Jason Benetti

Last updated

Jason Benetti
89 Seconds With 890 - Jason Benetti (cropped).png
Benetti at Guaranteed Rate Field in 2017
Born (1983-09-09) September 9, 1983 (age 40)
Chicago, Illinois, U.S.
Alma mater Syracuse University
Wake Forest University
Sports commentary career
Team(s) Chicago White Sox (2016–2023)
Detroit Tigers (2024–present)
Genre Play-by-play
Sport Major League Baseball
Employer

Jason Benetti (born September 9, 1983) [1] is an American sportscaster. He is the primary television play-by-play announcer for Detroit Tigers of Major League Baseball on Bally Sports Detroit. [2]

Contents

From 2016 to 2023, Benetti was the lead play-by-play announcer for Chicago White Sox of MLB, and served as an alternate play-by-play announcer for Chicago Bulls of the National Basketball Association, on NBC Sports Chicago. [3] Now primarily contracted with Fox Sports nationally, Benetti was formerly the main announcer for ESPN's alternate "StatCast" telecasts, and additionally has worked for NBC Sports, Westwood One, and Time Warner covering football, baseball, lacrosse, hockey, and basketball.

Early life and education

Benetti was born ten weeks prematurely at the University of Chicago Hospital, where he remained for the first three months of his life. [1] While in intensive care, Benetti developed a respiratory illness that deprived his blood of oxygen; this may have caused his cerebral palsy, which was diagnosed when he was a toddler. Benetti underwent years of physical therapy and two surgeries to improve his ability to walk. [4] [5]

Benetti grew up a few miles south of Chicago in Homewood, Illinois, [6] and graduated from the Homewood-Flossmoor High School in 2001. He ran the school's NCAA tournament pool and joined the school's radio station, WHFH (88.5) as a regular disc jockey and play-by-play announcer for Vikings sports coverage. [7] Benetti's cerebral palsy prevented him from playing tuba during marching band season. Not wanting to exclude him, the band director asked him to serve as the halftime broadcaster for their marching events. [8]

Benetti attended S. I. Newhouse School of Public Communications at Syracuse University and graduated in 2005 with bachelor's degrees in broadcast journalism, economics and psychology. [9] [10] At Syracuse, he worked at WAER-FM and WJPZ FM where he called Syracuse Orange lacrosse and women's basketball. [11]

After graduating from Syracuse, Benetti enrolled at Wake Forest University School of Law, where he earned a Juris Doctor degree in 2011. [10]

Career

During law school, Benetti acted as the voice of High Point Panthers basketball games, Syracuse Chiefs baseball games, [9] and high school sports for Time Warner Cable Sports Channel. [4] [12] He also worked in roles with Fox Sports 1, Westwood One, Big East Conference, IMG College, Salem Avalanche, and DePaul University. [10]

ESPN (2011–2022)

Benetti served as an intern for Chicago sports radio station WSCR. In 2011 Benetti joined ESPN, [8] where his broadcasting career would move him into television, despite his childhood preference for radio-only broadcasting. [4] Benetti would call select college basketball games for the ESPN3 online service, and then move on to ESPN2 and ESPNU. In 2013 Benetti called his first football game for ESPN's syndicated American Athletic Conference package.

In 2020, Benetti signed a multi-year extension with ESPN, and during that year called KBO League games remotely for the network due to the COVID-19-induced delay of the 2020 Major League Baseball season. [13]

Chicago White Sox (2016–2023)

Beginning with the 2016 season, Benetti replaced recently retired Hall of fame broadcaster Ken Harrelson as the television play-by-play announcer for select Chicago White Sox home and road games, where he would be paired with Steve Stone. [6] [5] In May 2017, the White Sox announced Benetti would take over full-time play-by-play duties in 2019 upon Harrelson's retirement. After the 2023 season, Benetti left the White Sox, citing a disrespectful remark from the team's chief revenue and marketing officer Brooks Boyer as an example of his strained relationship with the team's front office. [14]

Detroit Tigers (2024–present)

In November 2023, Benetti was named as the principal play-by-play announcer for Detroit Tigers telecasts on Bally Sports Detroit beginning in the 2024 season. [15] [16]

Benetti also co-hosts the interview-style podcast Have A Seat with Tigers radio announcer Dan Dickerson. [17]

NBC (2021–2022)

In 2021, Benetti was named as play-by-play announcer for NBC's coverage of baseball at the 2020 Summer Olympics. [18] [19]

On April 26, 2022, it was reported that Benetti would serve as the lead play-by-play announcer for the new NBC Sports-produced MLB Sunday Leadoff games for Peacock, joined by rotating analysts representing the teams in each game. [20]

Fox (2022–present)

In August 2022, Benetti moved to Fox Sports and does play by play for Fox's coverage of college football and basketball, as well as Major League Baseball. [21] [22] Even after the move, he continued calling games for NBC Sports Chicago. [23]

In week 17 and 18 of the 2022 NFL season, Benetti would work his first games for the NFL on Fox, doing play-by-play as the Arizona Cardinals visited the Atlanta Falcons to start, followed by the Carolina Panthers against the New Orleans Saints in week 18 and filled-in for Brandon Gaudin, who filled-in for Wayne Larrivee on the Green Bay Packers radio network. [24]

Personal life

Benetti works with the CHAT ("Communication Hope through Assistive Technology") Camp at Syracuse University's Burton Blatt Institute. [10] [25] At Syracuse’s Newhouse School, he taught sports broadcasting as an adjunct professor. [10]

Benetti is part of the Cerebral Palsy Foundation's "Just Say Hi" campaign. [6]

Notes

  1. ↑ Benetti was hired to cover the 2020 Summer Olympics for baseball, and he was later hired to cover Major League Baseball games for their streaming service Peacock under the name MLB Sunday Leadoff

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Chicago White Sox</span> Major League Baseball franchise in Chicago, Illinois

The Chicago White Sox are an American professional baseball team based in Chicago. The White Sox compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) Central Division. The team is owned by Jerry Reinsdorf, and plays its home games at Guaranteed Rate Field, located on Chicago's South Side. They are one of two MLB teams based in Chicago, alongside the National League (NL)’s Chicago Cubs.

Sean McDonough is an American sportscaster, currently employed by ESPN and the WEEI Boston Red Sox Radio Network.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Matt Vasgersian</span> American sportscaster

Matt Vasgersian is an American sportscaster and television host. Vasgersian is a play-by-play announcer for the Los Angeles Angels, as well as a studio host for MLB Network and FOX Sports. In the past, he has served as an announcer for Fox Sports' National Football League and Major League Baseball coverage, ESPN's coverage of Major League Baseball, NBC Sports' coverage of the Olympic Games, and NBC Sports' coverage of the original XFL. He formerly called play-by-play for the Milwaukee Brewers and the San Diego Padres.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Ken Harrelson</span> American baseball player and broadcaster

Kenneth Smith Harrelson, nicknamed "the Hawk" due to his distinctive profile, is an American former professional baseball player and television announcer. He played in Major League Baseball (MLB) from 1963 to 1971 as a first baseman and outfielder, and he subsequently spent 33 years as a play-by-play broadcast announcer for the Chicago White Sox. In December 2019, Harrelson was named the 2020 recipient of the Ford C. Frick Award, presented annually to one broadcaster for "major contributions to baseball".

Len Kasper is an American sportscaster. As of 2023 he is the radio play-by-play announcer for the Chicago White Sox of Major League Baseball, teaming with color analyst Darrin Jackson on ESPN 1000 and the Chicago White Sox Radio Network.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Dave Flemming</span> American sportscaster

David Braxton Flemming is an American sportscaster who has been a play-by-play announcer for the San Francisco Giants of Major League Baseball since 2003. Flemming also calls college football, college basketball, major league baseball, and golf on ESPN, as well as the World Series and World Baseball Classic for MLB International.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">John Rooney (sportscaster)</span> American sportscaster

John Rooney is an American sportscaster, currently best known as a play-by-play announcer for radio broadcasts of Major League Baseball's St. Louis Cardinals.

Major League Baseball on NBC is the de facto branding for weekly broadcasts of Major League Baseball (MLB) games that are produced by NBC Sports, and televised on the NBC television network; and, as of 2022, as well as on its co-owned streaming service, Peacock. Major League Baseball games first aired on the network from 1947 to 1989, including The NBC Game of the Week, when CBS acquired the broadcast television rights.

<i>MLB Network Showcase</i> American TV series or program

MLB Network Showcase is the title of a presentation of Major League Baseball on cable and satellite channel MLB Network that premiered on April 9, 2009. The network produces in-house 26 non-exclusive live games a season. Since one or both teams' local TV rights holders also carry the games, the MLB Network feed is subject to local blackouts. In that event, the cities in the blacked-out markets will instead see a simulcast of another scheduled game via one team's local TV rights holder. MLB Network Showcase typically airs one game a week.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Dave O'Brien (sportscaster)</span> American sportscaster

David O'Brien, nicknamed "OB", is an American sportscaster who is a lead play-by-play announcer on the New England Sports Network (NESN) for telecasts of the Boston Red Sox of Major League Baseball (MLB), and for college football and college basketball games aired on the ESPN Inc.-owned ACC Network. He has previously broadcast for MLB's Atlanta Braves, Florida Marlins, and New York Mets, and has announced other sports including basketball, football, and soccer.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Bally Sports Detroit</span> American regional sports network

Bally Sports Detroit (BSD) is an American regional sports network owned by Diamond Sports Group that operates as a Bally Sports affiliate. It provides coverage of local sports teams in the state of Michigan, primarily focusing on those in Metro Detroit. The network airs exclusive broadcasts of games involving the Detroit Tigers, Detroit Pistons, and Detroit Red Wings; repeats of Detroit Lions preseason games; and some state college and high school sports.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Dan Dickerson</span> American sportscaster

Daniel Hill Dickerson is an American sportscaster, best known for his current position as the lead radio play-by-play voice of Major League Baseball's Detroit Tigers on the Detroit Tigers Radio Network.

The following is a list of announcers who called Major League Baseball telecasts for the joint venture between Major League Baseball, ABC and NBC called The Baseball Network. Announcers who represented each of the teams playing in the respective games were typically paired with each other on regular season Baseball Night in America telecasts. ABC used Al Michaels, Jim Palmer, Tim McCarver and Lesley Visser as the lead broadcasting team. Meanwhile, NBC used Bob Costas, Joe Morgan, Bob Uecker and Jim Gray as their lead broadcasting team.

Eric Collins is a play-by-play sports announcer, currently the voice of the NBA's Charlotte Hornets on Bally Sports South. Collins is widely considered to be one of the greatest active commentators in the sports commentator world.

MLB International is a division of Major League Baseball primarily responsible for international broadcasts of games. In partnership with DirecTV and MLB Network, it produces and syndicates the All-Star Game, and the World Series, as well as the Caribbean Series, the Australian Baseball League Championship Series and the World Baseball Classic to broadcasters in over 200 countries, and the American Forces Network for U.S. military troops abroad. It previously broadcast the NLCS and ALCS, alternating between the two each year. MLB International broadcasts content that shows baseball in a local context, e.g. sneaker shopping in Japan or baseball games in India, and explains concepts and rules of baseball to viewers who may not be familiar with the sport.

Steven Kenneth Zabriskie is an American former television sports announcer who is best known for calling Major League Baseball and college football.

Alex Faust is an American television sportscaster who is currently the TV play-by-play voice for the Boston Bruins and occasional radio play-by-play voice for the New York Rangers and formerly the Los Angeles Kings of the National Hockey League (NHL). He also calls national NHL games for TNT, and national Major League Baseball (MLB) games for Apple TV+ and Fox Sports. He gained additional fame in 2018 when Jeopardy! host Alex Trebek suggested that Faust could replace him as the show's host.

<i>MLB Sunday Leadoff</i> Baseball games on Peacock

MLB Sunday Leadoff was an American presentation of Major League Baseball (MLB) games produced by NBC Sports for the NBCUniversal-owned streaming service Peacock. One game each season was simulcast on NBC. It was NBC Sports' first national MLB package since 2000.

The following is a general overview of Major League Baseball on television in the 2020s. During the 2020s, Major League Baseball announced its first exclusive television contract with a paid streaming service. Due to the bankruptcy of Diamond Sports Group, MLB took over the production of the local broadcasts of the San Diego Padres and Arizona Diamondbacks.

References

  1. 1 2 Skrbina, Paul. "The fit is great". The Chicago Tribune . Retrieved August 2, 2022. ...1983...Sept. 9, Jason Benetti was born...
  2. ↑ Petzold, Evan (November 9, 2023). "Jason Benetti signs multi-year contract with Detroit Tigers as TV play-by-play broadcaster". Detroit Free Press . Retrieved November 9, 2023.
  3. ↑ "Jason Benetti Profile". Archived from the original on April 7, 2014.
  4. 1 2 3 "Jason Benetti Is Voice of Hope in Face of Cerebral Palsy". AOL News. Archived from the original on March 17, 2013.
  5. 1 2 "New 32-year-old White Sox broadcaster manages cerebral palsy". USA TODAY . AP. April 8, 2016. Retrieved October 25, 2022.
  6. 1 2 3 Van Schouwen, Daryl (June 24, 2016). "White Sox adding Jason Benetti to play-by-play team". Chicago Sun-Times . Retrieved October 25, 2022.
  7. ↑ Maese, Rick (July 5, 2013). "Jason Benetti, Syracuse Chiefs announcer, refuses to let cerebral palsy affect his game". Washington Post .
  8. 1 2 "Disability is no impediment for ESPN play-by-play man Benetti". ESPN . January 22, 2014.
  9. 1 2 Blum, Sam (April 22, 2014). "His calling: Jason Benetti uses disability as motivation to achieve career success in announcing". The Daily Orange . Retrieved October 25, 2022.
  10. 1 2 3 4 5 "For the People Speaker Series: Jason Benetti". Abraham Lincoln Presidential Library and Museum . October 18, 2022. Retrieved October 25, 2022.
  11. ↑ Muoio, William (February 18, 2016). "Newhouse Alumnus Tapped to Call Hometown Team, Chicago White Sox, for ESPN". Syracuse University News. Retrieved December 21, 2021.
  12. ↑ Leo, Tom (October 27, 2010). "The Voice of Hustle: Jason Benetti stacks up the sports assignments and attends law school despite a mild case of cerebral palsy". The Post Standard. Retrieved October 14, 2020.
  13. ↑ Ufnowski, Amy (October 1, 2020). "Play-by-play voice Jason Benetti has signed a multi-year extension; he reflects on his career and his colleagues cheer the news". ESPN.
  14. ↑ Agrest, Jeff (November 16, 2023). "Jason Benetti's departure from White Sox hastened by contentious relationship with exec Brooks Boyer". Chicago Sun-Times . Archived from the original on November 17, 2023. Retrieved March 31, 2024.
  15. ↑ "Why new Tigers play-by-play voice Jason Benetti left his hometown White Sox for Detroit". The Detroit News. Retrieved November 10, 2023.
  16. ↑ Masur, Andy (May 19, 2022). "Anatomy Of A Broadcaster: Jason Benetti". Barrett Sports Media. Retrieved October 25, 2022.
  17. ↑ Introducing Have a Seat with Jason Benetti & Dan Dickerson Detroit Tigers Official YouTube Channel
  18. ↑ Rosenthal, Phil (June 3, 2021). "Jason Benetti is set to call Olympic baseball for NBC this summer, the latest broadcasting gig for the Chicago White Sox announcer". Chicago Tribune.
  19. ↑ Enslin, Rob (July 20, 2021). "Orange Voices of the Summer Olympics". Syracuse University . Retrieved December 23, 2021.
  20. ↑ Rigdon, Jay (April 26, 2022). "Jason Benetti will lead Peacock's Sunday MLB broadcasts with a rotating booth of analysts". Awful Announcing.
  21. ↑ "Jason Benetti on why he's leaving ESPN and his 'amazing' move to the Fox booth". The Athletic. Retrieved August 6, 2022.
  22. ↑ Casselberry, Ian (August 30, 2022). "Jason Benetti Moving to Fox For College Football is His Gain and ESPN's Loss". Barrett Media. Retrieved October 31, 2022.
  23. ↑ Agrest, Jeff (August 4, 2022). "Jason Benetti's move to Fox indicative of ESPN's problem in booth". Chicago Sun-Times . Retrieved October 31, 2022.
  24. ↑ Bucholtz, Andrew (December 28, 2022). "Jason Benetti will call his first NFL on Fox game Sunday". Awful Announcing. Retrieved January 19, 2023.
  25. ↑ Benetti, Jason. "Sports announcer: 'The way I look is a small part of who I am'". CNN.
Preceded by Lead play-by-play announcer,
Major League Baseball on NBC
2022 		Succeeded by
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.