Ernie Harwell
Ernie Harwell
William Earnest "Ernie" Harwellwas an American sportscaster, known for his long career calling play-by-play of Major League Baseball games. For 55 seasons, 42 of them with the Detroit Tigers, Harwell called the action on radio and/or television. In January 2009, the American Sportscasters Association ranked Harwell 16th on its list of Top 50 Sportscasters of All Time...
NationalityAmerican
ProfessionSportscaster
Date of Birth25 January 1918
CityWashington, GA
CountryUnited States of America
I'd like to be remembered as someone who showed up for the job. I consider myself a worker.
A tall, thin old man waving a scorecard from the corner of his dugout. That's baseball.
Baseball is a rookie, his experience no bigger than the lump in his throat as he begins fulfillment of his dream.
Baseball is the president tossing out the first ball of the season. And a scrubby schoolboy playing catch with his dad on a Mississippi farm.
Everybody in the minor leagues - if you're a player, an announcer, whatever - wants to be in the big leagues.
When I went to Brooklyn in 1948 Jackie Robinson was at the height of his brilliant career.
There's a man in Mobile who remembers that Honus Wagner hit a triple in Pittsburgh 46 years ago. That's baseball.
It's been a terrific life.
I just have faith. It's just there. It's not any big deal.
I look on life as a joyous adventure.
Baseball is a ballet without music. Drama without words.
I think I owe thanks to the people who have listened to me over the years, who tuned in on the radio. They have given me a warmth and loyalty that I've never been able to repay. The way they have reached out to me has certainly been the highlight of my life.
In baseball, democracy shines its clearest. The only race that matters is the race to the bag. The creed is the rule book. And color, merely something to distinguish one team's uniform from another's.
Baseball is a lot like life. It's a day-to-day existence, full of ups and downs. You make the most of your opportunities in baseball as you do in life.