CHICAGO (670 The Score) -- True to form to the end of his career, White Sox broadcaster Ken "Hawk" Harrelson provided the type of honest quip that only he can when explaining what he'll do in retirement.
"I am going to watch a lot of Walker Texas Ranger shows and turn a hell of a lot of Smirnoff into urine," Harrelson said.
On Sunday, the 77-year-old Harrelson was wrapping up his broadcasting career with one final call of his beloved White Sox against the Cubs at Guaranteed Rate Field. His career in the game has spanned nearly 60 years as a player, front office executive and broadcaster.
Harrelson admitted that he would be "super emotional." As a guest on Inside the Clubhouse on 670 The Score on Saturday, he spoke of his desire to go out with a sweep of the Cubs. After the Cubs beat the White Sox, 8-3, on Saturday evening, Harrelson on Sunday had revised his hopes.
"I still want to beat the Cubs, but what I will miss most is the camaraderie," Harrelson said. "I told Jason Benetti, our great young announcer, to get ready for a wild ride. In two years, our club will be a monster. It will be fun to watch. The Cubs are a good club, so it will be fun to watch these two teams butt heads. I think it has a chance to become the greatest decade in Chicago baseball history. The thing I will miss the most? The friendships. Life to me is about family and memories."
The feisty Harrelson always has had a way of pumping up the intensity and drawing the love of White Sox fans. Whether it was criticizing umpires or someone from another team or protecting the "good guys" -- the White Sox -- Harrelson often stirred it up. His classic predictions that sometimes would come true and often didn't were all part of his charm.
Harrelson's signature catchphrases and southern jargon became regular soundtracks of the summer for Chicago baseball fans and other broadcasters over the in a broadcasting career that spanned parts of four decades as a play-by-play man and commentator. From "grab some bench" to "he gone" to "duck snort" to "stretch" to "put it on the board, yes" to "dadgum it," Harrelson's calls were iconic and resonated beyond the listening audience in Chicago.
Nicknaming White Sox players was another specialty of Harrelson's, and none was more spectacular that calling Hall of Famer Frank Thomas "The Big Hurt."
Passion has always been Harrelson's calling card. Like any good salesman, he had the gift of being a great listener and a captivating public speaker. When you conversed with him, you always felt like you were the most important person that he was talking to that day.
Harrelson deserves to be a Hall of Fame announcer, though he hasn't gotten that recognition yet. Harrelson will continue on as an ambassador for the White Sox.
"I don't even worry about that," Harrelson said. "If it happens, it happens. The biggest thing as far as a legacy goes for my grandkids is 2020. That will put me in that club that not too many guys are in. I will be one of a few who has been in baseball for all or part of eight decades. Not many guys get there."
On Harrelson's tombstone, hopefully in the distant future, it should read: "Ken 'Hawk' Harrelson -- A true baseball man -- loved, hated but never ignored." That has been his calling card as a lightning rod of attention for decades.
Happy trails, Hawk.
Bruce Levine covers the Cubs and White Sox for 670 The Score. Follow him on Twitter @MLBBruceLevine.
