Ryan Adam Rene Jean Spilborghs (born September 5, 1979) is an American baseball broadcaster for ROCKIES.TV &

SiriusXM Sirius XM Holdings Inc. is an American broadcasting corporation headquartered in Midtown Manhattan, New York City, that provides satellite radio and online radio services operating in the United States. The company was formed by the 2008 merge ...

MLB Network Radio MLB Network Radio (formerly MLB Home Plate, Channel 89) is an American sports talk radio station on Sirius XM Radio that features Major League Baseball related talk shows, as well as archives and live reports about live game action, along with o ...

, and a former professional

baseball Baseball is a bat-and-ball games, bat-and-ball sport played between two team sport, teams of nine players each, taking turns batting (baseball), batting and Fielding (baseball), fielding. The game occurs over the course of several Pitch ...

outfielder An outfielder is a person playing in one of the three defensive positions in baseball or softball, farthest from the batter. These defenders are the left fielder, the center fielder, and the right fielder. As an outfielder, their duty is to catch ...

. He played in

Major League Baseball Major League Baseball (MLB) is a professional baseball league composed of 30 teams, divided equally between the National League (baseball), National League (NL) and the American League (AL), with 29 in the United States and 1 in Canada. MLB i ...

(MLB) for the

Colorado Rockies The Colorado Rockies are an American professional baseball team based in Denver. The Rockies compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (baseball), National League (NL) National League West, West Division. Th ...

and in

Nippon Professional Baseball is a professional baseball league and the highest level of baseball in Japan. Locally, it is often called , meaning simply ''Professional Baseball''; outside of Japan, NPB is often referred to as "Japanese baseball". The roots of the league ...

(NPB) for the

Saitama Seibu Lions The are a professional baseball team in Japan's Pacific League based north of Tokyo in Tokorozawa, Saitama Prefecture. Before 1979, they were based in Fukuoka, Fukuoka Prefecture, in Kyushu. The team is owned by a subsidiary of Seibu Railway ...

Baseball career

College

Spilborghs played college ball at the

University of California, Santa Barbara The University of California, Santa Barbara (UC Santa Barbara or UCSB) is a Public university, public Land-grant university, land-grant research university in Santa Barbara County, California, United States. Tracing its roots back to 1891 as an ...

, where he was all Big West Conference in 2001. He also played for the Madison Mallards during the summer of 2001.

Colorado Rockies

Spilborghs was drafted by the

in the 7th round of the

2002 MLB Draft The 2002 Major League Baseball draft, was held on June 4 and 5. It is featured in Michael Lewis' 2003 book ''Moneyball''. First round selections Supplemental first round compensation selections * *Did Not Sign With Team Compensation ...

. Between 2002 and 2005, he played for the

Tri-City Dust Devils The Tri-City Dust Devils are a Minor League Baseball team based in Pasco, Washington. The Dust Devils are members of the Northwest League The Northwest League is a Minor League Baseball league that operates in the Northwestern United States ...

Asheville Tourists The Asheville Tourists are a Minor League Baseball team of the South Atlantic League and the High-A affiliate of the Houston Astros. It is located in Asheville, North Carolina. Asheville teams have played under the Tourists moniker in different ...

Visalia Oaks Visalia ( ) is a city in the agricultural San Joaquin Valley of California. The population was 141,384 as per the 2020 census. Visalia is the fifth-most populous city in the San Joaquin Valley, the 38th most populous in California, and 183 ...

, and

Tulsa Drillers The Tulsa Drillers are a minor league baseball team based in Tulsa, Oklahoma. The team, which plays in the Texas League, is the Double-A affiliate of the Los Angeles Dodgers major-league club. Stadium The Drillers play at ONEOK Field (pronounc ...

. He made his Major League debut for the Rockies on July 16, 2005, against the

Cincinnati Reds The Cincinnati Reds are an American professional baseball team based in Cincinnati. The Reds compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (baseball), National League (NL) National League Central, Central Divisi ...

and recorded his first hit in that game, a single to right field off of

Todd Coffey Justin Todd Coffey (born September 9, 1980) is an American former professional baseball pitcher. He played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the Cincinnati Reds, Milwaukee Brewers, Washington Nationals and Los Angeles Dodgers. He was born in For ...

. That was the only game he played in for the Rockies that year, spending the rest of the year in AAA with the

Colorado Springs Sky Sox The Colorado Springs Sky Sox were a Minor League Baseball team in Colorado Springs, Colorado. The team played in the Pacific Coast League (PCL) and was the Triple-A (baseball), Triple-A affiliate of the Milwaukee Brewers (2015–2018), Colorado R ...

, where he hit .338 in 68 games. He rejoined the Rockies in 2006 and hit his first home run on May 29 off of Jim Brower of the

San Diego Padres The San Diego Padres are an American professional baseball team based in San Diego. The Padres compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (baseball), National League (NL) National League West, West Division. ...

. He began the 2007 season at Triple-A with the Sky Sox, after being beaten out for a roster spot by veteran

Steve Finley Steven Allen Finley (born March 12, 1965) is an American former center fielder in Major League Baseball who played for eight teams between 1989 and 2007, most notably the Houston Astros, San Diego Padres, and Arizona Diamondbacks. He is one of o ...

. After Finley was released by the Rockies, Spilborghs returned to the team. In 2008, he made the team from

spring training Spring training, also called spring camp, is the preseason of the Summer Professional Baseball Leagues, such as Major League Baseball (MLB), and it is a series of practices and exhibition games preceding the start of the regular season. Spri ...

, serving as the fourth outfielder. On August 24, 2009, in the 14th inning against the

San Francisco Giants The San Francisco Giants are an American professional baseball team based in San Francisco. The Giants compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (baseball), National League (NL) National League West, West Div ...

with the Rockies down 4–2, Spilborghs homered off pitcher

Merkin Valdéz Merkin R. Valdéz Mola (born November 10, 1981) is a Dominican former professional baseball pitcher. He played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the San Francisco Giants, Toronto Blue Jays, and Texas Rangers. Valdez graduated from Escuela Rur ...

for the first walk-off grand slam in Rockies history. This solo Rockies record was held for over 11 years until

Charlie Blackmon Charles Cobb Blackmon (born July 1, 1986), nicknamed "Chuck Nazty", is an American former professional baseball outfielder who spent his entire 14-year Major League Baseball (MLB) career with the Colorado Rockies. He made his MLB debut in 2011. B ...

, also wearing jersey number 19, hit a walk-off grand slam against the

Los Angeles Angels The Los Angeles Angels are an American professional baseball team based in the Greater Los Angeles, Greater Los Angeles area. The Angels compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) American League West, ...

on September 11, 2020. On December 12, 2011, Spilborghs was non-tendered by the Rockies and became a free agent.

Cleveland Indians

Spilborghs signed a minor league contract with the

Cleveland Indians The Cleveland Guardians are an American professional baseball team based in Cleveland. The Guardians compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) American League Central, Central Division. Since , the team ...

on January 20, 2012. He also received an invitation to spring training. He failed to make the team and was assigned to the Triple-A

Columbus Clippers The Columbus Clippers are a Minor League Baseball team of the International League (IL) and the Triple-A (baseball), Triple-A affiliate of the Cleveland Guardians. They are located in Columbus, Ohio, and are named for speedy Merchant ship, merch ...

, where he hit .250 in 21 games.

Texas Rangers

On May 4, 2012, Spilborghs was traded to the Texas Rangers organization for cash considerations and played for the Triple-A

Round Rock Express The Round Rock Express are a Minor League Baseball team of the Pacific Coast League (PCL) and the Triple-A (baseball), Triple-A affiliate of the Texas Rangers (baseball), Texas Rangers. They are located in Round Rock, Texas, and play their home ...

. In 103 games with Round Rock, he hit .295.

Saitama Seibu Lions

On December 6, 2012, he agreed to a one-year contract with the

of the Japanese Pacific League.

Broadcasting

On February 6, 2014, it was announced that Spilborghs had joined the Root Sports Rocky Mountain broadcasting team, where his primary role is sideline reporting during games; however he occasionally provides in booth color commentary. He is an analyst for Rockies pregame and postgame shows, as well as for other programs on the network. Spilborghs currently co-hosts (with CJ Nitkowski) the "Loud Outs" program that airs Saturdays on

. Spilborghs announced he was joining Apple TV for Friday night baseball coverage in February 2023.

Personal life

Spilborghs is of mixed descent, as his father is Belgian, and his mother is Guatemalan. On July 20, 2009, Ryan's wife gave birth to their daughter and first child, Kierra. Her middle name, Esperanza, was chosen after his mother, who died during

earlier in the year.

References

External links

{{DEFAULTSORT:Spilborghs, Ryan 1979 births Living people American expatriate baseball players in Japan American people of Belgian descent American people of Guatemalan descent Asheville Tourists players Baseball players from Santa Barbara, California Colorado Rockies announcers Colorado Rockies players Colorado Springs Sky Sox players Columbus Clippers players Madison Mallards players Major League Baseball broadcasters Major League Baseball outfielders Round Rock Express players Saitama Seibu Lions players Sportspeople of Guatemalan descent Tri-City Dust Devils players Tulsa Drillers players UC Santa Barbara Gauchos baseball players Visalia Oaks players