History of Toronto Blue Jays on Sportsnet in Timeline

Toronto Blue Jays on Sportsnet is the broadcast of Blue Jays baseball games on Sportsnet channels. Sportsnet has been the official television carrier for the Blue Jays since 1999, broadcasting all televised regular season games. Since 2007, all games broadcast on the network have been in high definition, with home games broadcast in ultra-high definition starting in 2016.

October 1998: Sportsnet Launched

Sportsnet launched in October 1998 as CTV Sportsnet.

April 6, 1999: Sportsnet Coverage Begins

On April 6, 1999, CTV Sportsnet, which launched in October 1998, began covering Toronto Blue Jays games, broadcasting between 40 and 60 games during the early years.

1999: Sportsnet Begins Showing Blue Jays Games

In 1999, Sportsnet began showing Toronto Blue Jays games and became their official television carrier, broadcasting all televised games throughout the regular season.

2002: Sportsnet Takes Over Majority Rights

Starting in 2002, Sportsnet began broadcasting more Toronto Blue Jays games than TSN (The Sports Network) and took over the majority rights.

2003: Rogers Sportsnet Broadcasts 120 Games

In 2003, Rogers Sportsnet broadcast 120 Toronto Blue Jays games.

2003: HD Broadcasts Begin

In 2003, some Toronto Blue Jays games broadcast on Sportsnet began to be shown in high definition.

2004: Rogers Sportsnet Broadcasts 120 Games

In 2004, Rogers Sportsnet broadcast 120 Toronto Blue Jays games.

2005: Rogers Sportsnet Broadcasts 103 Games

In 2005, Rogers Sportsnet broadcast 103 Toronto Blue Jays games.

2006: Rogers Sportsnet Broadcasts 122 Games

In 2006, Rogers Sportsnet broadcast 122 Toronto Blue Jays games.

2007: All Games in HD

As of 2007, all Toronto Blue Jays games that aired on Sportsnet were presented in high definition.

2007: Rogers Sportsnet Broadcasts 116 Games

In 2007, Rogers Sportsnet broadcast 116 Toronto Blue Jays games.

2009: Rogers Sportsnet Broadcasts 122 Games

In 2009, Rogers Sportsnet broadcast 122 Toronto Blue Jays games.

August 2010: Games Air on Sportsnet One

In August 2010, Toronto Blue Jays games began to air on the digital channel Sportsnet One upon its launch.

2010: Pre-Game Show Introduction

As of 2010, Toronto Blue Jays games on Sportsnet are preceded by a pre-game show, Blue Jays Central (formerly Jays Connected), hosted by Jamie Campbell, which starts half an hour before the game. Campbell also hosts studio segments during the game.

2010: Broadcasting Team

As of the 2010 season, Toronto Blue Jays games were broadcast by Buck Martinez on play-by-play, with Pat Tabler as analyst.

September 2014: Sportsnet Extends Contract

In September 2014, Sportsnet extended their contract with the Toronto Blue Jays network through 2019.

October 5, 2015: Announcement of 4K Broadcasts

On October 5, 2015, Rogers announced that it would broadcast all Toronto Blue Jays home games during the 2016 season in 4K.

2015: U.S. Broadcast Carried

In 2015, Sportsnet carried the U.S. broadcast (such as Fox) for Blue Jays postseason games due to contract restrictions.

2016: Shulman Joins Broadcast Team

Beginning in 2016, Dan Shulman called play-by-play on selected Toronto Blue Jays games, with Buck Martinez taking on a color role.

2016: 4K Home Game Broadcasts

In 2016, Rogers broadcasted all Toronto Blue Jays home games in 4K.

2016: U.S. Broadcast Carried

In 2016, Sportsnet carried the U.S. broadcast (such as TBS) for Blue Jays postseason games due to contract restrictions. Buck Martinez served as a color commentator for the MLB International broadcast of the 2016 World Series.

2016: Home Games in Ultra-HD

Starting in 2016, all Toronto Blue Jays home games broadcast on Sportsnet were broadcast in ultra-high definition.

2019: Contract Extension End

Sportsnet's contract extension with the Toronto Blue Jays network that started in September 2014 ended in 2019.

2020: Shulman Expands Role

Beginning in the 2020 season, Dan Shulman expanded his role to become the play-by-play voice for most Toronto Blue Jays games, with Pat Tabler taking on a reduced role due to COVID-19 pandemic travel restrictions.

2022: Sportsnet Broadcasts Postseason Games

Beginning in the 2022 season, Sportsnet is now able to broadcast Toronto Blue Jays postseason games with its own production as MLB's national Canadian rightsholder, if necessary.

2022: Tabler's Contract Not Renewed

Following the 2022 season, Sportsnet decided not to renew Pat Tabler's contract, leaving Dan Shulman and Buck Martinez as the main play-by-play commentator and analyst, respectively, for Toronto Blue Jays games.

2022: Shulman Absent From Postseason Broadcasts

In 2022, Dan Shulman was not available for Toronto Blue Jays postseason broadcasts due to his commitments to ESPN Radio's postseason coverage.

2023: Exclusive Digital Platform Games

As of the 2023 season, the only Toronto Blue Jays games not shown by Sportsnet have been those exclusive to digital platforms worldwide, specifically Apple TV+ Friday Night Baseball.

2023: Shulman Returns to Sportsnet

In 2023, Dan Shulman stepped down in favor of Jon Sciambi under new contracts with ESPN, leaving him solely as the network's top college basketball commentator, thus allowing him to appear on postseason coverage for Sportsnet's Toronto Blue Jays broadcasts.

2023: Inning Updates

Since 2023, a Blue Jays Central update occurs after the seventh inning, while the Bet365 In-Game Tracker segment occurs in the middle of the fifth inning during Sportsnet's broadcast.