Mike Wilner facts for kids

Michael Samuel Wilner, born on March 14, 1970, is a Canadian who used to be a baseball announcer. He was known for his work with the Toronto Blue Jays. From 2014 to 2020, he described the games live on the radio. He also wrote a blog for Sportsnet.ca/590. Before that, he hosted a radio show called BlueJaysTalk on Fan 590, where fans could call in after games. Mike Wilner finished his studies at the University of Toronto in 1994. Since February 2021, he has been writing about baseball for the Toronto Star newspaper.

Mike Wilner's Broadcasting Career

Mike Wilner started his career in broadcasting at the University of Toronto in 1988. Just one year later, he became the sports director there. While at the university, Wilner did live commentary for many sports. These included hockey, basketball, and football.

Early Professional Work

Wilner began his professional broadcasting job when he was 19 years old. He worked with the Class-A Welland Pirates baseball team. Later, he continued to do play-by-play for other baseball teams. These included the Class-A Watertown Indians and the Double-A Hardware City Rock Cats. In 2010, he also helped cover the 2010 Winter Olympics for the Fan 590 radio station. He worked from Whistler, British Columbia, during the games.

A Disagreement with the Manager

On June 1, 2010, Mike Wilner had a public discussion with Cito Gaston. Gaston was the manager of the Toronto Blue Jays at the time. They disagreed about some decisions Gaston made during a game. Wilner wrote about this discussion on his blog. The next day, his employer, the Fan 590, announced that Wilner would not cover the team for a few days. This event was talked about in Toronto's newspapers.

Becoming a Full-Time Announcer

In 2013, Wilner started calling all 162 Blue Jays games live. He also continued his duties with the BlueJaysTalk show. From 2014 to 2017, he did play-by-play for parts of many Blue Jays games. He often filled in when Jerry Howarth, another announcer, was not available.

After Jerry Howarth retired in 2018, Wilner called most Blue Jays games with Ben Wagner. They officially became the full-time radio announcers before the 2019 season. In that same year, Scott MacArthur took over as the host of the BlueJaysTalk radio show. Wilner continued to be a Blue Jays play-by-play announcer through the 2020 season. However, on November 27, 2020, Sportsnet announced that he would not return for the 2021 season.

Writing for the Toronto Star

On February 11, 2021, Mike Wilner shared that he had started a new job. He became a baseball columnist for the Toronto Star newspaper. As part of his work for the Toronto Star, Wilner also hosts a weekly podcast. The podcast is called Deep Left Field. On this show, he talks to different guests about baseball.

Personal Life

Mike Wilner is divorced. He has two daughters with his ex-wife, who is from Buenos Aires, Argentina. He lives in Mississauga, Canada.