White Sox hire ESPN’s John Schriffen as new TV voice

In talking with candidates for the White Sox’ TV job, chairman Jerry Reinsdorf made sure they understood that he expected the Sox to be their priority. Reinsdorf had tired of losing former TV voice Jason Benetti to national networks.

So John Schriffen’s words must’ve been music to Reinsdorf’s ears during their meeting about succeeding Benetti, who left the Sox in November for the Tigers’ TV booth.

“I want to be the voice and face of the Chicago White Sox broadcast,” said Schriffen, who works for ESPN. “That’s something I talked about with Jerry early on. Whoever he hired, he wanted to make sure that this was going to be their main priority, and I said I am very clear on that.”

On Thursday, the Sox gave Schriffen a multiyear deal to be their play-by-play voice alongside analyst Steve Stone. Schriffen, 39, was among three finalists for the job, with Red Sox radio voice Will Flemming and ESPN 1000’s Connor McKnight. Schriffen, who is biracial, becomes the second Black TV play-by-play announcer in MLB, joining the Mariners’ Dave Sims.

Schriffen joined ESPN in August 2020 to call Korea Baseball Organization games. He also has called college basketball, football, softball and baseball, but he has limited experience with major-league baseball. Just two years ago, Schriffen began calling select weekend MLB games for ESPN Radio, including “Sunday Night Baseball.” He hopes to continue working for ESPN in the offseason.

Schriffen graduated from Dartmouth, where he pitched on the school’s baseball team as a freshman before an arm injury derailed his career. He instead became the voice of Dartmouth athletics, calling baseball, basketball and hockey on the radio. He also was a correspondent for ABC News and covered the White House and Capitol Hill for an NBC affiliate in Washington.

“I have always wanted to be in the big leagues,” Schriffen said. “From when I was a little kid, my dream was to be a major-league player. So to get here as a broadcaster is really coming full circle for me. The timing is right for me because I have done so many things in the course of my career in broadcasting, and the next step is to join a team and really join a community.”

This will be Schriffen’s first time as a team’s play-by-play voice, having bypassed the typical minor-league route. But that didn’t bother Stone, who met with Schriffen last weekend in Scottsdale, Arizona, where an expected short meeting turned into a three-hour dinner.

“I told John at the time that I had had the same type of meeting with Jason Benetti in Scottsdale, and after the first few moments, I knew that he was going to be perfect for the job,” Stone said. “And I felt the same way with John. It was very comfortable. I thought that the upside is unlimited.”

Schriffen said he will lean on Stone, who returns for his 17^th season in the Sox’ booth.

“When you work with a legend like Steve Stone who has been and seen everything in the game, I think he has such a unique perspective,” Schriffen said. “The way I look at this job is, I want to be his point guard, I want to set him up. And I hope that fans can just take away one thing or learn one thing about the game or about the team every single broadcast.”

Stone said he felt Schriffen’s enthusiasm for the job, and Schriffen said fans will hear that.

“What I can tell fans is that I’m going to match [their] passion,” he said. “I approach my broadcasts like a fan. I wear my emotions on my sleeve. When there’s a big play, you’re going to hear it in my voice. If something goes bad, you’re going to know. People can always recognize the energy and the passion and also just being prepared. That comes from my news background.”

Schriffen said he and Benetti don’t know each other, so neither had reached out to talk yet. But Schriffen said he has spoken with many MLB broadcasters through his work at ESPN Radio who have helped him understand what it means to call a team on a daily basis.

He’ll also need help understanding Sox fans and learning about Chicago.

“I don’t know Chicago,” he said. “I want people to teach me about the city so that I can become a Chicago person because I’m going to be here for a while – that’s the plan. This isn’t some stepping-stone place. I am the Chicago White Sox’ play-by-play [voice].”

The Sox will air on NBC Sports Chicago for at least one more season. The contract between the network and the Sox, Blackhawks and Bulls expires in October.

Remote patrol

ESPN 1000 will debut a new schedule Monday. “Carmen & Jurko” will gain an hour, airing from noon to 3 p.m. The last half-hour will be a crosstalk segment with “Waddle & Silvy,” which now will end at 6:30. “Bleck & Abdalla” will follow until 8.