Former Braves broadcaster Ernie Johnson Sr. is a finalist for the 2024 Ford C. Frick Award, the National Baseball Hall of Fame announced Wednesday. The award is presented annually for excellence in baseball broadcasting by the Hall of Fame and Museum.
Johnson is one of 10 candidates on the ballot. The winner will be announced Dec. 6 at baseball’s winter meetings in Nashville, Tennessee. The other finalists are: Joe Buck, Joe Castiglione, Gary Cohen, Jacques Doucet, Tom Hamilton, Ken Korach, Mike Krukow, Duane Kuiper and Dan Shulman. The winner will be honored during the July 20 awards presentation as part of the July 19-22 Hall of Fame Weekend 2024 in Cooperstown. All of the 2024 Frick Award candidates are living except for Johnson, who died in 2011.
Johnson called Braves games for 35 seasons from 1962-91 and from 1995-99 following nine seasons as a major league pitcher that included a World Series ring with the 1957 Braves.
To be considered, an active or retired broadcaster must have a minimum of 10 years of continuous major league broadcast service with a ballclub, network, or a combination of the two.
The 2024 Frick Award ballot was created by a subcommittee of the voting electorate that included past Frick honorees Marty Brennaman, Bob Costas and Pat Hughes, and broadcast historians David J. Halberstam and Curt Smith.
Final voting for the 2024 Frick Award will be conducted by an electorate comprised of the 12 living Frick Award recipients and three broadcast historians/columnists, including past Frick honorees Brennaman, Costas, Ken Harrelson, Hughes, Jaime Jarrín, Tony Kubek, Denny Matthews, Al Michaels, Jon Miller, Eric Nadel, Bob Uecker and Dave Van Horne, and historians/columnists Halberstam (historian), Barry Horn (formerly of the Dallas Morning News), and Smith (historian).
The award is named in memory of Hall of Famer Ford C. Frick, renowned sportswriter, radio broadcaster, National League president and MLB commissioner.
