Mike Blowers

Mike Blowers
Third baseman
Born: (1965-04-24) April 24, 1965
Würzburg, West Germany
Batted: Right Threw: Right
MLB debut
September 1, 1989, for the New York Yankees
Last MLB appearance
October 3, 1999, for the Seattle Mariners
MLB statistics
Batting average .257
Home runs 78
Runs batted in 365
Teams

Michael Roy "Mike" Blowers (/ˈblaʊ.ərz/; born April 24, 1965) is a former Major League Baseball player, a third baseman and first baseman for the New York Yankees, Seattle Mariners, Los Angeles Dodgers, and Oakland Athletics.

Early years

Born in Würzburg, West Germany, Blowers lived in Oklahoma and then West Germany until the seventh grade, when his U.S. Army stepfather was transferred to Fort Lewis, south of Tacoma, Washington.[1] He is a 1983 graduate of Bethel High School in Spanaway and played college baseball at Tacoma Community College and the University of Washington in Seattle.[2] Following his freshman year, Blowers was selected by the Mariners in the 1984 Major League Baseball Draft, but opted not to sign. During his junior year at Washington, his only season with the Huskies, he won the triple crown in the Pac-10 North Division, and was selected by the Montreal Expos in the tenth round of the 1986 MLB Draft.[2][3][4]

Professional career

Blowers made his Major League Baseball debut with the New York Yankees on September 1, 1989, and played his last game on October 3, 1999 for the Seattle Mariners.

Blowers hit his first MLB home run off Charlie Hough on April 21, 1990.

He was the 13th player to hit grand slams in consecutive games, which he did on May 16 and 17 of 1993 with the Mariners, and equaled an American League record by committing four errors in one game at third base with the Yankees in 1990.

He hit for the cycle on May 18, 1998 as a member of the Oakland Athletics.

In 1995, Blowers hit .257 with 23 home runs and 96 RBI for the Mariners as they made their first postseason and advanced to the American League Championship Series. His 33 RBI in August remains the most by a Mariners player in a single month, a record he co-holds with Mariners Hall of Fame third baseman and designated hitter Edgar Martínez.

Post-playing career

Since 2007, he has been a television and radio color commentator for the Seattle Mariners. He worked alongside the late Hall of Fame broadcaster Dave Niehaus, and continues to work with Dave Sims.[5]

He was inducted into the Tacoma Community College Athletics Hall of Fame in 2007.

Blowers owns and manages a number of Washington-based companies, including Beach Wood Homes of Fife and Keymark Real Estate of Puyallup.

Prediction of Tuiasosopo's first career home run

Main article: Matt Tuiasosopo

During the pre-game broadcast of a September 27, 2009 bout between the Mariners and the Toronto Blue Jays, Blowers predicted Matt Tuiasosopo's first career home run. What started as simply selecting a notable player for the day's game became an extended humorous rant by Blowers. In the course of pre-game banter, he stated that the home run would come in Tuiasosopo's second at bat, on a fastball, in a 3-1 count, and that the ball would land in the second deck of left center field. This then happened - with correct prediction of player, at-bat, count, pitch and general landing area - in the top of the fifth inning .

Blowers was on the television side of the broadcast when the prediction came true, and laughed it off without explanation. Radio announcers Rick Rizzs and Dave Niehaus, however, recalled the prediction, restated it for the audience, and were beside themselves in laughter and disbelief as the prediction came true. Said Niehaus on-air, seconds before the event, "I've never been so excited on a 3-1 count in my life!". As Tuiasosopo circled the bases, Niehaus exclaimed "I see the light! I believe you Mike!".

See also

References

  1. ↑ Siemon, Dean (June 2, 2016). "Structure of military family gave former big leaguer his start". Northwest Guardian. Joint Base Lewis–McChord, Washington. Retrieved July 15, 2016.
  2. 1 2 Chin, Michael (May 31, 2005). "Prep flashback: Bethel's Blowers had a blast playing for 1995 Mariners". Seattle Times. Retrieved August 27, 2014.
  3. ↑ "Mike Blowers' page at The Baseball Cube". Retrieved 2006-11-01.
  4. ↑ "University of Washington Baseball Players Who Made It to a Major League Baseball Team". Baseball-Almanac.com. Archived from the original on 2012-08-21. Retrieved 21 August 2012.
  5. ↑ Stone, Larry (January 12, 2007). "M's juggle lineup in broadcast booth". Seattle Times. Retrieved August 27, 2014.
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