White Sox prepared to 'stay the standard' after Benetti's departure 

CHICAGO -- Jason Benetti’s move to become the Tigers' television play-by-play voice can be summed up rather succinctly by Brooks Boyer, the chief revenue and marketing officer of the White Sox. Succinctly, that is, after an in-depth conversation with MLB.com on Friday.

Boyer is extremely happy for Benetti’s opportunity with Detroit. He understands the White Sox fans’ anger and disappointment over Benetti’s departure. The Homewood, Ill., native joined the organization in 2016 to fulfill a dream broadcast job. But Boyer is determined to form an equally strong television broadcast team alongside the expert analysis of Steve Stone.

“Our broadcast bar is set very high,” Boyer said. “Our radio team [Len Kasper and Darrin Jackson] is one of the best in baseball. Our TV [team] was one of the best in baseball. We are the standard, and we are going to stay the standard. We will put a really strong team together that will bring an entertaining and informative broadcast to our fans.”

The search for Benetti’s replacement didn’t begin until Thursday, when Benetti was introduced by the Tigers, although Detroit had gone through the proper channels to get permission to talk with Benetti with one year left on his White Sox contract. Benetti's national broadcast commitments will not be an issue, as the Tigers offered him a chance to continue that national work. The White Sox, too, worked with Benetti over the years to accommodate those.

Some people might have guesses for preferred replacements, and those candidates very well could be in the mix. But Boyer will keep an open mind to all possibilities. The club's regional rights contract with NBC Sports expires October 2024, but that will not dictate a short-term or long-term hire, he explained.

“All of our broadcasters are White Sox employees. That’s always been the case here,” Boyer said. “The status of the RSN isn’t going to be a factor in what we ultimately put together for Jason’s replacement.

“We’ve always philosophically had the theory that we want not only our broadcasts to entertain and bring the ballpark experience to life, but we also want to teach within our broadcast. … Putting the person in philosophically that is going to bring the game to life, the ballpark experience to life, and be willing to educate our fans as to the game and what could be happening, that’s going to be pretty important.”

Fan reaction was overwhelmingly negative regarding Benetti’s departure and nearly 100 percent favorable toward Benetti’s time in Chicago tinged with sadness over his exit. He was as good of a person as he was a broadcaster, and he even grew up a White Sox fan.

That reaction spread to Boyer’s family.

“My own kids gave me a lot of grief about it,” Boyer said. “It’s hard because he is one of ours, but also if the situation is something that really advances someone, you've got to let him do it.

“Fans can be upset. I’m glad they are happy for Jason. … It’s not a secret that we’ve certainly faced our challenges with our fans, and that’s putting it lightly. I understand it.”

So why not keep Benetti in place in Chicago? As Boyer went through numerous talks with Benetti, they realized the move was the next best step and in the best interest for this “really great, talented guy.”

“All of us have visions for ourselves of what would be the next step in our evolution, in our ability to do what we want to do,” Boyer said. “And that’s why we would never get in the way of someone pursuing a situation that they believe was best for them.

“Look, it’s tough when there is someone you like that much and he’s leaving a situation. ... It’s hard in sports to tell somebody that Jason left a really good situation for another really good situation. So it made sense to me when Jason and I talked through it.”

Benetti’s departure opens the door for a new voice in the White Sox television booth.

“When we hired Jason years ago, there was probably plenty of social chatter of, ‘We just want [Hall of Famer Ken] Hawk [Harrelson] in all the games,’” Boyer said. “Nobody knew who [Benetti] was. That’s what we have to do now. Jason is moving on. We will move on and find someone really great to pair with Steve Stone.”