The Kansas City Royals currently find themselves in a battle for the American League Central and a playoff berth. We don’t know how the season will end for them. But we do know one thing.
Color commentator Rex Hudler is going to make a whole lot of noises along the way.
Hudler is currently in his 13th season with the Royals broadcast team, calling games for Bally Sports Kansas City. While the Royals’ booth didn’t land too highly on our 2024 MLB announcer rankings, they are on the rise and the former Major Leaguer is likely a big part of why.
If nothing else, the guy knows how to make a home-run call unique.
Hudler’s knack for spurting out exclamatory noises after home runs has become such a mainstay of the Royals broadcast that KCTV’s Jared Koller was able to put together a sizable montage of the many times he’s yelled “OOOOH!” or some other undefinable sound following a Kansas City homer.
All 18 home runs this year where Rex Hudler has made an exclamatory noise the very moment the #Royals make contact. Hud pops from the Bally Sports KC broadcasts. @KCTV5 @JakeEisenberg_ pic.twitter.com/Ggubd0pO98
— Jared Koller (@JaredKCTV5) August 18, 2024
What’s impressive about the collection is that you can start to figure out a taxonomy of noises. Between the very subdued “oh” and the bombastic “AOOOOOOWWWHHH,” you can interpret each exclamation differently.
Not included in the montage but worth mentioning as well is Hudler’s “Oh my nose!” exclamation from 2020.
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About Sean Keeley
Along with writing for Awful Announcing and The Comeback, Sean is the Managing Editor for Comeback Media. Previously, he created the Syracuse blog Troy Nunes Is An Absolute Magician and wrote 'How To Grow An Orange: The Right Way to Brainwash Your Child Into Rooting for Syracuse.' He has also written non-Syracuse-related things for SB Nation, Curbed, and other outlets. He currently lives in Seattle where he is complaining about bagels. Send tips/comments/complaints to sean@thecomeback.com.