Red Sox legend Dennis Eckersley makes heartbreaking announcement
Dennis Eckersley will retire from NESN’s Red Sox broadcasts at the end of the 2022 season
Baseball in Boston will be a lot less lively next year.
On Monday morning, Dennis Eckersley announced via the Boston Globe (subscription required) that he will be stepping away from Red Sox broadcasts at the end of the regular season. Barring a miraculous turnaround, the team’s last game of the year will also be his. He and his wife are moving back to his home state of California to spend more time with their granddaughters:
"“There are times in your life when you realize you’ve got to get on with it. Having grandkids in the Bay Area and visiting them in the offseason, that pushed me along. I just knew, you need to go and be with the kids. Those formative years, you need to be there.There’s only so much time. How can you not see that in front of you without thinking, ‘Wait a minute, man.’ There have to be other priorities. You need to think of other people.”"
The NESN broadcasts were clearly preparing for this decision, as a new cast of characters joined the booth this year. Former Red Sox stars Kevin Youkilis and Kevin Millar are among the new personalities in the booth, and they’ve provided great insight and entertainment. Often, you’ll hear Eckersley’s Eckisms, as they’re so fondly known in Red Sox Nation, used by others in the booth. It’s not the same, though.
For years, Eck has made the best games better and the most unbearable games and worst losing seasons watchable. With his unique terminology (high cheese, branch work, Johnson, moss, pair of shoes) and clear passion for the game, Sox fans tune in even when they know the team is going nowhere.
Eck has been a part of the fabric of Fenway for decades, dating back to his first stint with the team as an eventual Hall of Fame pitcher from 1978-84. He wrapped up his career here in 1998 and has been with NESN since 2003. Many teams have pretty milquetoast coverage; Eck is one of the rare analysts who always tells it like it is and doesn’t mince words, and that’s what fans love about him. He’s grateful to NESN for letting him be himself:
"“NESN has been really great to me. They let me be whoever I wanted to be. They let me be myself. They just let me do my thing. When you think about it, when it’s all over, said and done, what a great partnership this has been for me and the Red Sox and NESN. It was made in heaven. I was just talking to Jennifer about it, how it was a place that mirrored my passions. Perfect match.”"
There are and will continue to be great new voices in the Sox booth, but Eck is irreplaceable. When he speaks about baseball, his love for the game is clear. What he feels cannot be taught or bought; it lives deep within his soul. It made him the perfect companion for the Fenway Faithful.
As sad as it is to say goodbye to Eck, it also makes sense that he’s stepping away, especially for such a good reason. It’s also probably been painful for him this season, doing games after losing his longtime friend and booth buddy, Jerry Remy, to cancer last fall.
Don’t miss the Sox season finale on October 5, Eck’s final game.
