ST MARYS – Longtime Toronto Star baseball columnist and former
Montreal Expos publicity director Richard Griffin has been named the
winner of the Canadian Baseball Hall of Fame’s 2014 Jack Graney Award.
The St. Marys, Ont.-based shrine presents this award annually to a
member of the media who has made significant contributions to baseball
in Canada through their life’s work.
“Fully aware of the impressive list of winners of the Graney Award, I
was humbled when Scott Crawford [the Hall’s director of operations]
called with the news,” said Griffin. “By December 2016, I will have
spent equal parts of my life as columnist with The Star and in the
front office with the Expos. Just two jobs in 42 working years, both of
them absorbing the wonderful life lessons of baseball. How lucky can
one person be.
“My thanks to the Canadian Baseball Hall of Fame and to every GM,
scout, manager, player, writer and broadcaster with whom I ever worked.
I have learned something important from them all.”
Born in Kingston, Jamaica in 1954, Griffin fell in love with baseball
when he began listening to World Series games on the radio on the north
shore of the island in the early ’60s. His parents moved to Montreal in
1963, where Griffin graduated with honours from Loyola High School
before attending Concordia University and playing Junior Varsity
basketball.
Griffin secured his first job in Major League Baseball with the Expos
while he was still a student at Concordia in 1973. He rose through the
Expos’ ranks to become director of publicity in 1978 and he soon
garnered a reputation as one of the best in the business at working
with reporters, players and broadcasters. While employed by the Expos,
he also volunteered in a public relations role for the commissioner’s
office for 17 playoffs and World Series. He has witnessed all or parts
of every World Series since 1978.
For his efforts, he was named the recipient of the National Baseball
Hall of Fame’s Robert O. Fishel Award in 1992, one of two Canadians to
be so recognized, along with Howard Starkman of the Blue Jays, who was
honoured in 1995. This award is handed out annually to an individual
who best exemplifies public relations excellence in Major League
Baseball.
When Expos radio play-by-play man Dave Van Horne shifted to the club’s
TV telecasts, with his various partners, Griffin stepped into the radio
booth and broadcast games for the club from 1985 to 1994. During the
1994 season, which saw the Expos leading the National East by six games
when a player strike wiped out the rest of the campaign, Griffin hosted
a post-game radio show.
After that devastating season, Griffin decided to take his career in
another direction, and on February 13, 1995, he was hired to be the
Toronto Star’s baseball columnist. He has now served in that capacity
for the past 19 years and his work has become essential reading for
baseball fans across the country.
“Richard has an immense passion for baseball and you can feel that in
his columns,” said Scott Crawford, the Hall’s director of operations.
“Over the past 20 years, he has become one of the most respected and
knowledgeable baseball columnists in the business. He was also a
tremendous contributor to the success of the Montreal Expos during the
’80s and ’90s.”
When not behind the keyboard, Griffin provides baseball analysis for
TSN Radio and TV and is the head coach of the Oakville A’s junior rep
team. He has coached for Baseball Oakville for more than 15 years and
he led the organization’s midget AAA team to a Central Ontario Baseball
Association title in 2011 and the Juniors to the same title in 2014. He
has twice received a Sport Recognition Award from the town of Oakville
for his commitment to coaching.
Born in St. Thomas, Ont., Jack
Graney was a scrappy leadoff hitter for the Cleveland Indians. His big
league resume boasts a number of firsts. When he walked to the plate in
a game against the Boston Red Sox on July 11, 1914, he became the first
batter to face Babe Ruth. Almost two years later, on June 26, 1916, he
was the first major leaguer to bat wearing a number on his uniform.
After hanging up his spikes, Graney became the first ex-player to make
the transition to the broadcast booth, performing radio play-by-play
for the Indians from 1932 to 1953.
Previous Winners of the Jack Graney Award:
1987 – Neil MacCarl – Toronto Star
1988 – Milt Dunnell – Toronto Star
1990 – Austin “Dink” Carroll – Montreal Gazette
1991 – Joe Crysdale & Hal Kelly – CKEY
1996 – Dave Van Horne – Montreal Expos
2001 – Tom Cheek – Toronto Blue Jays
2002 – Ernie Harwell – Detroit Tigers
2003 – Allan Simpson – Baseball America
2004 – Jacques Doucet – Montreal Expos
2005 – Len Bramson – TBS Sports
2009 – Ian MacDonald – Montreal Gazette
2010 – Bob Elliott – Sun Media & canadianbaseballnetwork.com
2011 – W. P. Kinsella – “Shoeless Joe” novel adapted to film “Field of Dreams”
2012 – Jerry Howarth – Toronto Blue Jays
2013 – Rodger Brulotte – Montreal Expos, Toronto Blue Jays
2014 – Richard Griffin – Toronto Star
ST. MARYS - 25 November 2014
For More Information Please Contact:
Canadian Baseball
Hall of Fame & Museum
P.O. Box 1838 (140 Queen St.
E.) St. Marys, ON, Canada, N4X 1C2
Tel: (519) 284-1838 - Toll Free:
1-877-250-BALL
Email: baseball@baseballhalloffame.ca
Fax: (519) 284-1234 - Website: www.baseballhalloffame.ca
VISION: A culture which
champions education, respect, diversity and healthy lifestyles across
generations.