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Mike Blowers

Mike Blowers
Blowers with the Jacksonville Expos in 1988
Third baseman
Born: (1965-04-24) April 24, 1965 (age 59)
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 runs78
Runs batted in365
Stats at Baseball Reference Edit this at Wikidata
Teams

Michael Roy Blowers (/ˈblaʊ.ərz/; born April 24, 1965) is a German-born American former Major League Baseball player, a third baseman and first baseman for the New York Yankees, Seattle Mariners, Los Angeles Dodgers, and Oakland Athletics. Since 2007 he has been a color commentator for Mariners television and radio broadcasts.

Early years

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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

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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 with the Seattle Mariners.

During a Yankees road game against the Texas Rangers at Arlington Stadium on April 21, 1990, Blowers hit his first two MLB home runs, the first off Charlie Hough in the fifth inning, and the second off Craig McMurtry in the ninth.[5] On May 3, playing in Yankee Stadium, he committed 4 errors at third base, leading to 7 unearned runs, in a 10-5 loss to the Cleveland Indians. At the time he was the 21st American League third basemen to have such a terrible day. On the other hand, the only third baseman to commit more errors in a game was Dave Brain, with 5, for the Boston Beaneaters in 1906.[6]

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.

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.

In 1999, Blowers played 73 games with the Hanshin Tigers of the Nippon Professional Baseball league.

Post-playing career

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Since 2007, Blowers has been a television and radio color commentator for the Seattle Mariners. He worked alongside Ford C. Frick Baseball Hall of Fame Award broadcaster Dave Niehaus, and continues to work with Dave Sims.[7]

Blowers was inducted into the Tacoma Community College Athletics Hall of Fame in 2007.[8]

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

Prediction of Tuiasosopo's first career home run

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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 from Brian Tallet with 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.[9]

Blowers was on the television side of the broadcast when the prediction came true, and laughed it off without explanation, though days later explained that Tallet likes to throw fastballs, but has poor control of his pitches. Tallet was also a relief pitcher who was in the starting rotation in the 2009 season, increasing his workload. 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

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References

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  1. ^ Siemon, Dean (June 2, 2016). "Structure of military family gave former big leaguer his start". Northwest Guardian. Joint Base Lewis–McChord, Washington. Archived from the original on August 21, 2016. Retrieved July 15, 2016.
  2. ^ a b 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 November 1, 2006.
  4. ^ "University of Washington Baseball Players Who Made It to a Major League Baseball Team". Baseball-Almanac.com. Archived from the original on December 2, 2005. Retrieved August 21, 2012.
  5. ^ "Retrosheet Boxscore: Texas Rangers 9, New York Yankees 6". www.retrosheet.org. Retrieved September 8, 2017.
  6. ^ "4 Errors by Blowers Yield 7 Runs for Indians" Murray Chass The New York Times May 4, 1990
  7. ^ Stone, Larry (January 12, 2007). "M's juggle lineup in broadcast booth". Seattle Times. Retrieved August 27, 2014.
  8. ^ "Mike Blowers". tacomatitans.com. Retrieved May 27, 2022.
  9. ^ "Tuiasosopo homers as predicted".
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Achievements
Preceded by Hitting for the cycle
May 18, 1998 		Succeeded by