MARK GRANT

SPEAKER, COLOR ANALYST, PROFESSIONAL ATHLETE

Growing up around sports and having the chance to play professional baseball for 16 years was a great opportunity to learn not only about sportsmanship and competition, it also taught me that even though you are not a superstar player, you still are making a tremendous impact on the lives of youngsters and adults alike. I like to share experiences that I encountered while I was in “uniform”. And how I learned to take my job seriously, but not take myself to seriously. I just thought I was playing a game for myself, when in reality, I found out I affected others without me even realizing so. I had to learn how to cope with the downfalls of being demoted, while still trying to compete at a level to get back to the “big time”.

Former Major League right-hander Mark Grant returns as a color analyst for Channel 4 San Diego’s Padres telecasts in 2002. A pitcher for the Padres from 1987-90, “Mud” retired from the game in 1995, and joined Channel 4 San Diego as color analyst in 1996.

Taking a year off in 1994 due to an arm injury, Grant became a full-time sports anchor and call-in host for KFMB radio. In 1995, he returned to the mound with the Triple-A Iowa Cubs, then served as play-by-play announcer and color analyst for KIOA radio while on the disabled list.

During the 1981 draft, Grant was selected by the San Francisco Giants as a first-round pick (10th overall) out of Joliet Catholic High School in Illinois. He was traded to San Diego on July 4, 1987 with third baseman Chris Brown and pitchers Keith Comstock and Mark Davis in exchange for outfielder Kevin Mitchell and pitchers Dave Dravecky and Craig Lefferts. Grant went 8-2 with a 3.33 ERA for the Padres in 1989. He was traded to the Atlanta Braves in 1990 and made stops in Seattle (1992), Houston (1993) and Colorado (1993).

He serves on the Board of Trustees for the Children’s Hospital Foundation of San Diego, and is on the Board of Directors for the Cystic Fibrosis Foundation, he is also involved with the East County Boys & Girls Club, and the Down Syndrome Association of San Diego. He is also a member of the Alpine Kiwanis.

Honored by the Association of Fundraising Professionals as the 2001 Celebrity Volunteer of the Year, Grant coordinates an annual golf tournament through the Kiwanis to benefit Children’s Hospital’s trauma unit.

He and his wife, Mary, live in Alpine with their sons, Andrew and Aidan, and daughter, Alexis.