Ford C. Frick Award


The Ford C. Frick Award is presented annually by the Baseball Hall of Fame in the United States to a broadcaster for "major contributions to baseball". It is named for Ford C. Frick, former commissioner of baseball. Prior to his career as an executive, Frick was a baseball writer and occasional broadcaster; he gained fame as a ghostwriter for Babe Ruth in the 1920s. The award was created in 1978, and named in tribute to Frick following his death that year.
Recipients of the award are not members of the Hall of Fame—they are not "inducted" or "enshrined", they are not "Hall of Fame broadcasters", and there is no "broadcasters' wing" of the Hall of Fame—they are officially "honorees." The award is given at a separate ceremony from the induction ceremony on Hall of Fame weekend. As with recipients of the BBWAA Career Excellence Award for baseball writing, the honorees are permanently recognized in a "Scribes & Mikemen" exhibit in the Hall's library.

Selection

Detail on the selection process for the award when it was first established is lacking.
From to, fans were allowed to vote for three of the award's ten annual nominees; in the final years of fan voting, it was conducted on the Hall's Facebook page. Through, seven candidates were selected by a committee consisting of previous Frick Award winners and broadcast historians and columnists, which also determined the final recipient. Beginning with the award, the final election committee no longer selected any of the finalists; that became the role of a Hall of Fame research committee.

2014 changes

Other changes in the selection process were also announced for the 2014 award; these changes were similar to those instituted in 2010 for Veterans Committee balloting. From 2014 to 2016, candidates were considered every third year, based on the era in which they made their most significant contributions:
  • "High Tide Era": Mid-1980s to present, including the rise of regional cable networks. Individuals from this era were considered for the 2014 award.
  • "Living Room Era": Mid-1950s to early 1980s, reflecting the rise of television. Individuals from this era were considered for the 2015 award.
  • "Broadcasting Dawn Era": Origin of broadcasting to early 1950s. Individuals from this era were first considered for the 2016 award.

    2017 changes

The Hall of Fame announced further changes to the selection process in 2016 that took effect immediately, with the first award affected by these changes being that for 2017. Fan voting was eliminated, and the final ballot was cut from 10 to 8. Candidates were still considered every third year, but in mostly different categories:
  • "Current Major League Markets": Broadcasters who made their mark with one or more specific MLB teams. These individuals were first considered for the 2017 award.
  • "National Voices": Broadcasters who made their contributions with national media. These individuals were first considered for the 2018 award.
  • "Broadcasting Beginnings": Pioneers of baseball broadcasting, roughly covering the time span of the previous "Broadcasting Dawn Era". These individuals were first considered for the 2019 award.

    2022 changes

In April 2022, the Hall of Fame announced further changes to the Frick Award selection process. The size of the ballot was restored to 10 nominees, while also requiring that at least one candidate be a foreign-language broadcaster. The election cycle was also revised, effective with the 2023 balloting: four consecutive elections will have a composite ballot of local and national broadcasters, followed by one election for broadcasters whose careers ended prior to 1994. Thus, recipients will be selected per the following balloting rotation, which will then repeat:
  • Composite ballot :, 2024, 2025, 2026
  • Pre-Wild Card Era ballot: 2027

    Veterans Committee participation

For several years in the early 2000s, Frick Award honorees also became life members of the Veterans Committee, which considers candidates for Hall of Fame induction who are not eligible for the regular voting by the Baseball Writers' Association of America - specifically, players no longer on the BBWAA ballot and all non-players. However, starting with the elections, voting for players on the main Veterans Committee ballot was restricted to Hall of Fame members. After further changes announced for the elections, Frick Award winners became eligible to serve on the voting bodies that replaced the Veterans Committee that consider candidates from different eras of baseball.

Recipients

YearHonoreePrimary affiliation
1978New York Yankees
1978Brooklyn Dodgers, New York Yankees
1979Chicago White Sox, Chicago Cubs, Mutual
1980New York/San Francisco Giants
1981Detroit Tigers
1982Brooklyn/Los Angeles Dodgers, NBC, CBS Radio
1983Chicago Cubs, Chicago White Sox
1984Boston Red Sox, NBC
1985New York Yankees, New York Mets
1986Pittsburgh Pirates
1987St. Louis Cardinals, CBS
1988New York Mets
1989St. Louis Cardinals, Chicago White Sox, Chicago Cubs
1990Philadelphia Phillies, Philadelphia Athletics
1991St. Louis Cardinals, NBC
1992Houston Astros
1993Baltimore Orioles
1994New York Mets
1995Washington Senators, NBC
1996Minnesota Twins
1997Cleveland Indians
1998Los Angeles Dodgers
1999Washington Senators
2000Cincinnati Reds
2001Florida Marlins
2002Philadelphia Phillies
2003Milwaukee Brewers, ABC, NBC
2004San Francisco Giants, Oakland Athletics
2005San Diego Padres
2006Houston Astros, CBS Radio
2007Kansas City Royals
2008Seattle Mariners
2009Toronto Blue Jays, New York Yankees, NBC
2010Baltimore Orioles, San Francisco Giants, ESPN
2011Montreal Expos, Florida Marlins
2012New York Mets, ABC, CBS, Fox
2013Toronto Blue Jays
2014Texas Rangers
2015California Angels, San Diego Padres, NBC
2016NBC Radio
2017Oakland Athletics
2018NBC, MLB Network
2019Brooklyn Dodgers, Mutual
2020Chicago White Sox
2021Cincinnati Reds, San Francisco Giants, ABC
2022Cleveland Indians
2023Pat HughesMilwaukee Brewers, Chicago Cubs
2024Joe CastiglioneBoston Red Sox
2025Tom HamiltonCleveland Indians/Guardians
2026Joe BuckSt. Louis Cardinals, Fox

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