Tom Hamilton, the longtime voice of Cleveland Guardians baseball, has been named the 2025 recipient of the Ford C. Frick Award for excellence in broadcasting. He becomes the 49th recipient of the award, selected from a ballot of 10 finalists.
Hamilton, who has spent 35 seasons calling Guardians games, will be celebrated during Hall of Fame Weekend on July 25-28.
He joined the Cleveland broadcast team in 1990 after three years as the voice of the Triple-A Columbus Clippers. Initially working alongside franchise legend Herb Score, Hamilton has since earned seven Ohio Sportscaster of the Year Awards and called more than 100 postseason games – including World Series appearances in 1995, 1997, and 2016.
The Frick Award Committee includes previous honorees like Marty Brennaman, Bob Costas, and Jaime Jarrín, along with noted historians and columnists. Other finalists for the 2025 award included Skip Caray, Rene Cardenas, Gary Cohen, and John Sterling. The honor is presented annually by the National Baseball Hall of Fame and Museum, recognizing broadcasters who have made significant contributions to the game.
National Baseball Hall of Fame and Museum President Josh Rawitch said, “Guardians fans adopted Tom as one of their own as soon as he arrived in Cleveland thanks to his knowledgeable play-by-play and passionate calls of some of the franchise’s most historic moments. For a generation of listeners, Tom Hamilton is the very definition of Cleveland baseball.”
