Former Toronto Blue Jays broadcaster Tom Cheek is back on the ballot for the 2008 Ford C. Frick Award, given annually by the Baseball Hall of Fame for excellence in baseball broadcasting. Cheek, who died at 66 from brain cancer in 2005, is among the 10 finalists for the honour. He called 4,306 consecutive games from 1977 to 2004.
I first lobbied for Tom to win this award in 2005 and then again in 2006. When he was beat out once more, I suggested it was an anti-Canadian bias at work. If Tom Cheek had called games in the United States of America, he'd have won the Ford C. Frick award long ago.
The winner of the Ford C. Frick award will be announced on February 19, 2008. If the weather outside has you feeling cold, warm up with Tom Cheek's greatest hits.
