Jeanne Zelasko facts for kids

Jeanne Zelasko is an American journalist and sportscaster. She was born on October 26, 1966. She is well-known for her work with Fox Sports. She also reported for MLB Network and ESPN. Later, she worked as a court reporter on Judge Joe Brown.

Starting Her Career

Jeanne Zelasko began her broadcasting journey while she was still in college. She attended San Diego State University. During that time, she reported on traffic for a radio station. She also hosted her own talk show on KCEO radio. Her television career started in 1993 at KDCI-TV News in San Diego. There, she anchored the weekend news.

Sports Reporting Work

Early in her career, Jeanne Zelasko co-hosted a pre-game show for the San Diego Padres baseball team. This show was on Prime Sports West. This was a regional sports network in Southern California. She worked as a reporter for the network. She covered many different sports. These included the NFL, NHL, college basketball, and auto racing.

Working at Fox Sports

Fox Sports hired Jeanne Zelasko in 1996. She was part of the first team for the new Fox Sports Net. She anchored the National Sports Report. She also worked as a sideline reporter for Fox NFL Sunday.

In 2001, Zelasko joined NASCAR on Fox as a pit reporter. Later that year, she became the studio host for Major League Baseball on Fox. She worked alongside baseball analyst Kevin Kennedy. Fox Sports stopped their Major League Baseball pre-game show after the 2008 season. This was done to save costs.

MLB Network and Dodgers

In April 2009, Zelasko took on new roles. She did special assignments for MLB Tonight on MLB Network. On May 20, 2009, she made her play-by-play debut for the Los Angeles Dodgers. This made her the first woman to do play-by-play for a Dodgers game. She worked for the rest of the 2009 season. She teamed up with former Dodger Mark Sweeney. They covered all Wednesday Dodgers home games online.

Reporting for ESPN

In May 2013, Jeanne Zelasko started covering the NCAA Softball tournament. She reported for ESPN.

Acting Roles

Jeanne Zelasko has also appeared in a few TV shows and movies. In 1997, she had a guest role in the TV series Diagnosis: Murder. In 2002, she played an anchorwoman in the movie Birdseye. She also played a reporter in the 2005 film Fever Pitch.

From 2011 to 2013, she worked as a court reporter on the TV show Judge Joe Brown.

Personal Life

Jeanne Zelasko was married to Curt Sandoval. He is a sports anchor and reporter for ABC-owned KABC-TV in Los Angeles.

In December 2007, Fox announced that Zelasko was facing a health challenge. She was being treated for thyroid cancer. Despite this, she was still scheduled to host Fox's pregame show. She also served as a sideline reporter for the Cotton Bowl Classic and Orange Bowl broadcasts. A Fox spokesman said they looked forward to her return to the MLB studio.