Blue Jays: Play-by-play announcer Buck Martinez set to return on Tuesday

With the trade deadline just over a week away, the Blue Jays haven’t made any deals yet but the club is gaining a pretty important individual back into the fold (yet off the field).

Announced during last night’s game, play-by-play announcer Buck Martinez will return to the booth this Tuesday when the St. Louis Cardinals come to town for a two-game series at the Rogers Centre. The voice of the Blue Jays since 2010 (after an initial stint as colour commentator decades ago), Martinez stepped away from the team in mid-April after being diagnosed with cancer in order to undergo treatment.

A 17-year veteran of the Major Leagues, the former Jays catcher has had many memorable moments on and off the field.

Blue Jays play-by-play announcer Buck Martinez is slated to return early next week after stepping away from the team in mid-April while battling cancer.

One such moment was back in 1985 when a collision at the plate resulted in Martinez breaking his leg but not before some throwing miscues allowed another player to come to the plate only to be tagged out again by Martinez, resulting in a double play.

With the Jays, the California product amassed a .222/.297/.378 slash line with 35 home runs and a .675 OPS. Following his playing career, Martinez worked in the Jays booth before taking over as the manager during the 2000/2001 offseason and amassed a 100-115 record through one and a half seasons.

Since his April departure, the Blue Jays have utilized Dan Shulman as the play-by-play commentator while Pat Tabler remained in the colour analyst role. While it is not known at this time if all three will be in the booth moving forward, having Martinez and his electric personality will be something Jays fans will be happy to have back, especially now that he is healthy after battling cancer.

Welcome back Mr. Martinez!