Education
He graduated from Saint Xavier High School in Cincinnati, Ohio, in 1973, and later graduated from the University of South Florida where he played baseball under coach Robin Roberts, whom he often mentions in his commentary.
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Chris Welsh
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Chris Welsh was first drafted by the New York Yankees in the 24th round of the 1976 amateur draft. However, he did not sign. In 1977 he was drafted again by the Yankees in the 21st round.
He then went on to play for the former Yankees Class American Automobile Association organization, the Columbus Clippers.
On March 31, 1981 Welsh was involved in a six-man trade with Ruppert Jones, Joe Lefebvre, and Tim Lollar to the San Diego Padres for Jerry Mumphrey and John Pacella. In his rookie season with the Padres in 1981, Welsh pitched 123.7 innings while compiling a 6-7 record and a 3.78 European Research Area. He had 4 complete games, 2 of which were shutouts.
After two years with the Padres, he was purchased by the Montreal Expos. He was then traded on November 7, 1984 to the Texas Rangers for Dave Hostetler.
With the Rangers he posted a 2-5 record with an European Research Area of 4.13.
On April 4, 1986 Welsh signed as a free agent with the Cincinnati Reds, and he ended his Major League playing career with the Reds. Welsh was known for an unusual pitching delivery in which he would "straight-arm" the ball. I.e., extend his left arm and pitch the ball sidearm with the arm almost completely straight, with little to no bending of his elbow.
During his career, Welsh earned the nickname, "The Crafty Left-Hander", a moniker that Reds" television play-by-play announcer Thom Brenneman uses to refer to Welsh from time to time.
He commonly jokes about his playing career being nothing more than mediocre during broadcasts. He is also known as "The Crafty Left-hander" due to his unconventional throwing motion.
