Danny Parkins and Matt Spiegel, of 670 The Score in Chicago, couldn’t make it past one broadcast without missing former White Sox announcer Jason Benetti. Benetti made his Detroit Tigers broadcasting debut alongside Craig Monroe and Johnny Kane earlier this week in a Spring Training Game.
On the Tuesday edition of Parkins & Spiegel, the hosts hit on a hot topic in the Windy City, which is why Benetti is no longer calling White Sox games and chose instead to move, within the division, to Detroit.
Coming out of break, a clip was played of an old White Sox broadcast with Benetti and analyst Steve Stone talking about a sandwich served at the ballpark. Benetti took a bite of the sandwich on the air, which is really only notable because of things Benetti has said since his departure from Chicago.
Benetti had previously told Parkins and Spiegel that there were little things that he wasn’t such a fan of when it came to working with the White Sox, things like eating on camera or singing, but Benetti never pinpointed one specific thing as the reason why he decided to move to Detroit.
“I’m just saying all this to tell you all that it is super complicated and there were a ton of factors,” he said on 670 The Score in early December. “But in the end, it really is a thing that I felt like I was pulled to do.”
This week, when the clip was played, Spiegel jokingly said, “How dare you sell the experience and the product for a terrible organization…Get outta here.”
Parkins added Detroit wanted Benetti “…because they recognized his talent and his worth and they wanted to make him feel important.”
“They wanted to do a really good TV broadcast, do the Tigers, and they think a broadcaster should help to shape the TV broadcast,” Spiegel said. “…I do believe that the team should absolutely support and build the broadcast with the help of the broadcasters.”
After playing several clips of Benetti’s first Tigers game, the 670 The Score hosts both noticed something immediately. “How happy and excited did he sound to be there?,” asked Spiegel. “He sounds happy,” replied Parkins.
Benetti had been with the White Sox for eight seasons before he decided to take the position with the Tigers. The versatile play-by-play announcer, who also calls college football, college basketball and MLB games for FOX Sports, will call a minimum of 127 Tigers games each season, allowing him to continue his national broadcasting responsibilities.
