Geoff Blum

{{short description|American baseball player and analyst (born 1973)}}

{{Infobox baseball biography

|image=Geoff Blum.jpg

|caption=Blum with the Houston Astros

|name=Geoff Blum

|position=Infielder

|bats=Switch

|throws=Right

|birth_date={{Birth date and age|1973|4|26}}

|birth_place=Redwood City, California, U.S.

|debutleague = MLB

|debutdate=August 9

|debutyear=1999

|debutteam=Montreal Expos

|finalleague = MLB

|finaldate=July 17

|finalyear=2012

|finalteam=Arizona Diamondbacks

|statleague = MLB

|stat1label=Batting average

|stat1value=.250

|stat2label=Home runs

|stat2value=99

|stat3label=Runs batted in

|stat3value=479

|teams=

Montreal Expos ({{mlby|1999}}–{{mlby|2001}})
Houston Astros ({{mlby|2002}}–{{mlby|2003}})
Tampa Bay Devil Rays ({{mlby|2004}})
San Diego Padres ({{mlby|2005}})
Chicago White Sox ({{mlby|2005}})
San Diego Padres ({{mlby|2006}}–{{mlby|2007}})
Houston Astros ({{mlby|2008}}–{{mlby|2010}})
Arizona Diamondbacks ({{mlby|2011}}–{{mlby|2012}})

|awards=

World Series champion ({{wsy|2005}})

}}

Geoffrey Edward Blum (born April 26, 1973) is an American former professional baseball infielder in Major League Baseball who played for the Montreal Expos, Houston Astros, Tampa Bay Devil Rays, San Diego Padres, Chicago White Sox and Arizona Diamondbacks. He is currently the TV color analyst for the Houston Astros.{{cite web |title=Houston Astros Broadcasters |url=http://houston.astros.mlb.com/team/broadcasters.jsp?c_id=hou |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070202165822/http://houston.astros.mlb.com/team/broadcasters.jsp?c_id=hou |url-status=dead |archive-date=February 2, 2007 |website=MLB.com}}

Early life

He was born in Redwood City but grew up in Chino where he played baseball in Chino.{{cite web | url=https://www.dailybulletin.com/2020/03/03/geoff-blum-has-no-11-baseball-jersey-retired-by-chino-high-school/ | title=Geoff Blum has No. 11 baseball jersey retired by Chino High School | date=March 4, 2020 }} Chino High retired his number - #11 - in a ceremony where he credited "...his father for instilling in him the love of the game and his mother for taking him to practices and games."

Before becoming a professional baseball player, he majored in sociology at the University of California, Berkeley and played for the California Golden Bears baseball team. In 1993, he played collegiate summer baseball with the Brewster Whitecaps of the Cape Cod Baseball League and was named a league all-star.{{cite web|url=http://capecodbaseball.org.ismmedia.com/ISM3/std-content/repos/Top/2012website/archives/Current%20Year/All_Time_MLB_CCBL_Alumni.pdf |title=Major League Baseball Players From the Cape Cod League |publisher=capecodbaseball.org |access-date=January 9, 2020}}{{cite news | title = Cape League Notes | pages = 10 | newspaper = The Cape Codder | location = Orleans, MA | date = July 20, 1993 | url = https://snow-library.com/viewer/5722?medianame=1993_thecapecodder_vol48_issue58_orleans_000010 }}

Professional career

=Montreal Expos=

He began his professional career when he was selected in the seventh round of the {{Baseball year|1994}} amateur draft by the Montreal Expos.{{cite web |title=Geoff Blum Stats |url=https://www.baseball-reference.com/players/b/blumge01.shtml |website=Baseball Reference}} During his time with the Expos, he spent the winter of 1995 in the Australian Baseball League with the Hunter Eagles.{{cite web |title=AMLB Import Players To Reach the US Major Leagues |url=http://www.pflintoff.com/USMajors.htm#GEOFF%20BLUM |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080307080134/http://www.pflintoff.com/USMajors.htm#GEOFF%20BLUM |url-status=usurped |archive-date=March 7, 2008 |website=Flintoff & Dunn's Almanac|date=June 27, 2024 }}

=Houston Astros=

On March 12, 2002, after playing in Montreal for three years, he was traded to the Houston Astros in exchange for Chris Truby.{{cite web |title=Geoff Blum Trades and Transactions |url=https://www.baseball-almanac.com/players/trades.php?p=blumge01 |website=Baseball Almanac}}

=Tampa Bay Devil Rays=

He was then traded after the 2003 season to Tampa Bay Devil Rays in exchange for Brandon Backe. In 2004, he batted only .215 for the Devil Rays, with a .266 on-base percentage.

=San Diego Padres=

Blum signed with the San Diego Padres as a free agent on December 9, 2004. He hit .241 in 78 games for the Padres in 2005.

=Chicago White Sox=

He was traded to the Chicago White Sox for a minor leaguer on July 31, 2005.

On October 25, 2005, Blum hit a home run against the Astros at Minute Maid Park in the top of the 14th inning that served as the go-ahead run in the eventual victory for the Sox in Game 3 of the World Series.{{cite web |last1=Merkin |first1=Scott |title=Blum was unlikely hero for 2005 White Sox |url=https://www.mlb.com/news/geoff-blum-was-unlikely-hero-for-05-white-sox-c295062584 |website=MLB.com |access-date=4 August 2019 |date=September 25, 2018}}

On April 11, 2008, a monument celebrating the 2005 World Series was unveiled at U.S. Cellular Field in Chicago, featuring bronze statues of five players. Blum is one of them, commemorating his tie-breaking home run. The home run would forever cement his place in White Sox history.{{cite web |last1=Merkin |first1=Scott |title=Blum was unlikely hero for 2005 White Sox |url=https://www.mlb.com/news/geoff-blum-was-unlikely-hero-for-05-white-sox-c295062584 |website=MLB.com |access-date=7 February 2020 |date=September 25, 2018}}

=San Diego Padres=

He returned to the Padres as a free agent in 2006.{{cite news |title=Series hero Blum signs with Padres |url=https://www.chicagotribune.com/news/ct-xpm-2005-11-17-0511180005-story.html |access-date=14 January 2013 |work=Chicago Tribune |date=November 17, 2005}}

=Houston Astros=

On November 20, 2007, Blum signed a $1.1 million, one-year contract with the Houston Astros. The deal also included a club option for 2009.{{cite web|url=http://houston.astros.mlb.com/news/article.jsp?ymd=20071120&content_id=2304707&vkey=news_hou&fext=.jsp&c_id=hou|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121003064316/http://houston.astros.mlb.com/news/article.jsp?ymd=20071120&content_id=2304707&vkey=news_hou&fext=.jsp&c_id=hou|url-status=dead|archive-date=October 3, 2012|title=Astros sign free-agent infielder Blum|access-date=2009-08-23|date=2007-11-20|work=MLB.com}}

Blum returned to the Astros in 2009 and played mostly 3B for Houston. He hit 10 home runs that season, drove in 49 runs and was known for playing excellent defense at all the infield positions.

On October 30, 2009, Blum re-signed with the Astros. The contract was worth $1.5 million for the 2010 season and included a mutual option for 2011, which would be worth $1.65 million that was declined, making him a free agent.

Blum suffered a season-ending injury to his elbow in July 2010 while putting on his shirt after a game.{{Cite news|url=http://www.houstonpress.com/news/geoff-blum-joins-baseballs-stupid-injury-list-here-are-11-others-6716373|title=Geoff Blum Joins Baseball's Stupid-Injury List: Here Are 11 Others|last=Royal|first=John|date=2010-07-07|newspaper=Houston Press|access-date=2016-10-28}} He had this to say: "There are probably 90 percent of us in the big leagues that have loose bodies floating around. It just so happens that after the game, it tightened up on me. The shirt had nothing to do with the damn injury."{{Cite web|url=http://www.mlbdailydish.com/2016/3/29/11323798/injuries-weird-cubs-brewers-heyward-smith|title=Baseball has the weirdest injuries|last=Bates|first=Mike|date=2016-03-29|website=MLB Daily Dish|access-date=2016-10-28}}

=Arizona Diamondbacks=

On November 15, 2010, Blum signed a two-year contract worth $2.7 million with the Arizona Diamondbacks. In 2 years with the Diamondbacks, he appeared in a total of 40 games out of 326 possible games due to injury. He was released by the Diamondbacks on July 20, 2012.{{cite news |title=Diamondbacks release Blum, select Wheeler |url=https://www.ksdk.com/article/sports/mlb/diamondbacks-release-blum-select-wheeler/63-368144798 |access-date=4 August 2019 |work=KSDK News |date=July 20, 2012}}

Broadcasting career

On January 12, 2013, he was named a color analyst of the Houston Astros for Comcast SportsNet Houston, where he worked with Bill Brown and Alan Ashby. In 2017, he was teamed with a new play-by-play man in Todd Kalas.{{cite web |title=Astros Name Todd Kalas TV Play-By-Play Announcer, Make Geoff Blum Full-Time Analyst |url=https://www.sportsbusinessdaily.com/Daily/Issues/2016/12/23/Media/Astros.aspx |publisher=Sports Business Daily |access-date=4 August 2019 |date=December 23, 2016}} Blum and Kalas have served as broadcast partners for the Astros (under Space City Home Network) since 2017.{{Cite web|url=https://www.chron.com/sports/astros/article/Astros-extend-broadcasters-Todd-Kalas-Geoff-Blum-14476865.php|title=Astros extend broadcasters Todd Kalas, Geoff Blum through 2021|last1=Barron|first1=David|last2=Chronicle|first2=Houston|date=2019-09-29|website=Houston Chronicle|access-date=2019-09-30}}

He resides in Houston, Texas.