| Mike Blowers | |
|---|---|
 Blowers with theJacksonville Expos in 1988 | |
| Third baseman | |
| Born: (1965-04-24)April 24, 1965 (age 60) 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 |
Stats atBaseball Reference  | |
| Teams | |
Michael Roy Blowers (/ˈblaʊ.ərz/; born April 24, 1965) is an American former professionalbaseball player. He was primarily athird baseman for theNew York Yankees,Seattle Mariners,Los Angeles Dodgers, andOakland Athletics. From 2007 to 2024, he was acolor commentator for Mariners television and radio broadcasts, working primarily withDave Sims andAaron Goldsmith.
Born inWürzburg,West Germany, Blowers lived inOklahoma and then West Germany until the seventh grade, when hisU.S. Army stepfather was transferred toFort Lewis, nearTacoma, Washington.[1] He graduated fromBethel High School inSpanaway in 1983 and playedcollege baseball first atTacoma Community College.[2] Following his freshman year, Blowers was selected by the Mariners in the1984 Major League Baseball draft, but opted not to sign. After two years at Tacoma, he transferred to theUniversity of Washington. During his only season with theHuskies, he won thetriple crown in thePac-10 North Division and was selected by theMontreal Expos in the tenth round of the1986 MLB draft.[2][3][4]
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Blowers made hisMajor League Baseball debut with theNew York Yankees on September 1,1989, and played his last game on October 3,1999 with theSeattle Mariners.
During a Yankees road game against theTexas Rangers at Arlington Stadium on April 21, 1990, Blowers hit his first two MLB home runs, the first offCharlie Hough in the fifth inning, and the second offCraig McMurtry in the ninth.[5] On May 3, playing inYankee 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 with 4 errors in one game. The only third baseman to commit more errors in a game wasDave Brain, with 5 for theBoston Beaneaters in 1906.[6]
Blowers was the 13th player to hitgrand slams in consecutive games, which he did on May 16 and 17,1993 with the Mariners. He hit for thecycle on May 18,1998, as a member of theOakland Athletics.
In1995, Blowers hit .257 with 23home runs and 96RBI for the Mariners as they made their first postseason and advanced to theAmerican League Championship Series. His 33 RBI in August remains the most by a Mariners player in a single month, a record he co-holds withHall of FamerEdgar Martínez.
In 1999, Blowers played 73 games with theHanshin Tigers of theNippon Professional Baseball.
Beginning in 2007, Blowers was a television and radiocolor commentator for the Seattle Mariners. He worked alongsideFord C. Frick Award winning broadcasterDave Niehaus andDave Sims.[7] Blowers stopped working for the Mariners after the 2024 season.[8]
Blowers was inducted into the Tacoma Community College Athletics Hall of Fame in 2007.[9]
Blowers owns and manages a number of Washington-based companies, including Beach Wood Homes ofFife and Keymark Real Estate ofPuyallup.[citation needed]
During the pre-game broadcast of a September 27, 2009, bout between the Mariners and theToronto Blue Jays, Blowers predictedMatt 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 fromBrian 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.
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 announcersRick Rizzs and 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!"[10][11][12]
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| Preceded by | Hitting for the cycle May 18, 1998 | Succeeded by |