Hall of Fame baseball broadcaster Milo Hamilton, known for his call of Hank Aaron’s historic 715th home run, has died. He was 88.
Hamilton spent 67 years in broadcasting including two stints with the Cubs (1955-57, 1980-84) and one with the White Sox (1961-65. Locally, Hamilton also called DePaul and Loyola college basketball games in the early 1980s.
Fans might recall some of Hamilton’s signature phrases, including “Holy Toledo!” and “hotter than a depot stove.”
Hamilton spent the last 25 years of his career as the voice of the Astros before retiring in 2012.
The Astros released the following statement:
Today, the entire Astros family and many throughout the baseball world are mourning the loss of our friend, Milo Hamilton. For decades, Milo had a special connection with the Houston community, bringing Astros baseball to the cars and homes of fans throughout the great state of Texas and beyond. During his legendary career, we enjoyed the privilege of Milo calling some of the greatest moments in Astros history. In addition to his great work in the booth, Milo was also an outstanding ambassador for Astros baseball, a mantle he carried with a great deal of pride. While we mourn his sad passing, we should also celebrate Milo’s long, wonderful career. He was one of the all-time greats and a true icon whose contributions to the game and beyond will be remembered always.
It is with great sadness that we report the passing of Frick Award winner Milo Hamilton: http://t.co/QKVnZCM61O pic.twitter.com/GbsNnvCkyp
— National Baseball Hall of Fame and Museum ⚾ (@baseballhall) September 17, 2015
Hall of Fame broadcaster Milo Hamilton dies at age 88 http://t.co/5DYkBZlB5P via @cbssports pic.twitter.com/VDK2Vvdpn7
— CBS Sports MLB (@CBSSportsMLB) September 17, 2015
