A conversation with Sportsnet's Joe Siddall: From Windsor to the Sportsnet booth

After interviews with Blue Jays personalities Keegan Matheson and Blake Murpy, I had the honour to sit down with Joe Siddall, former MLB catcher and current Sportsnet analyst/broadcaster.

We had a wide-ranging conversation about his life in baseball both as a player and behind the microphone. In the first part of this series, we revisited his early days in Windsor, Ontario, and the unexpected series of events that led him to the broadcast booth. Siddall was a multi-sport athlete across the river from Detroit and although baseball was still his top priority, it wasn't his only priority by any means.

Robbie: How much of your life revolved around baseball? I know you got a scholarship to Central Michigan as a quarterback, so was baseball kind of on the back burner for you?

Joe: I would say baseball was on the front burner. I played all kinds of sports as a kid, but once I got to high school, it became more seasonal, so it was football in the fall and then the day football ended, I was in the gym for basketball tryouts.

Siddal redshirted his freshman year, but would play in the annual spring game, with the possibility of being the teams number one quarterback the following season. However, everything changed that summer when he returned home and the Montreal Expos invited him to a two-day local tryout. All of a sudden, Siddall had a decision to make.

"I guess I had a good couple of days, and they wanted to sign me to a pro contract," he says. After signing, (38 years ago on August 5th), I had to leave school. I had to call them two weeks before their season started and tell them their potential starting quarterback was not coming back. It felt like a very, very selfish decision, but what I've also learned in life is sometimes you have to make those."

This was the beginning of a long professional baseball journey for Siddall, one built mostly on defence, (more on his playing career in part two) but once his playing career had ended in 2000, he didn’t rush into anything. Siddall spent over a decade with the Tigers, helping with batting practice at home games while living in Windsor.

He chose to take the job so he could still be around the game and at home with his family. Sadly, in 2014, his youngest son Kevin lost his battle to non-Hodgkin's lymphoma at just 14. It was shortly after the funeral that Siddall received an unexpected message.

"I got an email from Jerry Howarth sending his condolences. I said 'thank you very much' and I also told him that I looked forward to seeing him in the broadcast booth. I didn't mean anything by it. It was just a goofy comment," says Siddal.

Howarth's response changed Siddall's future. "He replied, saying 'how about right now?' I'm like, what are you talking about?" The Blue Jays were auditioning for a new radio analyst. Jack Morris had just left the booth, and the legendary Howarth wanted Siddall to come to spring training and give it a go.

His broadcasting debut arrived during a spring training game between the Blue Jays and Phillies in Clearwater. Siddall had never stepped foot into a broadcasting booth before, so he was learning in real time.

Robbie: How nervous were you?

Joe: Well, Jerry was giving me tips and tricks, which helped. We did the first game, and he thought, 'hey, that was really good.' Second day, we did it again, and that's when I got the email from my boss asking to meet for dinner. I was offered the job.

Siddall then went on to spend four years on the radio, sitting beside one of the game’s most iconic voices. He eventually brought up the idea of making the move to TV, and the opportunity was there to join Blue Jays Central with Jamie Campbell.

Robbie: I interviewed Keegan Matheson a couple of weeks ago, and he was telling me that Buck Martinez took acting classes for his voice. Did you get coached?

Joe:  I never had any training there. We've had talent coaches come in a little bit, and they'll watch some of your video and sit down with you. And I had that several years back, but I think when you get started out, it helps to not ramble on too long.

What helped Siddall feel most comfortable in broadcasting was being as prepared as possible. "I don't think people realize how much time broadcasters put in prepping," he says. "Especially when you're playing an interleague team like Colorado for example, a team you don’t know real well. I’ll start working on them days ahead."

Siddal's extensive prep work begins with a full team sheet, breaking down every player on both rosters. "Strikes, weaknesses, how they hit against fastballs, breaking balls, chase rate, swing-and-miss, speed, arms, all of that," he says. When it comes to the pitchers, he narrows it down to the starters, digging through stats, recent outings, and their tendencies. The prep also doesn’t stop when he gets to the ballpark.

"The clubhouse opens around 3:20 PM for a 6:40 PM local start. I’ll talk to players, get some storylines. I chatted with Hoffman because he pitched here in Colorado. For example, I talked with Addison Barger about how teams have been pitching him. I jot stuff in my phone nonstop. Once the game starts, though, my job is to focus on what’s happening on the field and bring that to the audience."

In the second part of this conversation, we’ll dive into the 2025 Blue Jays, the art of catching, and reminisce about Siddal's career in the majors.