Appreciating the Braves announcers
So, how many of you remember that Larry Munson, who would later make his name as the voice of the Georgia Bulldogs, was one of the three original Braves announcers?
Munson joined Milo Hamilton and Ernie Johnson, who had not been too far retired from the game as a Milwaukee relief pitcher, as the announcers when the team moved from up north to Atlanta.
Bob Hope, the Braves former promotions and public relations director, told us recently that Munson lasted only that first season because Milo Hamilton didn't like him. Hamilton, who was an egomaniac, didn't feel Munson was in the same category as he was as an announcer.
Munson thankfully got a job in Athens as the voice of the Georgia football team. The rest, as they say, is history. Munson became one of the iconic voices of college football, and he's beloved as the forever voice of the Dawgs.
Can you imagine, though, if Munson had stayed in the booth and the Braves had gotten rid of Hamilton instead? Munson and Johnson could have formed a tremendous broadcast team that would have been incredible to listen to for years.
In a way, things worked out perfectly. Johnson became the lead announcer when Milo was fired in the late 1970s. And then, the Braves brought in Pete Van Wieren and Skip Caray. Johnson, Van Wieren and Caray became legendary announcers and fan favorites throughout the country.
Don Sutton and then Joe Simpson joined up in the 1990s, and then Chip Caray basically replaced his dad as the television voice. Jim Powell was Van Wieren's replacement, and he's been joined by Ben Ingram in the broadcast booth.
But man, could you imagine, along with him being the voice of the Dawgs, if Munson had also been the main voice of the Braves?
Listen to The Bill Shanks Show weekdays at 3:00 p.m. ET on Middle Georgia’s ESPN. You can listen online at TheSuperStations.com. Follow Bill on Twitter at @billshanks and you can email him at thebillshanksshow@yahoo.com.