| Geoff Blum | |
|---|---|
 Blum with the Houston Astros | |
| Infielder | |
| Born: (1973-04-26)April 26, 1973 (age 51) Redwood City, California, U.S. | |
Batted: Switch Threw: Right | |
| MLB debut | |
| August 9, 1999, for the Montreal Expos | |
| Last MLB appearance | |
| July 17, 2012, for the Arizona Diamondbacks | |
| MLB statistics | |
| Batting average | .250 |
| Home runs | 99 |
| Runs batted in | 479 |
Stats atBaseball Reference  | |
| Teams | |
| Career highlights and awards | |
| |
Geoffrey Edward Blum (born April 26, 1973) is anAmerican former professionalbaseballinfielder inMajor League Baseball who played for theMontreal Expos,Houston Astros,Tampa Bay Devil Rays,San Diego Padres,Chicago White Sox andArizona Diamondbacks. He is currently the TV color analyst for theHouston Astros.[1]
He was born in Redwood City but grew up in Chino where he played baseball in Chino.[2] Chino High retired his number - #11 - in a ceremony where he credited "...his father for instilling in him the love of the game and his mother for taking him to practices and games."
Before becoming a professional baseball player, he majored insociology at theUniversity of California, Berkeley and played for theCalifornia Golden Bears baseball team. In 1993, he playedcollegiate summer baseball with theBrewster Whitecaps of theCape Cod Baseball League and was named a league all-star.[3][4]
He began his professional career when he was selected in the seventh round of the1994 amateur draft by theMontreal Expos.[5] During his time with the Expos, he spent the winter of 1995 in theAustralian Baseball League with theHunter Eagles.[6]
On March 12, 2002, after playing in Montreal for three years, he was traded to theHouston Astros in exchange forChris Truby.[7]
He was then traded after the 2003 season toTampa Bay Devil Rays in exchange forBrandon Backe.[7] In 2004, he batted only .215 for the Devil Rays, with a .266 on-base percentage.[5]
Blum signed with theSan Diego Padres as a free agent on December 9, 2004. He hit .241 in 78 games for the Padres in 2005.[5]
He was traded to theChicago White Sox for a minor leaguer on July 31, 2005.
On October 25, 2005, Blum hit ahome run against the Astros atMinute Maid Park in the top of the14th inning that served as the go-ahead run in the eventual victory for the Sox in Game 3 of theWorld Series.[8]
On April 11, 2008, a monument celebrating the 2005 World Series was unveiled atU.S. Cellular Field inChicago, featuring bronze statues of five players. Blum is one of them, commemorating his tie-breaking home run. The home run would forever cement his place in White Sox history.[9]
He returned to the Padres as a free agent in 2006.[10]
On November 20, 2007, Blum signed a $1.1 million, one-year contract with theHouston Astros. The deal also included a club option for 2009.[11]
Blum returned to the Astros in 2009 and played mostly 3B for Houston. He hit 10 home runs that season, drove in 49 runs and was known for playing excellent defense at all the infield positions.
On October 30, 2009, Blum re-signed with the Astros. The contract was worth $1.5 million for the 2010 season and included a mutual option for 2011, which would be worth $1.65 million that was declined, making him a free agent.
Blum suffered a season-ending injury to his elbow in July 2010 while putting on his shirt after a game.[12] He had this to say: "There are probably 90 percent of us in the big leagues that have loose bodies floating around. It just so happens that after the game, it tightened up on me. The shirt had nothing to do with the damn injury."[13]
On November 15, 2010, Blum signed a two-year contract worth $2.7 million with theArizona Diamondbacks. In 2 years with the Diamondbacks, he appeared in a total of 40 games out of 326 possible games due to injury. He was released by the Diamondbacks on July 20, 2012.[14]
On January 12, 2013, he was named a color analyst of theHouston Astros forComcast SportsNet Houston, where he worked withBill Brown andAlan Ashby. In2017, he was teamed with a new play-by-play man inTodd Kalas.[15] Blum and Kalas have served as broadcast partners for the Astros (under Space City Home Network) since 2017.[16]
He resides inHouston, Texas.
