Speaking of Tom Cheek

* Milo Hamilton and Tom Cheek first met each other at West Palm Beach during the 1970s. ....  

By Bob Elliott

NASHVILLE - The heartfelt kudos are still coming in for the late Tom Cheek. The long-time voice of the Blue Jays, who passed away in 2005, was named the 2013 winner of the Ford c. Frick award on Thursday after being a finalist every year since 2005. He will be honoured at the Hall of Fame at cooperstown, N.Y. in July. What respected announcers are saying ... * "I knew when I saw the 416 area code on my phone, it was a Toronto call. and the only reason someone from Toronto would be calling would have been a reporter asking about Tom. People probably knew i told everyone for the past three years that they should vote for Tom. I got my Ford Frick 21 years ago, so younger guys ask me who Iwas voting for. He's a great choice. "Our ballot is two pages, rank your picks 1-through- 10 and the second page is to include guys who should be on the ballot in the future. before Tom was even on our ballot, I used to write his name on the second page. I had known Tom from West Palm beach when I did the Atlanta Braves and he was doing part-time work for the Montreal Expos in the 1970s. That's how far we go back. i didn't really help, he earned it himself. i am elated for Tom's family." - Milo Hamilton, former Frick winner, Houston. * "Tom and i talked quite a bit his first year on the job. He tapped my brain, and soon found that there wasn't anything there. "He was very inquisitive about the job, dedicated to his craft. Towards the end of his career, he had that consecutive string of games. i was taking games off every few years. "Tom was proud of his streak, but once, about three or four years before his streak ended, he told me: 'I have very few regrets in my life, but one would be letting the streak go so long. do you realize how many family things i missed?'Weddings, high school functions only happen once. There are games every day. it was interesting that he came to that mindset. "Tom was a nice guy, always on an up-kick, fun to be around. Our booth was beside his, separated by a glass wall and often we'd stand, lean out and talk. One night, Tom stands, my partner, Fred White, sees Tom, so he stands. They both lean out and no one says anything. each thought the other had a gem. They both sat down. it was a funny incident. "Tom was my No. 1 guy. it's a shame he isn't here to enjoy it. George Brett told me, when i went to Cooperstown, it would be four of the most memorable days of my life and the four fastest, so try to slow it down." - Denny Mathews, former Frick winner, Kansas city. * "In Game 3 of the 1992 World Series against atlanta, Joe Carter homered. it didn't get as much attention as the one the next year. but it was the first World Series homer hit in Canada. I was in the auxiliary press box in left. The ball hit behind me, rattled around and landed at my feet. I picked up the ball. after the game, I found Tom and we went into the clubhouse to find Joe. There was Joe watching a replay. I asked about what pitch he hit and if he got the ball? I stuck out my hand and gave it to him. Joe was excited but what I noticed was that Tom was happier seeing all this unfold. "We started going to Toronto with ESPN when Bobby Cox was managing. any time i sat down to talk with Tom and Jerry Howarth it struck me how they wanted to talk about the game, the team, the players or the city. Neither made it about themselves." - George Grande, who began working in New York in the 1973, now Cincinnati.