Selig, Reinsdorf Take Harrelson To The Woodshed

By Chuck Sudo in News on Jun 1, 2012 9:20PM

If White Sox announcer Ken "Hawk" Harrelson sounds pissy during the pregame tonight, it's probably because he's still red-assed from the talk baseball commissioner Bud Selig and White Sox chairman Jerry Reinsdorf gave him about his Wednesday meltdown in Tampa.

Harrelson described the one-sided chat to ESPN Chicago's Bruce Levine.

"We had a talk. Actually, Bud talked and I listened. If it was a prize fight, they would have stopped it in the first round.

"I also talked to Jerry, and I listened to him as well. That's all I really have to say."

White Sox senior vice president of sales and marketing Brooks Boyer said Harrelson would address the subject during tonight's broadcast.

While no one's talking about what was discussed, it's an even bet Selig took Harrelson to task for his over-the-top criticism of umpire Mark Wegner. We agree with Deadspin's Barry Petchesky: An announcer can show loyalty to the team for which he announces and can criticize an umpire when a bad call is made. Harrelson crossed the line into the unprofessional and the last thing Selig needs in a season where the umpiring is under more scrutiny than ever—including Deadspin's excellent "Better Know An Umpire" series—is an announcer who isn't regarded for his objectivity to scream on air like a mad man that some umpires "have no business umpiring because they don't know what the game of baseball is about."

Expect Harrelson to be apologetic without sincerity, because you can be assured this will happen again.

In more lighthearted Harrelson news, WSCR-AM took the Hawk's rant and turned it into a soundboard. Well, not a soundboard, per se, but they have clipped the best parts of the rant. We're turning "You gotta be bleepin' me!!!" into our new ringtone.