Daniel Shulman is a
Canadian
Canadians (french: Canadiens) are people identified with the country of Canada. This connection may be residential, legal, historical or cultural. For most Canadians, many (or all) of these connections exist and are collectively the source of ...
sportscaster with
Sportsnet
Sportsnet is a Canadian English-language sports specialty channel owned by Rogers Sports & Media. It was established in 1998 as CTV Sportsnet, a joint venture between CTV, Liberty Media, and Rogers Media. CTV parent Bell Globemedia then ...
as well as the
American
American(s) may refer to:
* American, something of, from, or related to the United States of America, commonly known as the "United States" or "America"
** Americans, citizens and nationals of the United States of America
** American ancestry, pe ...
network
ESPN
ESPN (originally an initialism for Entertainment and Sports Programming Network) is an American international basic cable sports channel owned by ESPN Inc., owned jointly by The Walt Disney Company (80%) and Hearst Communications (20%). The ...
.
Shulman serves as a
play-by-play
In sports broadcasting, a sports commentator (also known as sports announcer or sportscaster) provides a real-time commentary of a game or event, usually during a live broadcast, traditionally delivered in the historical present tense. Radio was ...
announcer for select
Toronto Blue Jays
The Toronto Blue Jays are a Canadian professional baseball team based in Toronto. The Blue Jays compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) East division. Since 1989, the team has played its home games ...
telecasts on Sportsnet and during 2018 and 2020 he hosted the baseball-themed podcast, ''Swing and a Belt with Dan Shulman.'' He also serves as the lead announcer for ESPN's men's
college basketball
In United States colleges, top-tier basketball is governed by collegiate athletic bodies including National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA), the National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics (NAIA), the United States Collegiate Athleti ...
coverage (teaming with
Jay Bilas
Jay Scot Bilas (born December 24, 1963) is an American college basketball analyst who currently works for ESPN. Bilas is a former professional basketball player and coach who played for and served as an assistant under Mike Krzyzewski at Duke Uni ...
), and previously called regular-season and postseason Major League Baseball on
ESPN
ESPN (originally an initialism for Entertainment and Sports Programming Network) is an American international basic cable sports channel owned by ESPN Inc., owned jointly by The Walt Disney Company (80%) and Hearst Communications (20%). The ...
and
ESPN Radio
ESPN Radio, which is alternately platform-agnostically branded as ESPN Audio, is an American sports radio network and extension of the ESPN television network. It was launched on January 1, 1992, under the original banner of "SportsRadio ESPN". ...
.
Previously, Shulman served as the play-by-play announcer for ESPN's ''
Sunday Night Baseball'' (with
Aaron Boone
Aaron John Boone (born March 9, 1973) is an American baseball manager and former infielder who is the manager of the New York Yankees in Major League Baseball (MLB). He previously played in MLB for 13 seasons from 1997 through 2009. As a player ...
and
Jessica Mendoza
Jessica Ofelia Mendoza (born November 11, 1980) is an American sportscaster and former softball player. Currently, she serves as a color commentator and analyst for ESPN's coverage of Major League Baseball and Los Angeles Dodgers coverage on ...
), a position he resigned from at the conclusion of the 2017 season.
Education
Born in
Toronto
Toronto ( ; or ) is the capital city of the Canadian province of Ontario. With a recorded population of 2,794,356 in 2021, it is the most populous city in Canada and the fourth most populous city in North America. The city is the ancho ...
,
Ontario
Ontario ( ; ) is one of the thirteen provinces and territories of Canada.Ontario is located in the geographic eastern half of Canada, but it has historically and politically been considered to be part of Central Canada. Located in Central Ca ...
, Shulman graduated from the
University of Western Ontario
The University of Western Ontario (UWO), also known as Western University or Western, is a Public university, public research university in London, Ontario, London, Ontario, Canada. The main campus is located on of land, surrounded by resident ...
in actuarial science but moved into a career in sports broadcasting.
Broadcasting career
Early career
Shulman began his broadcasting career at the
University of Western Ontario
The University of Western Ontario (UWO), also known as Western University or Western, is a Public university, public research university in London, Ontario, London, Ontario, Canada. The main campus is located on of land, surrounded by resident ...
, becoming a main voice of university football and basketball for the
Western Mustangs
The Western Mustangs are the athletic teams that represent Western University in London, Ontario, Canada. The school's athletic program supports 46 varsity teams. Their mascot is a Mustang named J.W. and the school colours are purple and white. ...
on
CHRW radio in
London, Ontario
London (pronounced ) is a city in southwestern Ontario, Canada, along the Quebec City–Windsor Corridor. The city had a population of 422,324 according to the 2021 Canadian census. London is at the confluence of the Thames River, approximate ...
, and later at radio station CKBB in
Barrie
Barrie is a city in Southern Ontario, Canada, about north of Toronto. The city is within Simcoe County and located along the shores of Kempenfelt Bay, the western arm of Lake Simcoe. Although physically in Simcoe County, Barrie is politically i ...
, where he volunteered for the local community television station. During the early 1990s, he was hired by the
Fan 1430 (a
sports radio
Sports radio (or sports talk radio) is a radio format devoted entirely to discussion and broadcasting of sporting events. A widespread programming genre that has a narrow audience appeal, sports radio is characterized by an often- boisterous on-ai ...
station in
Toronto
Toronto ( ; or ) is the capital city of the Canadian province of Ontario. With a recorded population of 2,794,356 in 2021, it is the most populous city in Canada and the fourth most populous city in North America. The city is the ancho ...
now known as Sportsnet 590 The Fan) and would go on to host
Prime Time Sports
''Prime Time Sports'' was a sports radio talk show produced from the studios of CJCL, ''Sportsnet 590 The Fan'', in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. The show was hosted by Bob McCown until June 21, 2019 when McCown left the show. After his departure, t ...
. He worked for
CTV in its coverage of the
1994 Winter Olympics
The 1994 Winter Olympics, officially known as the XVII Olympic Winter Games ( no, De 17. olympiske vinterleker; nn, Dei 17. olympiske vinterleikane) and commonly known as Lillehammer '94, was an international winter multi-sport event held fro ...
from
Lillehammer, Norway
Lillehammer () is a municipality in Innlandet county, Norway. It is located in the traditional district of Gudbrandsdal. The administrative centre of the municipality is the town of Lillehammer. Some of the more notable villages in the municip ...
, covering hockey, and the 1994 World Championships of Basketball.
TSN
In 1995, he became the
play-by-play
In sports broadcasting, a sports commentator (also known as sports announcer or sportscaster) provides a real-time commentary of a game or event, usually during a live broadcast, traditionally delivered in the historical present tense. Radio was ...
voice on
TSN for their broadcasts of
Toronto Blue Jays
The Toronto Blue Jays are a Canadian professional baseball team based in Toronto. The Blue Jays compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) East division. Since 1989, the team has played its home games ...
baseball games alongside former Blue Jays catcher
Buck Martinez
John Albert "Buck" Martinez (born November 7, 1948) is an American former professional baseball catcher and manager, and is currently the television play-by-play announcer for the Toronto Blue Jays. He played 17 seasons in Major League Baseball ( ...
. Shulman remained with the network for seven years, during which time he also worked as the network's secondary play-by-play voice for
NHL hockey
''NHL Hockey'' (titled ''EA Hockey'' outside North America) is an ice hockey video game by EA Sports. Released in 1991 for the Sega Mega Drive/Genesis, it is the first game in the ''NHL'' series.
Cover
Glenn Healy who was then a goaltender fo ...
and lead announcer for
NBA basketball. He also covered
CHL games and backed up host
Dave Hodge
Dave Hodge (born January 8, 1945) is a Canadian sports announcer. Hodge worked for TSN, the CBC and CFRB 1010 radio in Toronto.
Early Years
Born in Montreal, Hodge began his career as a sportswriter with the ''Chatham Daily News'' in 1965, th ...
on ''TSN Inside Sports''. Until 2007, Shulman continued to work with
Buck Martinez
John Albert "Buck" Martinez (born November 7, 1948) is an American former professional baseball catcher and manager, and is currently the television play-by-play announcer for the Toronto Blue Jays. He played 17 seasons in Major League Baseball ( ...
for TSN during the
World Series
The World Series is the annual championship series of Major League Baseball (MLB) in the United States and Canada, contested since 1903 between the champion teams of the American League (AL) and the National League (NL). The winner of the World ...
, filing daily reports. In 2011, he returned to TSN as an analyst and contributor.
ESPN
Shulman began working part-time for ESPN while still employed by TSN. In 2001, he moved to ESPN full-time to cover sporting events like
baseball
Baseball is a bat-and-ball sport played between two teams of nine players each, taking turns batting and fielding. The game occurs over the course of several plays, with each play generally beginning when a player on the fielding tea ...
and
college basketball
In United States colleges, top-tier basketball is governed by collegiate athletic bodies including National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA), the National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics (NAIA), the United States Collegiate Athleti ...
. ESPN signed Shulman to a five-year contract extension in 2007 and assigned him to call NBA games for the network. Shulman remains the network's lead announcer for NCAA basketball.
On July 27, 2007, Shulman called
Barry Bonds
Barry Lamar Bonds (born July 24, 1964) is an American former professional baseball left fielder who played 22 seasons in Major League Baseball (MLB). Bonds was a member of the Pittsburgh Pirates from 1986 to 1992 and the San Francisco Giants f ...
's 754th home run for ESPN.
From 2002 to 2007, he served as the lead play-by-play announcer for ESPN Radio's MLB coverage, teaming with
Dave Campbell to call the network's ''Sunday Night Baseball'' broadcasts as well as the
All-Star Game
An all-star game is an exhibition game that purports to showcase the best players (the "stars") of a sports league. The exhibition is between two teams organized solely for the event, usually representing the league's teams based on region or div ...
,
Home Run Derby, and select postseason games. In 2008,
Gary Thorne
Gary F. Thorne (born June 9, 1948) is an American sportscaster. He was the lead play-by-play announcer for Baltimore Orioles games on MASN from 2007 to 2020. He has also worked for ESPN and ABC, including National Hockey League, Major League ...
succeeded Shulman as the lead ''Sunday Night Baseball'' voice; however, Shulman once again teamed with Campbell to call that year's All-Star and postseason events and continued to fill in on occasional regular season broadcasts. Shulman also teamed with
Orel Hershiser
Orel Leonard Hershiser IV (born September 16, 1958) is an American former baseball pitcher who played 18 seasons in Major League Baseball (MLB) from 1983 to 2000. He later became a pitching coach for the Texas Rangers from 2002 to 2005 and a bro ...
to call ''
Monday Night Baseball
''Monday Night Baseball'' was a live game telecast of Major League Baseball that aired on Monday nights during the regular season.
These games formerly aired weekly on ESPN. The game started at 7 p.m. ET, following ''SportsCenter'', and usually l ...
'' for ESPN television from 2008 to 2010 and with
Hubie Brown
Hubert Jude Brown (born September 25, 1933) is an American retired basketball coach and player and a current television analyst. Brown is a two-time NBA Coach of the Year, the honors being separated by 26 years. Brown was inducted into the Naism ...
to call ESPN
NBA coverage from 2007 to 2012.
On December 1, 2010, ESPN announced that Shulman, Hershiser, and
Bobby Valentine
Robert John Valentine (born May 13, 1950), nicknamed "Bobby V", is an American former professional baseball player and manager. He also served as the athletic director at Sacred Heart University. Valentine played for the Los Angeles Dodgers (1 ...
would be on the network's new ''Sunday Night Baseball'' crew for the
2011 MLB season. During the ''Sunday Night Baseball'' telecast between the
New York Mets
The New York Mets are an American professional baseball team based in the New York City borough of Queens. The Mets compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member of the National League (NL) East division. They are one of two major league ...
and
Philadelphia Phillies
The Philadelphia Phillies are an American professional baseball team based in Philadelphia. They compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member of the National League (NL) National League East, East division. Since 2004, the team's home sta ...
on May 1, 2011, Shulman announced live to the ESPN audience that
Osama bin Laden had died, a moment that has been compared to
Howard Cosell
Howard is an English-language given name originating from Old French Huard (or Houard) from a Germanic source similar to Old High German ''*Hugihard'' "heart-brave", or ''*Hoh-ward'', literally "high defender; chief guardian". It is also probabl ...
's report of
John Lennon's assassination on ''
Monday Night Football
''ESPN Monday Night Football'' (abbreviated as ''MNF'' and also known as ''ESPN Monday Night Football on ABC'' for simulcasts) is an American live television broadcast of weekly National Football League (NFL) games currently airing on ESPN, A ...
'' in
1980. Shulman told ''
USA Today
''USA Today'' (stylized in all uppercase) is an American daily middle-market newspaper and news broadcasting company. Founded by Al Neuharth on September 15, 1982, the newspaper operates from Gannett's corporate headquarters in Tysons, Virgini ...
'' that he had learned of bin Laden's death from Valentine, who himself received the news via text. "I talked to the producer in the truck and asked if they knew what was going on. Or maybe they asked me," said Shulman. "I couldn't just say something on-air because of a text, I needed corroboration. It all happened in about 30 seconds."
Shulman also teamed with
Orel Hershiser
Orel Leonard Hershiser IV (born September 16, 1958) is an American former baseball pitcher who played 18 seasons in Major League Baseball (MLB) from 1983 to 2000. He later became a pitching coach for the Texas Rangers from 2002 to 2005 and a bro ...
and
Bobby Valentine
Robert John Valentine (born May 13, 1950), nicknamed "Bobby V", is an American former professional baseball player and manager. He also served as the athletic director at Sacred Heart University. Valentine played for the Los Angeles Dodgers (1 ...
for the
ESPN Radio
ESPN Radio, which is alternately platform-agnostically branded as ESPN Audio, is an American sports radio network and extension of the ESPN television network. It was launched on January 1, 1992, under the original banner of "SportsRadio ESPN". ...
broadcast of the
2011 World Series won in 7 games by the
St. Louis Cardinals
The St. Louis Cardinals are an American professional baseball team based in St. Louis. The Cardinals compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (NL) Central division. Since the 2006 season, the Cardinals ha ...
over the
Texas Rangers.
That same year, he teamed with Dick Vitale for the broadcast of the
Indiana–Kentucky rivalry
The Indiana–Kentucky rivalry is a college sports rivalry between the Indiana University Bloomington Indiana Hoosiers, Hoosiers and the University of Kentucky Kentucky Wildcats, Wildcats. The rivalry between these two schools, located about ap ...
on December 10, 2011. His call for the game-winning three-pointer by
Christian Watford was "Jones... Watford for the win… YES! YES!" with Vitale screaming "Unbelievable!" shortly after.
Shulman was named 2011 National Sportscaster of the Year by the
National Sportscasters and Sportswriters Association
The National Sports Media Association (NSMA), formerly the National Sportscasters and Sportswriters Association, is an organization of sports media members in the United States, and constitutes the American chapter of the International Sports Pr ...
, the first Canadian-born announcer to be so honoured.
One year later, ESPN hired
Terry Francona
Terrence Jon Francona (born April 22, 1959), nicknamed "Tito", is an American baseball manager and former player who is the manager of the Cleveland Guardians in Major League Baseball (MLB). Previously, he was the manager of the Boston Red Sox fo ...
to join Shulman and Hershiser for the
2012 MLB season in exchange for
Bobby Valentine
Robert John Valentine (born May 13, 1950), nicknamed "Bobby V", is an American former professional baseball player and manager. He also served as the athletic director at Sacred Heart University. Valentine played for the Los Angeles Dodgers (1 ...
, who has hired to be the
Boston Red Sox
The Boston Red Sox are an American professional baseball team based in Boston. The Red Sox compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) East division. Founded in as one of the American League's eight ...
manager. Francona stayed with ESPN for only one season before he was hired by the
Cleveland Indians
The Cleveland Guardians are an American professional baseball team based in Cleveland. The Guardians compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) Central division. Since , they have played at Progressive F ...
to be their manager for the
2013 season. On December 3, 2012, ESPN announced that
John Kruk
John Martin Kruk (born February 9, 1961) is an American former professional baseball first baseman and outfielder. Kruk played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the San Diego Padres, Philadelphia Phillies, and Chicago White Sox from through . Du ...
, who had been part of the ''
Baseball Tonight
''Baseball Tonight'' (stylized as ''Baseball Tonight presented by Chevrolet'' for sponsorship reasons) is an American television program that airs on ESPN. The show, which covers the day's Major League Baseball action, has been on the air since ...
'' team since 2004, would replace Francona join Shulman and Hershiser on the network's new ''Sunday Night Baseball'' crew for the
2013 MLB season. At the start of the
2014 season, Hershiser left ESPN to become an analyst for the Dodgers on
SportsNet LA
Spectrum SportsNet LA and Spectrum Deportes LA (otherwise known as simply SportsNet LA and Deportes LA and originally known as Time Warner Cable SportsNet LA) is an American regional sports network jointly owned by the Los Angeles Dodgers Major L ...
and was replaced by
Curt Schilling
Curtis Montague Schilling (born November 14, 1966) is an American former Major League Baseball right-handed pitcher who is a commentator for conservative media outlet BlazeTV. He helped lead the Philadelphia Phillies to a World Series appearance ...
; however, Schilling's subsequent diagnosis of and treatment for an undisclosed form of
cancer
Cancer is a group of diseases involving abnormal cell growth with the potential to invade or spread to other parts of the body. These contrast with benign tumors, which do not spread. Possible signs and symptoms include a lump, abnormal b ...
led to his being unavailable to ESPN for most of the season. Shulman and Kruk worked as a two-man booth until Schilling joined them in September.
On July 3, 2017, Shulman announced in a ''
Sports Illustrated
''Sports Illustrated'' (''SI'') is an American sports magazine first published in August 1954. Founded by Stuart Scheftel, it was the first magazine with circulation over one million to win the National Magazine Award for General Excellence twic ...
'' interview that he would step down from ''Sunday Night Baseball'' at the conclusion of the 2017 season, seeking to adjust his role at ESPN so he could spend more time with his family in Toronto. He will still participate in ESPN Radio coverage of the MLB postseason, and ESPN's college basketball coverage.
In October 2022, it was announced that Shulman would step down as its lead radio broadcaster for the MLB postseason beginning in the 2023 season (with
Jon Sciambi
Jon "Boog" Sciambi (; born April 11, 1970) is an American sportscaster for ESPN and the Marquee Sports Network, currently the everyday play-by-play announcer for the Chicago Cubs TV broadcasts. He has worked extensively as a baseball play-by-pl ...
taking over the role), focusing solely on his college basketball role.
Sportsnet
In addition to his continued work with
ESPN
ESPN (originally an initialism for Entertainment and Sports Programming Network) is an American international basic cable sports channel owned by ESPN Inc., owned jointly by The Walt Disney Company (80%) and Hearst Communications (20%). The ...
, on November 19, 2015, Shulman announced he would be joining the
Sportsnet
Sportsnet is a Canadian English-language sports specialty channel owned by Rogers Sports & Media. It was established in 1998 as CTV Sportsnet, a joint venture between CTV, Liberty Media, and Rogers Media. CTV parent Bell Globemedia then ...
broadcast team for upwards of 30
Toronto Blue Jays
The Toronto Blue Jays are a Canadian professional baseball team based in Toronto. The Blue Jays compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) East division. Since 1989, the team has played its home games ...
games during the 2016 and 2017 seasons. In March 2018 it was announced that he would be joining the
Sportsnet Radio
Sportsnet Radio is the branding used by three sports talk radio stations in Canada owned by Rogers Sports & Media, a division of Rogers Communications.
Overview
The Toronto and Calgary stations (which maintain their former The Fan moniker in thei ...
network for select Blue Jays games, in addition to calling up to 50 games on Sportsnet television.
In April 2018, Shulman teamed up with
Sportsnet
Sportsnet is a Canadian English-language sports specialty channel owned by Rogers Sports & Media. It was established in 1998 as CTV Sportsnet, a joint venture between CTV, Liberty Media, and Rogers Media. CTV parent Bell Globemedia then ...
to air the podcast ''Swing and a Belt with Dan Shulman'' where every week, he covers a different topic related to baseball and interviews different people such as
Mike Trout and
Aaron Boone
Aaron John Boone (born March 9, 1973) is an American baseball manager and former infielder who is the manager of the New York Yankees in Major League Baseball (MLB). He previously played in MLB for 13 seasons from 1997 through 2009. As a player ...
.
He won the
Canadian Screen Award
The Canadian Screen Awards (french: link=no, Les prix Écrans canadiens) are awards given for artistic and technical merit in the film industry recognizing excellence in Canadian film, English-language television, and digital media (web series) p ...
for Best Sports Play-by-Play at the
10th Canadian Screen Awards in 2022.
[Brent Furdyk]
"Canadian Screen Awards: Winners Announced In Sports Programming, Digital & Immersive Categories"
''ET Canada
''ET Canada'' (previously referred to as ''Entertainment Tonight Canada'') is a Canadian entertainment news television series, using the same format as the American entertainment newsmagazine '' Entertainment Tonight''. ''ET Canada'' is a broadca ...
'', April 5, 2022.
Personal life
Shulman is
Jewish
Jews ( he, יְהוּדִים, , ) or Jewish people are an ethnoreligious group and nation originating from the Israelites Israelite origins and kingdom: "The first act in the long drama of Jewish history is the age of the Israelites""The ...
and has participated in the
Maccabiah Games
The Maccabiah Games (a.k.a. the World Maccabiah Games; he, משחקי המכביה, or משחקי המכביה העולמית; sometimes referred to as the "Jewish Olympics"), first held in 1932, are an international Jewish and Israeli multi-sp ...
. Shulman had three sons with his wife, Sarah; the couple has since divorced. His third son, Ben, is also a sportscaster. In July 2017, he announced that he was ending his ''Sunday Night Baseball'' duties in part due to his remarriage.
References
External links
ESPN bio
TSN bio
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Shulman, Dan
Canadian expatriate sportspeople in the United States
Canadian radio sportscasters
Canadian Screen Award winners
Canadian television sportscasters
College basketball announcers in the United States
Jewish Canadian journalists
Jewish Canadian sportspeople
Journalists from Toronto
Living people
Major League Baseball broadcasters
National Basketball Association broadcasters
National Hockey League broadcasters
Olympic Games broadcasters
People from Thornhill, Ontario
Sportspeople from Toronto
Toronto Blue Jays announcers
Toronto Raptors announcers
University of Western Ontario alumni
Year of birth missing (living people)