Jim Traber
Encyclopedia
James Joseph "Jim" Traber (born December 26, 1961) is a former Major League Baseball
player who currently works as a sports talk show host in Oklahoma City
.
Traber was born in Columbus, Ohio
, but grew up in Columbia, Maryland
. While attending Wilde Lake High School in Columbia, Traber was an All American, playing Football, Baseball, and other sports. Jim also sang in the Chorus, and appeared in the 1979 Spring concert at Wilde Lake singing, "Three Times A Lady," with the Jazz Band. He attended Oklahoma State University in the early-1980s, where he played both baseball (appearing twice in the College World Series) and football. He was drafted by the Baltimore Orioles
in the 1982 Major League Baseball Draft
. and played parts of four seasons for the Orioles between 1984 and 1989, where his nickname was "The Whammer". During the biggest slump of his career for Baltimore, Traber switched to wearing a V-neck jersey and soon captured player of the week honors cranking out 3 homers and 11 RBI's in the early summer of 1987. Traber's success with the Orioles was hindered by timing, as 1st baseman, Eddie Murray, wasn't ready to retire, and Jim was anxious to play in that position.
After his MLB career, Traber played baseball in Japan
for the Kintetsu Buffaloes
in 1990 and 1991, and one season for Monterrey of the Mexican League in 1993. His time in Japan is perhaps most memorable for an incident in which Traber rushed the mound subsequent to being hit by a pitch, chasing the retreating pitcher into the outfield. After charging the pitcher a second time, he tripped while running and was kicked in the face on the way down. Grainy footage of this incident is still widely distributed on the Internet.
His involvement with sports talk radio began after his retirement from professional sports. He served as a television color analyst for Fox Sports
' regional coverage of the Arizona Diamondbacks
during the team's World Series victory season of 2001, for which he was awarded a World Series ring
. Traber was also part-time color analyst for the 2001 World Series
radio broadcast. He can be heard cheering in celebration behind Greg Schulte
during the famous play-by-play call of "A little blooper... Base hit! Diamondbacks Win!" for Luis Gonzalez's game winning hit. Traber continued announcing in 2002 and 2003. Currently, Traber hosts "The Afternoon Sports Beat" and "Total Dominance Hour," shows on WWLS radio station in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma
.
Traber was named as one of the all time worst players in Orioles history, in an article titled, "The Zeros of Birdland"
Major League Baseball
Major League Baseball is the highest level of professional baseball in the United States and Canada, consisting of teams that play in the National League and the American League...
player who currently works as a sports talk show host in Oklahoma City
Oklahoma city
Oklahoma City is the capital and largest city of the U.S. state of Oklahoma.Oklahoma City may also refer to:*Oklahoma City metropolitan area*Downtown Oklahoma City*Uptown Oklahoma City*Oklahoma City bombing*Oklahoma City National Memorial...
.
Traber was born in Columbus, Ohio
Columbus, Ohio
Columbus is the capital of and the largest city in the U.S. state of Ohio. The broader metropolitan area encompasses several counties and is the third largest in Ohio behind those of Cleveland and Cincinnati. Columbus is the third largest city in the American Midwest, and the fifteenth largest city...
, but grew up in Columbia, Maryland
Columbia, Maryland
Columbia is a planned community that consists of ten self-contained villages, located in Howard County, Maryland, United States. It began with the idea that a city could enhance its residents' quality of life. Creator and developer James W. Rouse saw the new community in terms of human values, not...
. While attending Wilde Lake High School in Columbia, Traber was an All American, playing Football, Baseball, and other sports. Jim also sang in the Chorus, and appeared in the 1979 Spring concert at Wilde Lake singing, "Three Times A Lady," with the Jazz Band. He attended Oklahoma State University in the early-1980s, where he played both baseball (appearing twice in the College World Series) and football. He was drafted by the Baltimore Orioles
Baltimore Orioles
The Baltimore Orioles are a professional baseball team based in Baltimore, Maryland in the United States. They are a member of the Eastern Division of Major League Baseball's American League. One of the American League's eight charter franchises in 1901, it spent its first year as a major league...
in the 1982 Major League Baseball Draft
1982 Major League Baseball Draft
-First round selections:The following are the first round picks in the 1982 Major League Baseball draft.- Other notable players :*Barry Bonds was drafted by the Giants in the 2nd round of the 1982 amateur draft, but did not sign...
. and played parts of four seasons for the Orioles between 1984 and 1989, where his nickname was "The Whammer". During the biggest slump of his career for Baltimore, Traber switched to wearing a V-neck jersey and soon captured player of the week honors cranking out 3 homers and 11 RBI's in the early summer of 1987. Traber's success with the Orioles was hindered by timing, as 1st baseman, Eddie Murray, wasn't ready to retire, and Jim was anxious to play in that position.
After his MLB career, Traber played baseball in Japan
Japan
Japan is an island nation in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean, it lies to the east of the Sea of Japan, China, North Korea, South Korea and Russia, stretching from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea and Taiwan in the south...
for the Kintetsu Buffaloes
Kintetsu Buffaloes
The was a Nippon Professional Baseball team based in Osaka, Japan, which were in the Pacific League. The team was owned by Kinki Nippon Railway Co. and later sold to the Orix Group, the owner of the Orix BlueWave baseball team, in 2004...
in 1990 and 1991, and one season for Monterrey of the Mexican League in 1993. His time in Japan is perhaps most memorable for an incident in which Traber rushed the mound subsequent to being hit by a pitch, chasing the retreating pitcher into the outfield. After charging the pitcher a second time, he tripped while running and was kicked in the face on the way down. Grainy footage of this incident is still widely distributed on the Internet.
His involvement with sports talk radio began after his retirement from professional sports. He served as a television color analyst for Fox Sports
Fox Sports (USA)
Fox Sports is a division of the Fox Broadcasting Company . It was formed in 1994 with Fox's acquisition of broadcast rights to National Football League games...
' regional coverage of the Arizona Diamondbacks
Arizona Diamondbacks
The Arizona Diamondbacks are a professional baseball team based in Phoenix. They play in the West Division of Major League Baseball's National League. From 1998 to the present, they have played in Chase Field...
during the team's World Series victory season of 2001, for which he was awarded a World Series ring
Championship ring
A championship ring is a ring presented to members of winning teams in professional sports leagues, and—in North America—college tournaments. In recent years, it has become common for American, and Canadian high schools to give championship rings to teams that win the state or provincial...
. Traber was also part-time color analyst for the 2001 World Series
2001 World Series
-Game 1:Saturday, October 27, 2001 at Bank One Ballpark in Phoenix, ArizonaArizona showed no fear and chased Yankees starter Mike Mussina after just three innings. The Yankees gave up five unearned runs and the Diamondbacks rode Curt Schilling's seven strong innings to a 9–1 rout...
radio broadcast. He can be heard cheering in celebration behind Greg Schulte
Greg Schulte
Greg Schulte is an American sportscaster, and is best known as the radio voice of the Arizona Diamondbacks Major League Baseball team. Schulte joined the Diamondbacks for their inaugural season 1998 and in February 2007 signed a contract extension that will keep him in the Diamondback booth through...
during the famous play-by-play call of "A little blooper... Base hit! Diamondbacks Win!" for Luis Gonzalez's game winning hit. Traber continued announcing in 2002 and 2003. Currently, Traber hosts "The Afternoon Sports Beat" and "Total Dominance Hour," shows on WWLS radio station in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma
Oklahoma City, Oklahoma
Oklahoma City is the capital and the largest city in the state of Oklahoma. The county seat of Oklahoma County, the city ranks 31st among United States cities in population. The city's population, from the 2010 census, was 579,999, with a metro-area population of 1,252,987 . In 2010, the Oklahoma...
.
Traber was named as one of the all time worst players in Orioles history, in an article titled, "The Zeros of Birdland"