Remembering Ernie Harwell: 15 Years Later, Still Missed and Mourned by Tigers Fans

GRAND RAPIDS, Mich. (WOOD) – May 4 is a blue day for baseball fans and Detroit Tigers alike. We mark the 15th anniversary this year of Ernie Harwell’s passing, which happened in 2010 at age 92. For everyone who ever listened to the Detroit Tigers or appreciated the art form of baseball play-by-play, Harwell’s shadow looms large, and his passing still is deeply felt.

Harwell’s 42 seasons of announcing the Tigers’ games were a fan favorite, not just in Detroit but all around the baseball world. His voice was indelibly linked to Tigers’ tradition, and he witnessed some of the greatest moments in baseball history. From Ty Cobb’s eternal career to more recent Tigers’ triumphs of Miguel Cabrera, Harwell announced them all and became an impeccable thread in baseball’s rich tapestry.

Born Georgian, Harwell started out in the minor leagues with the Atlanta Crackers before making his way to the big leagues with the Brooklyn Dodgers in 1948. A baseball legend today, Harwell broke in as Dodgers’ general manager Branch Rickey made what is undoubtedly the only trade in radio annals. Brooklyn traded a catching prospect to the Crackers just to acquire Harwell.

He relocated from Brooklyn to announce for the New York Giants and was a voice that was known to national broadcasts, including several MLB All-Star Games. He also stood behind the microphone for baseball’s most historic moments, including the “Shot Heard ‘Round the World” in 1951, a walk-off, game-winning home run by Bobby Thomson that gave the Giants the National League pennant.

While Harwell’s career brought him to other clubs, his character and integrity remained with the Detroit Tigers’ for all time. It started in 1960, through the efforts of retired Tigers third baseman George Kell, who was taken by Harwell’s honor and integrity. Such on-air chemistry would broadcast Tigers’ games for centuries. Harwell rode with the team on its ups and downs of its rollercoaster of emotions, from the heartache of the 1967 season, when Detroit missed the American League pennant by one game, to the thrill of the 1968 World Series championship, when the Tigers beat the St. Louis Cardinals.

His voice filled the airwaves for the decades, remembering history like Mark Fidrych’s magician rookie year of 1976, Tigers’ “golden boys” of early 1980s debut, and the classic 1984 World Series championship. His listeners grew accustomed to his friendly, down-to-earth voice on all games, and it exuded comfort in triumph and defeat.

It was not, however, only his play-by-play talent that made Harwell stand out. It was his ability to attract listeners in and give them the impression that they were part of something greater than themselves. He was the voice of the era, and his measured, smooth delivery with broadcasts always traded a little bit of personality. Harwell did not report the game; he recounted the game, in terms of players’ names, and tapping the game’s rich heritage. His baseball knowledge was encyclopedic, but his humility and graciousness permitted him to remain a beloved favorite of the fans despite this.

Harwell’s tenure with the Tigers was turbulent at best, particularly when the team decided to release him at the end of the 1990 season. In what was a PR nightmare for the team, Harwell was fired after 31 years with the team, putting fans into a panic. Even the venom of exile could not get Harwell to speak negatively of the team when he left. He went out in style in 1991, classy and professional as always, without a word said against the team. Wheels started spinning again, though, after the purchase of the team by Mike Ilitch, and Harwell was back in the Tigers’ grasp, taking calls until officially retiring in 2002 at the age of 84.

Though Harwell officially retired, he never actually parted ways with the Tigers’ organization. Upon leaving the broadcast booth, Harwell returned to announce some innings of the 2006 and 2007 post-seasons to the delight of his die-hard devotees. But his last trip to Comerica Park in 2009 truly made a splash.

Those last days, weeks before that last game appearance, Harwell made a tearful public statement that he’d been diagnosed as having terminal cancer. On September 16, 2009, during the middle of a Tigers-Royals game, Harwell gave an on-field speech at Comerica Park for what would end up being his last public statement. It was a moment of raw eloquence and beauty, one that captured with perfect precision the tone of his personality. He thanked the team, the people, and the state of Michigan, extending warm regards to all of them for their love and affection all these years. His heartfelt words moistened the eyes of everyone who had ever heard him open a game.

Harwell passed away in May of 2010, and his legacy is one that still lasts today within the hearts of Tigers’ fans and baseball fans everywhere. To this day, 15 years after his passing, his death still lingers, particularly when the fans recall the moments that he so indelibly left with his voice. From his mythological howls to his ardent love for the sport, Harwell was as much a broadcaster as he was a favorite member of the Tigers’ family.

Ernie Harwell’s legacy remains with those who heard his voice and with ongoing respect for his labor. He is gone, but not forgotten. The radio broadcast booth of the Tigers came and went with the decades, yet no one will ever get near to filling the warm, comforting voice of Ernie Harwell, the voice of a generation of baseball, singing in harmony with the broadcast booth.