Pat Hughes (baseball)
Encyclopedia
Vergil Patrick "Pat" Hughes (born May 27, 1955 in Tucson, Arizona
) has been the play-by-play voice of the Chicago Cubs
, working for WGN radio
, since 1996. He partnered with color commentator
Ron Santo
, former All-Star
third baseman
for the Cubs from 1996 until 2010, when Santo died of cancer. Their unique on-air chemistry came to be known as the "Pat and Ron Show". Prior to joining the Cubs broadcast booth, Hughes spent 12 years calling games for the Milwaukee Brewers
, with the legendary broadcaster Bob Uecker
. Hughes also spent 17 years as a radio television play-by-play man for Marquette University
basketball.
's 62nd home run in 1998
. That home run broke the single-season home run record, and the Hughes narration of the hit is the most often-played call of that moment:
On most other instances, his home run call is "That ball's got a chaaaance...GONE!" On longer home runs, Hughes' call often includes the phrase "Get out the tape measure". Another Hughes catchphrase as the first pitch of the game is thrown is "And away we go..." In times of great excitement at the ballpark he will say, "Listen to these fans!" or "They're on their feet at Wrigley." As an intro to the show he will say, "Chicago Cubs baseball is on the air! From Beautiful Wrigley Field in Chicago, it's the Chicago Cubs against the [opposing team]."
If the Cubs have the lead going into opposing team's final at bat, Hughes exclaims, "Fasten those seatbelts!"
The Chicago Tribune
reported on November 15, 2006 that Hughes had agreed to a multi-year contract extension with the Cubs.
Hughes' broadcasting career includes stints as a broadcaster for the Minnesota Twins
baseball team, the Minnesota North Stars
hockey team, and minor league baseball
teams the Columbus Clippers
and San Jose Missions
. He has also broadcast college games for Northwestern University
, San Jose State University
, University of Wisconsin–Madison
and the Marquette University
men's basketball team, as well as announcing games for ESPN
.
Hughes' work has earned him the Illinois
Sportscaster of the Year award in 1996, 1999, 2006, 2007, and 2009 in addition to three Wisconsin
Sportscaster of the Year awards from 1990-92.
Hughes graduated from San Jose State University
where his father had served as a professor and where Hughes also did some announcing.
Hughes appeared in an uncredited voiceover role as the Basketball Announcer in the 1997 remake of the Disney film Flubber.
Hughes has recently produced, written, and narrated a series of book-and-CD sets on great baseball announcers entitled Baseball Voices. His releases have been short books about former colleagues Bob Uecker
, and Harry Caray
, as well as Marty Brennaman
, Jack Buck
, and Harry Kalas
.
In July 2008, Hughes' voice was featured in a State Farm
commercial, calling the end of a walkoff win for the Cubs, in which a ball was hit onto Waveland Avenue and caught by a teenager who then gives the game winning ball to a young fan of the Cubs.
Tucson, Arizona
Tucson is a city in and the county seat of Pima County, Arizona, United States. The city is located 118 miles southeast of Phoenix and 60 miles north of the U.S.-Mexico border. The 2010 United States Census puts the city's population at 520,116 with a metropolitan area population at 1,020,200...
) has been the play-by-play voice of the Chicago Cubs
Chicago Cubs
The Chicago Cubs are a professional baseball team located in Chicago, Illinois. They are members of the Central Division of Major League Baseball's National League. They are one of two Major League clubs based in Chicago . The Cubs are also one of the two remaining charter members of the National...
, working for WGN radio
WGN (AM)
WGN is a radio station in Chicago, Illinois, USA. It is the only radio station owned by the Tribune Company, which also owns the flagship television station WGN-TV, the Chicago Tribune newspaper and Chicago magazine locally. WGN's transmitter is located in Elk Grove Village, Illinois...
, since 1996. He partnered with color commentator
Color commentator
A color commentator is a sports commentator who assists the play-by-play announcer, often by filling in any time when play is not in progress. The color analyst and main commentator will often exchange comments freely throughout the broadcast, when the play-by-play announcer is not describing the...
Ron Santo
Ron Santo
Ronald Edward Santo was an American professional baseball player and long-time radio sports commentator. He played in Major League Baseball from 1960 to 1974, most notably as the third baseman for the Chicago Cubs. A nine-time All-Star, he was a powerful hitter who was also a good defensive...
, former All-Star
Major League Baseball All-Star Game
The Major League Baseball All-Star Game, also known as the "Midsummer Classic", is an annual baseball game between players from the National League and the American League, currently selected by a combination of fans, players, coaches, and managers...
third baseman
Third baseman
A third baseman, abbreviated 3B, is the player in baseball whose responsibility is to defend the area nearest to third base — the third of four bases a baserunner must touch in succession to score a run...
for the Cubs from 1996 until 2010, when Santo died of cancer. Their unique on-air chemistry came to be known as the "Pat and Ron Show". Prior to joining the Cubs broadcast booth, Hughes spent 12 years calling games for the Milwaukee Brewers
Milwaukee Brewers
The Milwaukee Brewers are a professional baseball team based in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, currently playing in the Central Division of Major League Baseball's National League...
, with the legendary broadcaster Bob Uecker
Bob Uecker
Robert George "Bob" Uecker is an American former Major League Baseball player, later a sportscaster, comedian, and actor. Uecker was given the title of "Mr. Baseball" by Johnny Carson...
. Hughes also spent 17 years as a radio television play-by-play man for Marquette University
Marquette University
Marquette University is a private, coeducational, Jesuit, Roman Catholic university located in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. Founded by the Society of Jesus in 1881, the school is one of 28 member institutions of the Association of Jesuit Colleges and Universities...
basketball.
Broadcasting career
He is best known for his call of Mark McGwireMark McGwire
Mark David McGwire , nicknamed "Big Mac", is an American former professional baseball player who played his major league career with the Oakland Athletics and the St. Louis Cardinals. He is currently the hitting coach for the St...
's 62nd home run in 1998
1998 in baseball
-Headline events of the year:*Mark McGwire, Sammy Sosa, Ken Griffey, Jr., and Greg Vaughn all hit 30 home runs before the All-Star break and engage in a historic chase for Roger Maris's single-season record of 61 home runs...
. That home run broke the single-season home run record, and the Hughes narration of the hit is the most often-played call of that moment:
On most other instances, his home run call is "That ball's got a chaaaance...GONE!" On longer home runs, Hughes' call often includes the phrase "Get out the tape measure". Another Hughes catchphrase as the first pitch of the game is thrown is "And away we go..." In times of great excitement at the ballpark he will say, "Listen to these fans!" or "They're on their feet at Wrigley." As an intro to the show he will say, "Chicago Cubs baseball is on the air! From Beautiful Wrigley Field in Chicago, it's the Chicago Cubs against the [opposing team]."
If the Cubs have the lead going into opposing team's final at bat, Hughes exclaims, "Fasten those seatbelts!"
The Chicago Tribune
Chicago Tribune
The Chicago Tribune is a major daily newspaper based in Chicago, Illinois, and the flagship publication of the Tribune Company. Formerly self-styled as the "World's Greatest Newspaper" , it remains the most read daily newspaper of the Chicago metropolitan area and the Great Lakes region and is...
reported on November 15, 2006 that Hughes had agreed to a multi-year contract extension with the Cubs.
Hughes' broadcasting career includes stints as a broadcaster for the Minnesota Twins
Minnesota Twins
The Minnesota Twins are a professional baseball team based in Minneapolis, Minnesota. They play in the Central Division of Major League Baseball's American League. The team is named after the Twin Cities area of Minneapolis and St. Paul. They played in Metropolitan Stadium from 1961 to 1981 and the...
baseball team, the Minnesota North Stars
Minnesota North Stars
The Minnesota North Stars were a professional ice hockey team in the National Hockey League for 26 seasons, from 1967 to 1993. The North Stars played their home games at the Met Center in Bloomington, and the team's colors for most of its history were green, yellow, gold and white...
hockey team, and minor league baseball
Minor league baseball
Minor league baseball is a hierarchy of professional baseball leagues in the Americas that compete at levels below Major League Baseball and provide opportunities for player development. All of the minor leagues are operated as independent businesses...
teams the Columbus Clippers
Columbus Clippers
The Columbus Clippers are a minor league baseball team based in Columbus, Ohio. The team plays in the International League and is the Triple-A affiliate of the Cleveland Indians. The team is owned by the government of Franklin County, Ohio....
and San Jose Missions
San Jose Missions
The San Jose Missions were a minor league baseball team which played in the Pacific Coast League in 1977 and 1978. The team had been known as the Sacramento Solons prior to 1977, and played its home games in a football stadium there...
. He has also broadcast college games for Northwestern University
Northwestern University
Northwestern University is a private research university in Evanston and Chicago, Illinois, USA. Northwestern has eleven undergraduate, graduate, and professional schools offering 124 undergraduate degrees and 145 graduate and professional degrees....
, San Jose State University
San José State University
San Jose State University is a public university located in San Jose, California, United States...
, University of Wisconsin–Madison
University of Wisconsin–Madison
The University of Wisconsin–Madison is a public research university located in Madison, Wisconsin, United States. Founded in 1848, UW–Madison is the flagship campus of the University of Wisconsin System. It became a land-grant institution in 1866...
and the Marquette University
Marquette University
Marquette University is a private, coeducational, Jesuit, Roman Catholic university located in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. Founded by the Society of Jesus in 1881, the school is one of 28 member institutions of the Association of Jesuit Colleges and Universities...
men's basketball team, as well as announcing games for ESPN
ESPN
Entertainment and Sports Programming Network, commonly known as ESPN, is an American global cable television network focusing on sports-related programming including live and pre-taped event telecasts, sports talk shows, and other original programming....
.
Hughes' work has earned him the Illinois
Illinois
Illinois is the fifth-most populous state of the United States of America, and is often noted for being a microcosm of the entire country. With Chicago in the northeast, small industrial cities and great agricultural productivity in central and northern Illinois, and natural resources like coal,...
Sportscaster of the Year award in 1996, 1999, 2006, 2007, and 2009 in addition to three Wisconsin
Wisconsin
Wisconsin is a U.S. state located in the north-central United States and is part of the Midwest. It is bordered by Minnesota to the west, Iowa to the southwest, Illinois to the south, Lake Michigan to the east, Michigan to the northeast, and Lake Superior to the north. Wisconsin's capital is...
Sportscaster of the Year awards from 1990-92.
Hughes graduated from San Jose State University
San José State University
San Jose State University is a public university located in San Jose, California, United States...
where his father had served as a professor and where Hughes also did some announcing.
Hughes appeared in an uncredited voiceover role as the Basketball Announcer in the 1997 remake of the Disney film Flubber.
Hughes has recently produced, written, and narrated a series of book-and-CD sets on great baseball announcers entitled Baseball Voices. His releases have been short books about former colleagues Bob Uecker
Bob Uecker
Robert George "Bob" Uecker is an American former Major League Baseball player, later a sportscaster, comedian, and actor. Uecker was given the title of "Mr. Baseball" by Johnny Carson...
, and Harry Caray
Harry Caray
Harry Caray, born Harry Christopher Carabina, was an American baseball broadcaster on radio and television. He covered four Major League Baseball teams, beginning with a long tenure calling the games of the St...
, as well as Marty Brennaman
Marty Brennaman
Franchester Martin "Marty" Brennaman , is an American sportscaster, known primarily as the radio voice of Major League Baseball's Cincinnati Reds on the Cincinnati Reds Radio Network.-Early life:...
, Jack Buck
Jack Buck
John Francis "Jack" Buck was an American sportscaster, best known for his work announcing Major League Baseball games of the St. Louis Cardinals. Buck received the Ford C. Frick Award from the Baseball Hall of Fame in 1987, and is honored with a star on the St. Louis Walk of Fame...
, and Harry Kalas
Harry Kalas
Harry Norbert Kalas was an American sportscaster, best known for his Ford C. Frick Award-winning role as lead play-by-play announcer for Major League Baseball's Philadelphia Phillies...
.
In July 2008, Hughes' voice was featured in a State Farm
State farm
State farm can refer to:*Sovkhoz, a type of state-owned farm in the Soviet Union*Volkseigenes Gut, a type of state-owned farm in East Germany*Państwowe Gospodarstwo Rolne, a type of state-owned farm in People's Republic of Poland...
commercial, calling the end of a walkoff win for the Cubs, in which a ball was hit onto Waveland Avenue and caught by a teenager who then gives the game winning ball to a young fan of the Cubs.