Yesterday before their game against the Washington Nationals, the Phillies lost long-time broadcaster Harry Kalas. He was 73 years old.
Kalas was found collapsed in the broadcast booth around 12:30pm and rushed to a local hospital where doctors pronounced him dead around 1:20. Kalas is survived by his wife Eileen and sons Todd, Brad and Kane. Todd is a play-by-play man for the Tampa Bay Rays, and he did not attend last night’s home opener for the team.
Having been a Phillies fan for most of my life, Harry is a voice that I became very familiar with. My first memory of Harry was way back in the mid-90’s when he was partners with Andy Musser and Ritchie Ashburn. I remember the kid-like musings and the informal nature of their on-air conversations. It made for some great television.
I’ll remember seeing Harry in the booth at the ballpark, and pointing him out to my little sister. “That’s the voice you hear all the time on the TV,” I’d often tell her, but going to the games and not hearing the voice always made something feel wrong.
When the Phillies moved into their new ballpark in 2004 and John Kruk sat alongside Harry for the year it may have been my favorite announce team in the history of sports. Two guys who cared about the game and not much else made for some great one-liners.
I’ll remember the outta here’s, the long drive’s, the 1 ball-1 strikes, the struck him out’s and the Phillies win by the score of (insert score here).
I’ll remember in 2006 when Chase Utley scored from second on an infield chopper off the plate… “Chase Utley, you are the man!”
But what I’ll remember the most about Harry is the connection he had with people. By all accounts I’ve read online, Harry would never say an evil word about anyone; something that is all too commonly lost in today’s day in age. His co-workers loved him, the players loved him and us fans certainly loved him.
One of my fonder memories of Harry had nothing really to do with him at all. When I was in high school I played one year on the baseball team. Although I didn’t start many games on that squad, what I did do was sit in the dugout with my teammates and try to call each and every game like Harry would. My friends would laugh, the coaches would grin, and it would make the game much more interesting. That will be my lasting memory.
I was shocked to hear the news right before the game yesterday, and it didn’t hit me until 6:00 when Sportscenter played the audio from the final out of the World Series. I teared up a little, but I kept it in. It will be hard to watch the game tomorrow night when the Phillies take on the Nationals, and Harry won’t be welcoming me to National Park in Washington, D.C.
People who aren’t baseball fans won’t understand what someone like this means to the fabric of a culture. I’ve read all over the internet that Harry was the soundtrack to summers at the shore, backyard barbecues and summertime picnics. For those of you that don’t think Harry is a big deal, consider this.
The Phillies were scheduled to visit the White House and President Barack Obama today. That was postponed.
RIP Harry, you will be missed greatly not just by Philadelphians, but by baseball and the world.
