Dan Shulman facts for kids
Quick facts for kids Dan Shulman |
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Shulman in 2022
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| Toronto Blue Jays | |
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| Born: Daniel Shulman February 9, 1967 Toronto, Ontario, Canada |
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Daniel Shulman, born on February 9, 1967, is a well-known Canadian sports announcer. He works for Sportsnet in Canada and the American network ESPN.
Dan is the main announcer for Toronto Blue Jays baseball games on Sportsnet. He describes the action as it happens, which is called "play-by-play." He also hosted a baseball podcast called Swing and a Belt with Dan Shulman for a few years. For ESPN, he is the lead announcer for men's college basketball games. He used to call many Major League Baseball games on TV and radio for ESPN too. Before that, he was the main announcer for ESPN's Sunday Night Baseball until 2017.
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Dan's Early Life and Education
Dan Shulman was born in Toronto, Ontario. He went to the University of Western Ontario. He studied something called actuarial science, which uses math to figure out risks. But he decided to follow his passion for sports and became a broadcaster instead!
Dan's Broadcasting Journey
Starting Out in Broadcasting
Dan began his broadcasting career at the University of Western Ontario. He was the main voice for university football and basketball games. He worked for the Western Ontario Mustangs on CHRW radio. Later, he worked at a radio station in Barrie and volunteered for a local TV station.
In the early 1990s, he joined Fan 1430 in Toronto. This is a sports radio station now known as Sportsnet 590 The Fan. He even hosted a show called Prime Time Sports. Dan also worked for CTV during the 1994 Winter Olympics in Norway. He covered hockey games there. He also covered the 1994 World Championships of Basketball.
Working at TSN
In 1995, Dan became the play-by-play announcer for TSN. He called Toronto Blue Jays baseball games with former Blue Jays catcher Buck Martinez. Dan stayed with TSN for seven years. During this time, he also announced NHL hockey and NBA basketball games. He covered CHL games too.
Until 2007, Dan continued to work with Buck Martinez for TSN during the World Series. He would send in daily reports from the games. In 2011, he returned to TSN as an analyst.
His Time at ESPN
Dan started working part-time for ESPN while still at TSN. In 2001, he moved to ESPN full-time. He covered big sporting events like baseball and college basketball. ESPN signed him to a new contract in 2007. They also asked him to call NBA games. Dan is still the lead announcer for NCAA college basketball games at ESPN.
On July 27, 2007, Dan called Barry Bonds's 754th home run for ESPN. This was a very famous moment in baseball history.
From 2002 to 2007, he was the lead play-by-play announcer for ESPN Radio's MLB coverage. He worked with Dave Campbell. They called Sunday Night Baseball games on the radio. They also covered the All-Star Game, Home Run Derby, and some playoff games.
In 2008, Gary Thorne took over as the main Sunday Night Baseball voice. But Dan still called the All-Star and playoff games that year. He also filled in for regular season broadcasts sometimes. Dan also worked with Orel Hershiser to call Monday Night Baseball for ESPN television from 2008 to 2010. He teamed up with Hubie Brown for ESPN NBA coverage from 2007 to 2012.
On December 1, 2010, ESPN announced that Dan, Orel Hershiser, and Bobby Valentine would be the new Sunday Night Baseball team. During a Sunday Night Baseball game on May 1, 2011, Dan announced live on ESPN that Osama bin Laden had died. This was a huge news moment. Dan said he learned the news from Bobby Valentine, who got a text message. Dan quickly confirmed the news before sharing it with the audience.
That same year, Dan worked with Dick Vitale for a college basketball game. It was between Indiana and Kentucky on December 10, 2011. His call for the game-winning shot was very exciting!
In 2011, Dan was named National Sportscaster of the Year. This award came from the National Sportscasters and Sportswriters Association. He was the first Canadian-born announcer to receive this honor.
In 2012, ESPN brought in Terry Francona to join Dan and Orel Hershiser for Sunday Night Baseball. Francona stayed for one season. Then, John Kruk joined Dan and Hershiser for the 2013 season. In 2014, Hershiser left ESPN. Curt Schilling replaced him, but he was unavailable for most of the season due to illness. So, Dan and Kruk worked as a two-person team for a while.
On July 3, 2017, Dan announced he would leave Sunday Night Baseball after the 2017 season. He wanted to spend more time with his family in Toronto. He continued to call MLB playoff games for ESPN Radio and college basketball games for ESPN.
In October 2022, it was announced that Dan would step down as ESPN's lead radio announcer for MLB playoffs. This started in the 2023 season. He wanted to focus only on his college basketball role.
Back with Sportsnet
Besides his work with ESPN, Dan also joined the Sportsnet team on November 19, 2015. He started calling about 30 Toronto Blue Jays games during the 2016 and 2017 seasons. In March 2018, it was announced that he would call even more Blue Jays games on Sportsnet television and radio.
In April 2018, Dan started his podcast with Sportsnet, called Swing and a Belt with Dan Shulman. In each episode, he talks about a different baseball topic. He also interviews famous people like Mike Trout and Aaron Boone.
In 2020, Dan started calling most of the Blue Jays games. He won the Canadian Screen Award for Best Sports Play-by-Play in 2022.
Dan also announces games for Canada Basketball on Sportsnet. He continued this role during the CBC coverage of the 2024 Summer Olympics. He took a break from his Blue Jays duties for this.
Dan's Personal Life
Dan Shulman is Jewish. He has even taken part in the Maccabiah Games, which are like the Olympics for Jewish athletes. Dan has three sons. His third son, Ben, is also a sportscaster. Ben is the radio play-by-play announcer for the Blue Jays! In July 2017, Dan mentioned that he was getting remarried. This was one reason he decided to change his work schedule.
Images for kids
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Dan Shulman in 2022
