Hank Greenwald
Encyclopedia
Howard "Hank" Greenwald is a former Major League Baseball
announcer, known best for being a play-by-play announcer for the San Francisco Giants
.
Hall of Famer Hank Greenberg
. He began his broadcasting career calling football games for his alma mater Syracuse University
. He was also a broadcaster for the former NBA team, the Syracuse Nationals
. In the 1960s, he broadcast Hawaii Islanders
baseball in the Pacific Coast League
.
, but ended this stint in 1986
, after Greenwald had a disagreement with station management. After joining the New York Yankees
radio broadcast team for the next two seasons, Greenwald returned to the Giants in 1989
when the team reached the World Series
. Greenwald later expressed resentment toward Yankees owner George Steinbrenner
, saying "Steinbrenner is everything you've heard, maybe worse."
He remained in San Francisco until 1996
, when he announced his retirement. At the time he retired, Greenwald had announced 2,798 consecutive games. In his book This Copyrighted Broadcast, Greenwald cites disagreements with Giants' Vice President Larry Baer
as his reason for retiring. The Giants hired former Baltimore Orioles
and ESPN
announcer Jon Miller
as Greenwald's replacement.
Perhaps Hank Greenwald's most memorable call was his emotional description of the final out in Game 5 of the 1989 National League Championship Series
(which sent the San Francisco Giants to the World Series
for the first time since 1962
).
, Greenwald was hired as a television play-by-play announcer for the Oakland Athletics
working about 1/3 of the team's telecasts with analyst Ray Fosse
. He announced games for the A's in the 2004 and 2005
seasons.
(with legendary announcer Bill King
) and the University of San Francisco Dons
.
. His first game announcing for the major league Giants was on September 6, 2009; he filled in for regular announcer Dave Flemming
, whose wife was expected to give birth. Most recently, he also had to fill in for both Flemming and fellow broadcaster Jon Miller
during a July 23–25, 2010 series against the Arizona Diamondbacks
since Miller had to go up to Cooperstown
to receive the Ford C. Frick Award, and Flemming also had to be there to support him after Flemming solely called the first game on July 22. Like Flemming, Doug solely called the remaining three games on the radio accompanied by color commentator J. T. Snow
.
Major League Baseball
Major League Baseball is the highest level of professional baseball in the United States and Canada, consisting of teams that play in the National League and the American League...
announcer, known best for being a play-by-play announcer for the San Francisco Giants
San Francisco Giants
The San Francisco Giants are a Major League Baseball team based in San Francisco, California, playing in the National League West Division....
.
Early career
Greenwald changed his name from Howard to Hank to honor Detroit TigersDetroit Tigers
The Detroit Tigers are a Major League Baseball team located in Detroit, Michigan. One of the American League's eight charter franchises, the club was founded in Detroit in as part of the Western League. The Tigers have won four World Series championships and have won the American League pennant...
Hall of Famer Hank Greenberg
Hank Greenberg
Henry Benjamin "Hank" Greenberg , nicknamed "Hammerin' Hank" or "The Hebrew Hammer," was an American professional baseball player in the 1930s and 1940s. A first baseman primarily for the Detroit Tigers, Greenberg was one of the premier power hitters of his generation...
. He began his broadcasting career calling football games for his alma mater Syracuse University
Syracuse University
Syracuse University is a private research university located in Syracuse, New York, United States. Its roots can be traced back to Genesee Wesleyan Seminary, founded by the Methodist Episcopal Church in 1832, which also later founded Genesee College...
. He was also a broadcaster for the former NBA team, the Syracuse Nationals
Syracuse Nationals
The Syracuse Nationals were an American professional basketball team that existed from 1946 to 1963 as part of the National Basketball League and National Basketball Association . They are currently known as the Philadelphia 76ers, and are the NBA's oldest continued franchise.The team began in...
. In the 1960s, he broadcast Hawaii Islanders
Hawaii Islanders
The Hawaii Islanders were a AAA minor league baseball team, based in Honolulu, Hawaii, that played in the Pacific Coast League from 1961 through 1987. The Islanders were originally an affiliate of the Kansas City Athletics. They played their home games at Honolulu Stadium, Honolulu's Aloha Stadium...
baseball in the Pacific Coast League
Pacific Coast League
The Pacific Coast League is a minor-league baseball league operating in the Western, Midwestern and Southeastern United States. Along with the International League and the Mexican League, it is one of three leagues playing at the Triple-A level, which is one step below Major League Baseball.The...
.
San Francisco Giants (first and second stints) and the New York Yankees
Greenwald began calling games for the Giants in 19791979 San Francisco Giants season
- Offseason :* December 4, 1978: Max Venable was drafted by the Giants from the Los Angeles Dodgers in the 1978 rule 5 draft.* December 5, 1978: Darrell Evans was signed as a free agent by the Giants....
, but ended this stint in 1986
1986 San Francisco Giants season
-Offseason:* October 24, 1985: George Riley and Alonzo Powell were traded by the Giants to the Montreal Expos for Bill Laskey.* December 11, 1985: Manny Trillo was traded by the Giants to the Chicago Cubs for Dave Owen....
, after Greenwald had a disagreement with station management. After joining the New York Yankees
New York Yankees
The New York Yankees are a professional baseball team based in the The Bronx, New York. They compete in Major League Baseball in the American League's East Division...
radio broadcast team for the next two seasons, Greenwald returned to the Giants in 1989
1989 San Francisco Giants season
The 1989 San Francisco Giants season saw the Giants finish in first place in the National League West with a record of 92 wins and 70 losses. It was their second division title in three years. The Giants defeated the Chicago Cubs in five games in the National League Championship Series...
when the team reached the World Series
1989 World Series
†: Game 3 was originally slated for October 17 at 5:35 pm; however, it was postponed when an earthquake occurred at 5:04 pm.-Game 1:Saturday, October 14, 1989 at Oakland-Alameda County Coliseum in Oakland, California...
. Greenwald later expressed resentment toward Yankees owner George Steinbrenner
George Steinbrenner
George Michael Steinbrenner III was an American businessman who was the principal owner and managing partner of Major League Baseball's New York Yankees. During Steinbrenner's 37-year ownership from 1973 to his death in July 2010, the longest in club history, the Yankees earned seven World Series...
, saying "Steinbrenner is everything you've heard, maybe worse."
He remained in San Francisco until 1996
1996 San Francisco Giants season
-Offseason:* October 6, 1995: Mike Benjamin was traded by the Giants to the Philadelphia Phillies for Jeff Juden and Tommy Eason .* October 26, 1995: John Roper was claimed off waivers from the Giants by the Cincinnati Reds....
, when he announced his retirement. At the time he retired, Greenwald had announced 2,798 consecutive games. In his book This Copyrighted Broadcast, Greenwald cites disagreements with Giants' Vice President Larry Baer
Larry Baer
Laurence M. Baer is the Chief Operating Officer of the San Francisco Giants of Major League Baseball. He will succeed Bill Neukom as Chief Executive Officer on January 1, 2012.-Career:...
as his reason for retiring. The Giants hired former Baltimore Orioles
Baltimore Orioles
The Baltimore Orioles are a professional baseball team based in Baltimore, Maryland in the United States. They are a member of the Eastern Division of Major League Baseball's American League. One of the American League's eight charter franchises in 1901, it spent its first year as a major league...
and ESPN
ESPN Major League Baseball
ESPN Major League Baseball is a promotion of Major League Baseball on ESPN and ESPN2, with simulcasts on ESPNHD or ESPN2HD. ESPN's MLB coverage debuted on April 9, 1990 with three Opening Day telecasts. ESPN Major League Baseball is guaranteed to remain on air until 2013.The title is derived from...
announcer Jon Miller
Jon Miller
Jon Wallace Miller is an American sportscaster, known primarily for his broadcasts of Major League Baseball. He is currently employed as a play-by-play announcer for the San Francisco Giants. He was also a baseball announcer on ESPN until the network chose not to renew his contract following the...
as Greenwald's replacement.
Perhaps Hank Greenwald's most memorable call was his emotional description of the final out in Game 5 of the 1989 National League Championship Series
1989 National League Championship Series
-Game 1:Wednesday, October 4, 1989 at Wrigley Field in Chicago, IllinoisThe Giants entered the series as slight favorites due to the MVP season of Kevin Mitchell, the solid play of Will Clark, and the best ERA in baseball by pitcher Scott Garrelts...
(which sent the San Francisco Giants to the World Series
1989 World Series
†: Game 3 was originally slated for October 17 at 5:35 pm; however, it was postponed when an earthquake occurred at 5:04 pm.-Game 1:Saturday, October 14, 1989 at Oakland-Alameda County Coliseum in Oakland, California...
for the first time since 1962
1962 World Series
The 1962 World Series matched the defending American League and World Series champions New York Yankees against the National League champion San Francisco Giants, who had won their first NL pennant since 1954 and first since moving from New York in 1958, defeating the Los Angeles Dodgers in a...
).
Oakland Athletics
In 20042004 Oakland Athletics season
The Oakland Athletics' 2004 season involved the A's finishing 2nd in the American League West with a record of 91 wins and 71 losses.-Offseason:*October 9, 2003: Marco Scutaro was selected off waivers by the Oakland Athletics from the New York Mets....
, Greenwald was hired as a television play-by-play announcer for the Oakland Athletics
Oakland Athletics
The Oakland Athletics are a Major League Baseball team based in Oakland, California. The Athletics are a member of the Western Division of Major League Baseball's American League. From to the present, the Athletics have played in the O.co Coliseum....
working about 1/3 of the team's telecasts with analyst Ray Fosse
Ray Fosse
Raymond Earl Fosse is a former professional baseball player who was a catcher in the Major Leagues. He was drafted in the first round of the 1965 amateur draft by the Cleveland Indians. Fosse also holds the distinction of being the Indians' first ever draft pick, as 1965 was the first year of the...
. He announced games for the A's in the 2004 and 2005
2005 Oakland Athletics season
The Oakland Athletics' 2005 season involved the A's finishing 2nd in the American League West with a record of 88 wins and 74 losses.The A's started 17-32, but went on a hot streak to find themselves battling for first place by mid-August...
seasons.
Other San Francisco Bay Area assignments
Greenwald also has called basketball play-by-play for the Golden State WarriorsGolden State Warriors
The Golden State Warriors are an American professional basketball team based in Oakland, California. They are part of the Pacific Division of the Western Conference in the National Basketball Association...
(with legendary announcer Bill King
Bill King
* For the British author and games designer see, William King * For the British naval officer, yachtsman and author, see Commander Bill King*For the Australian rugby league footballer, see Bill King ...
) and the University of San Francisco Dons
San Francisco Dons men's basketball
The San Francisco Dons basketball team represents the University of San Francisco in National Collegiate Athletic Association Division I men's college basketball. The Dons compete in the West Coast Conference, in which they have won sixteen regular season and one conference tournament...
.
Doug Greenwald
His son Doug, named after General Douglas MacArthur, is the play-by-play announcer for the Giants' AAA team, the Fresno GrizzliesFresno Grizzlies
The Fresno Grizzlies are a minor league baseball team based in Fresno, California. The team, which plays in the Pacific Coast League , is the Triple-A affiliate of the San Francisco Giants major league club. The Grizzlies play in Chukchansi Park , located in downtown Fresno and built in 2002...
. His first game announcing for the major league Giants was on September 6, 2009; he filled in for regular announcer Dave Flemming
Dave Flemming
David Braxton "Dave" Flemming is an American sportscaster and television personality, currently working as a play-by-play announcer for the San Francisco Giants of Major League Baseball as well as the Stanford Cardinal football and basketball teams.Flemming grew up in Alexandria, Virginia,...
, whose wife was expected to give birth. Most recently, he also had to fill in for both Flemming and fellow broadcaster Jon Miller
Jon Miller
Jon Wallace Miller is an American sportscaster, known primarily for his broadcasts of Major League Baseball. He is currently employed as a play-by-play announcer for the San Francisco Giants. He was also a baseball announcer on ESPN until the network chose not to renew his contract following the...
during a July 23–25, 2010 series against the Arizona Diamondbacks
Arizona Diamondbacks
The Arizona Diamondbacks are a professional baseball team based in Phoenix. They play in the West Division of Major League Baseball's National League. From 1998 to the present, they have played in Chase Field...
since Miller had to go up to Cooperstown
Cooperstown, New York
Cooperstown is a village in Otsego County, New York, USA. It is located in the Town of Otsego. The population was estimated to be 1,852 at the 2010 census.The Village of Cooperstown is the county seat of Otsego County, New York...
to receive the Ford C. Frick Award, and Flemming also had to be there to support him after Flemming solely called the first game on July 22. Like Flemming, Doug solely called the remaining three games on the radio accompanied by color commentator J. T. Snow
J. T. Snow
Jack Thomas "J. T." Snow, Jr. is a former Major League Baseball player. He played all but two games in his career as a first baseman, and played nine of his 13½ seasons with the San Francisco Giants...
.