White Sox lose play-by-play announcer Jason Benetti to Detroit Tigers

The White Sox took another loss Thursday, this one in the TV booth.

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.

“I’m incredibly proud to join this historic and ascending Tigers franchise,” Benetti said in a statement. “From every single person I talked with throughout the interview process, it was clear why so many respected professionals and creative people have joined the organization in the last several years. There’s something special about it, and I’m excited to bring that energy to Tigers fans around the globe.”

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.

“Everyone I spent time with made it clear this was the right place for me,” Benetti said. “I was born and raised in the Midwest and understand how important sports are, especially here in the Motor City.”

Brooks Boyer, the Sox’s chief revenue/marketing boss, said radio voice Len Kasper will not be replacing Benetti.

“With Len Kasper fully committed to radio, our next step is to find the best person to pair with 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.

“As we have in the past when career-changing opportunities were made available for Jason’s consideration while under contract with the White Sox, including ESPN Sunday Night Baseball Statcasts, the Olympics, Peacock Sunday MLB games and most recently, becoming one of FOX’s top play-by-play talents for national broadcasts, we agreed to allow Jason to explore the opportunity with the Detroit Tigers, which he has accepted.

“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.”

https://www.dailyherald.com/sports/20231109/benetti-bolts-white-sox-joins-tigers-broadcast-booth