Tigers News: Former player, radio announcer Jim Price passes away at age 81

It is a sad day in the Detroit Tigers community as former Tigers catcher, 1968 World Series champion, and longtime radio color commentator Jim Price has passed away at age 81, according to a post on the Tigers official Twitter account.

Prince was a backup catcher for the Tigers from 1967-71, where he backed up Bill Freehan. He had a .711 OPS and nine home runs in 1969. After he retired, he went into broadcasting, eventually joining the Tigers radio booth in 1998, where he broadcasted alongside Ernie Harwell for the final few years of his illustrious career.

Dan Dickerson joined the booth following Harwell's retirement in 2002, and the two have been broadcast partners ever since.

Price was known for his signature catchphrases and "Jimisms," such as calling a city or town mentioned by Dickerson as a "nice area," or calling a wipeout curveball a "yellowhammer."

Prince first started having health issues in 2012, where he missed 14 games, non-consecutively, to focus in his health. The past few seasons, really ever since the COVID-19 pandemic, Price would rarely travel for Tigers road games. Dickerson would either go solo or have somebody else fill in for Price.

This season, former Tiger Andy Dirks has done much of the color commentating duties on the radio alongside Dickerson.

Price leaves behind a lasting legacy. He was involved with the Tigers organization for much of his life. Many people will forever remember him for his silly catchphrases. He was always a Tiger, through and through.

Jim and his wife had an autism charity called "Jack's Place For Autism," which was designed to help families affected by the disability. If you'd like to learn more about it, or make a donation, click this link.