Blue Jays Announcer Jacques Doucet Nominated for Ford C. Frick Award

Jul 3, 2013; Houston, TX, USA; General view of a Fox Sports microphone before a game between the Houston Astros and the Tampa Bay Rays at Minute Maid Park. Mandatory Credit: Troy Taormina-USA TODAY SportsIn 2013, longtime Toronto Blue Jays broadcaster Tom Cheek was recognized for his excellence in the booth with the Ford C. Frick Award. The team looks to make it two consecutive seasons with the award coming to a Blue Jays representative.

On Wednesday, the Hall of Fame announced the 2014 nominees (h/t Spencer Fordin, MLB.com. Included in that group were Joe Castiglione, Ken Harrelson, Bill King, Duane Kuiper, Eric Nadel, Eduardo Ortega, Mike Shannon, Dewayne Staats, Pete van Wieren, and Toronto’s own Jacques Doucet.

The Ford C. Frick Award is presented yearly by the National Baseball Hall of Fame to a broadcaster who has shown excellence in his or her field and made major contributions to the game of baseball. The recipient is selected by a 21-person board, including the 16 current living recipients and 5 historians/columnists. The eligible candidates, who served a minimum of 10 years of continuous service with a club, network, or both, are judged based on longevity, honors, nationals assignments, and popularity with the fans.

As mentioned above, Doucet could become the second Blue Jays announcer to receive the honor is as many years. A veteran of 34 years in the broadcast booth, Doucet has been the French radio announcer for the Blue Jays since August 2011. Prior to that, he served five seasons as the voice of the Quebec Capitales of the Can-Am League. However, he made his bones in the game by serving as the play-by-play announcer for the Montreal Expos from 1972 through 2003, calling a total of 5,000 games for the Expos.

The Ford C. Frick Award will be the perfect complement to the work Jacques Doucet has already done and will give his collection of awards, which already includes the Quebec Baseball Hall of Fame (2002), the Expos Hall of Fame (2003), and the Canadian Baseball Hall of Fame (2004).