally, to be the front facing person in their organization in 2016. The only reason I'm here is because of them.
"That whole organization has done so much for me in my life and my career. To have been home and do that is the chance of a lifetime."
Brooks Boyer, the Sox's chief revenue/marketing boss, said radio voice Len Kasper will not be replacing Benetti.
Before joining the White Sox in 2021, Kasper spent 16 seasons as the Cubs' TV play-by-play announcer.
"With Len Kasper fully committed to radio, our next step is to find the best person to pair with (TV analyst) Steve Stone to continue to provide White Sox fans with smart, entertaining, and informative broadcasts in 2024," Boyer said in a statement. "The search will begin immediately."
Benetti's humorous style of broadcasting helped take some of the edge off the Sox's 101-loss season this year.
"We want to thank Jason Benetti for all he has done for the Chicago White Sox throughout his tenure and for all he means to White Sox fans." Boyer said. "Not only is Jason one of the very best broadcasters across multiple sports, he is a born-and-raised White Sox fan who shared his passion for the team on air night in and night out. He represented the club in the community and engaged with fans, all while delivering one of the very best local broadcasts in Major League Baseball.
"We are proud to see Jason continue to live out his dream to bring the games he loves into the homes of fans in his unique style. We will miss Jason calling White Sox games and wish him the very best on this next chapter of his storied broadcasting career."
Benetti won't have to wait long to return to his old stomping grounds. The Tigers open the 2024 season with a March 28 games against the White Sox at Guaranteed Rate Field.