Hazel Mae honoured by Canadian Baseball Hall of Fame

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Throughout the Blue Jays compelling run to the World Series this fall, no one brought the players into the living rooms of millions of Canadians the way Sportsnet’s hard-working Hazel Mae did.

The longtime Jays in-game reporter has been recognized for those skills — and not just for her work during the 2025 season — by being named the latest winner of the Canadian Baseball Hall of Fame’s Jack Graney Award.

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Mae, who began working as the in-game reporter on Jays broadcasts in 2015, is the latest Sportsnet personality to capture an award the hall describes as being presented “annually to a member of the media who has made significant contributions to baseball in Canada through their life’s work.”

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To that end, Mae was a key part of the terrific Jays broadcasts that broke ratings records as the Jays went on their compelling run to the World Series, only two fall two outs short against the Los Angeles Dodgers in Game 7.

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Her pre-game interviews and in-game updates have been an important part of Jays telecasts and a significant conduit to what’s happening in the dugout to the massive Sportsnet audiences. And Mae’s post-game, walk-off interviews following Jays wins have become a big fan favourite.

“Hazel Mae has set the bar extremely high for Major League Baseball’s in-game reporters,” Scott Crawford, the director of operations of the Canadian Baseball Hall of Fame, said in a release. “For many years, here in-depth player interviews and in-game insights have often been the highlight of Sportsnet’s Blue Jays coverage.

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“But her impact on baseball in Canada reaches far beyond her work in the field. She has been a tremendous ambassador for baseball across the country.”

Mae began her career with Sportsnet in 2001 as a Sportsnet Central host. In 2004, she moved to Boston where she was a lead anchor on the New England Sports Network (NESN) before shifting to the MLB Network in 2008.

After three years in New York, Mae returned to Canada in 2011 in a studio anchor role for Sportsnet before shifting to the regular role as a staple of the network’s Jays coverage.

Mae joins fellow Sportsnet broadcasters Buck Martinez (2023) and Dan Shulman (2020) as Graney Award winners.

“Words cannot begin to express how honoured I am by this recognition,” Mae said in the Hall’s release. “Joining the distinguished group of Jack Graney Award winners leaves me feeling deeply humbled and profoundly grateful.

“This group includes incredible writers, broadcasters and story tellers whose I’ve love admired, been inspired by and proudly call colleagues and friends.”

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