College Play-by-Play Announcer
Jeff Hem is a veteran American play-by-play sportscaster who serves as the Director of Broadcasting and the “Voice of the Sounds” for the Nashville Sounds, the Triple-A affiliate of the Milwaukee Brewers. Appointed in 2012, he is the longest-tenured lead broadcaster in the franchise’s history.
Baseball Broadcasting Timeline & Career Milestones
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- Early Professional Career (2004–2011): Began his professional broadcasting path calling games for the Battle Creek Yankees (2004). He then spent seven seasons (2005–2011) and over 1,100 games with the Single-A Kane County Cougars of the Midwest League. Highlights from this era included broadcasting a 2008 game from Wrigley Field.
- Nashville Sounds (2012–Present): Selected out of more than 100 applicants to take over the Sounds’ microphone. He anchors the play-by-play coverage for all 144 seasonal games, broadcasting locally on WBUZ-HD3 94.9 FM (AM 830) and streaming platforms.
- MLB Debut (2018): Made his regular-season Major League Baseball broadcast debut in June 2018, calling a doubleheader for the Oakland Athletics against the Chicago White Sox.
National & Offseason Multi-Sport Coverage
During the baseball offseason, Hem maintains a heavy broadcasting presence across regional television networks and national syndications:
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- National Television & Radio: Calls network television games for CBS Sports Network (handling matchups such as UTEP vs. Western Kentucky) and college basketball for Compass Media Networks (including high-profile matchups like Tennessee vs. Alabama).
- College & Regional Sports: Regularly broadcasts the Ohio Valley Conference (OVC) Men’s Basketball Championships on ESPN+ and calls select games for the Middle Tennessee State University (MTSU) Blue Raider Network. He has also covered sports for Vanderbilt University, Lipscomb University, and Sinclair Broadcast Group.
- High School Athletics: Serves as the television voice for the Tennessee Secondary School Athletic Association (TSSAA) Blue Cross Bowl football championships and regular season high school hoops on MyTV30.
Background & Off-Air Operations
A Chicago-area native, Hem graduated from the University of Iowa. Beyond his broadcast execution, he holds integral front-office duties for the Sounds, spearheading corporate partnerships, commercial production, and sponsorship generation during the offseason. He is also an advocate for type 1 diabetes (#T1D) awareness. [source: google ai]
