Tom Cheek

Thomas F. Cheek (June 13, 1939 – October 9, 2005) was an American sports commentator who is best remembered as the play-by-play radio announcer for the Toronto Blue Jays of Major League Baseball (MLB), from the team's establishment in 1977 until his retirement in 2004.

Born and raised in the west side of Pensacola, Florida, Cheek, an avid sports fan, was given his first tape recorder at age 14, which inspired his interest in broadcasting.

His father, also named Tom Cheek, was a well known United States Naval Aviator in World War II and a recipient of the Navy Cross at the Battle of Midway.

He then moved to Burlington, Vermont, where he worked for WDOT and was quickly promoted to corporate sales manager and sports director.

[5] The newly formed Montreal Expos were looking for an announcer to complement their primary play-by-play man, Dave Van Horne.

Burlington, although traditionally a Boston Red Sox town, was warming up to the new expansion team as it was only 99 miles (159 km) from Montreal.

When it was decided the Expos would use a guest announcer format, Cheek got his first broadcast experience in Major League Baseball, filling in there occasionally from 1974 to 1976.

For the next 23 years, "Tom and Jerry" were the radio voices of the Blue Jays, covering the team's rise through the 1980s and culminating with their back-to-back World Series Championships in 1992 and 1993.

[8] On August 9, 2004, the Jays raised a banner to SkyDome's (now the Rogers Centre) "Level of Excellence" bearing Cheek's name and, in place of a jersey number, 4,306—his streak of straight regular-season broadcasts.

[10] A week after his consecutive game streak ended, Cheek was forced to take time off to undergo surgery on June 12, 2004, to remove a brain tumor.

[11] Following the surgery, Cheek was able to call some Blue Jays home games while undergoing chemotherapy, but was replaced on the road by various guest announcers.

Cheek sat in with the new commentator, Canadian-born former minor league baseball infielder/outfielder Warren Sawkiw, and Howarth, to call an inning of the Blue Jays' 2005 opening game in Tampa Bay.

Toronto Blue Jays fans wearing jerseys honouring Tom Cheek and Jerry Howarth in 2013
Tom Cheek's name on the Blue Jays Level of Excellence.