Pat Tabler

Patrick Sean Tabler (born February 2, 1958) is an American former Major League Baseball player and currently a color analyst for the Toronto Blue Jays on the Canadian sports television network Rogers Sportsnet and formerly with TSN.^[1][2]

Playing career

Tabler graduated from St. Mary's Elementary school in Hyde Park Ohio then Archbishop McNicholas High School in Cincinnati.^[3] Tabler was a first round draft pick of the New York Yankees (sixteenth overall) in 1976,^[4] and entered the organization as an outfielder, but he never reached the majors with the Yankees and on August 19, 1981, he was traded to the Chicago Cubs for players to be named later (the Cubs sent Bill Caudill and Jay Howell to the Yankees in 1982 to complete the transaction).^[5]

Chicago Cubs

Tabler made his debut with the Cubs in 1981 as a second baseman, hitting .188 in 35 games.^[6] In 1982, the Cubs moved him to third base and he hit .235 while playing in 25 games.

Cleveland Indians

In 1983, he joined the Cleveland Indians and became their starting first baseman. That year he hit .291 in 124 games. He became quickly known as a line drive hitter and continued to have modest success at the plate. His best season was in 1987 when he became an all-star, hitting .307 with 11 home runs and 86 runs batted in. Along with first base he was well suited for the designated hitter role he inherited from Andre Thornton in 1987.^[7] He gained attention for his amazing success in bases-loaded situations: 43 for 88 (.489) with 108 RBI.^[8] and was even recognized and nicknamed "Mr. Clutch" on his 1986 Donruss baseball card (#129) as well. He played in Cleveland until 1988, when he was traded to the Kansas City Royals for pitcher Bud Black.

Kansas City Royals

He played for Kansas City until the 1990 season, when he was traded to the New York Mets.^[9]

Toronto Blue Jays

Tabler finished his career with the Toronto Blue Jays (1991–1992), winning a World Series championship with the club in his final year as a player. In his career, Tabler was also known as a remarkable clutch hitter and for his uncanny ability to hit with the bases loaded, batting just under .500 in such situations (43 for 88).

Twice in his career Tabler had 6 runs batted in in one game, on September 25, 1983 and June 8, 1985, both versus the Seattle Mariners.

Broadcasting career

After his retirement, Tabler joined TSN as a studio analyst for Blue Jays broadcasts in 1993. After the network's color commentator, former Jays catcher Buck Martinez, was named the team's manager in 2001, Tabler replaced him in the broadcast booth alongside play-by-play announcer Dan Shulman. He continued as the TSN color analyst when Rod Black replaced Shulman, who left for ESPN. Tabler took over as the main color commentator for TSN's main rival, Rogers Sportsnet in 2005 after the death of their regular commentator John Cerutti, and called the majority of games for both networks from 2005 to 2009 alongside Jamie Campbell and Rod Black.

Tabler now works exclusively for Sportsnet, which is the Blue Jays' exclusive broadcaster. His partners are Martinez who returned to the Blue Jays broadcast booth as play-by-play announcer in 2010, and Shulman, who returned as a part-time announcer in 2016. On September 25, 2014, Rogers announced Tabler had signed a five-year extension.^[10]

Personal

He has mentioned on a few occasions that he is a fan of band Jethro Tull. It was rumored that a residential quad was named after him on the Stony Brook University campus; however, the quad was built and named in the late 1960s, long before his MLB career began. He is married and has five children.

References

External links

• Career statistics and player information from Baseball-Reference
• List of baseball nicknames