Sunday, April 1, 2007

So Long, Herb


For the third time in as many seasons, the Twins have lost someone very important to the organization just before Opening Day. In 2005 the team lost PA announcer Bob Casey, in 2006 it was the tragic and sudden passing of Kirby Puckett, and today the Twins have lost radio play-by-play man Herb Carneal.

The Twins came to Minnesota in 1961. Carneal arrived in 1962 and has been a large part of the radio broadcast ever since. In 1996 Carneal was given the Ford C. Frick Award for major contributions to baseball broadcasting and inducted into the Hall of Fame. In 2001 he was inducted into the Twins Hall of Fame and in 2005 the press box at the Metrodome was named in his honor.

Herb Carneal meant a lot to me personally. When I first moved to Minneapolis, I did not have a television and listened to every Twins game on WCCO 830 AM. Carneal was always my favorite of the Twins three announcers. He never got over excited, as John Gordon does, and sometimes had a great story about the Twins early days.

So Long, Herb Carneal. You will be sorely missed!

No comments: