Tom Selleck Played Pro Baseball? The Story Behind His Stint With the Detroit Tigers

When Tom Selleck was in college, he got bit by the acting bug, but before he made his way to the big screen, the 6’4” Michigan-born, California-bred hunk was an athlete. Attending the University of Southern California, Selleck played both basketball and baseball, the latter eventually weaving its way into his career at points over time. 

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Many fans of the actor remember his iconic character of Thomas Magnum in Magnum, P.I. sporting a Detroit Tigers baseball cap, and you may have even attended the team’s annual Magnum, P.I. day, where fans dress as Selleck’s Hawaiian-shirt wearing private eye. Perhaps you caught him throwing the first pitch at the event last summer—though that wasn’t his first time on the diamond. 

Back in 1991, Selleck actually stepped out from in front of the camera and dug his cleats on the field when he played a Spring Training game with the Detroit Tigers in preparation for his role in Mr. Baseball (1992). Here, read all about Tom Selleck’s brief stint in the MLB. 

Tom Selleck shined in ‘Mr. Baseball’

In 1992, Tom Selleck starred in the sports comedy Mr. Baseball as Jack Elliott. Elliott, an aging player, is traded to a team in Japan, resulting in a major culture shock as he adjusts to his new home and team. Approaching his new transition with a negative attitude, Elliott’s initial mistakes jeopardize his future with the team before he eventually decides to put his best foot forward and give his new crew the effort they deserve. 

Did Tom Selleck play baseball?

Though much of Tom Selleck’s baseball career took place on the collegiate level and once again on the big screen for Mr. Baseball, leading up to the release of the film, the Blue Bloods actor thought he might as well put in the work for the sake of the film’s realism. That being said, in 1991, Selleck joined the Detroit Tigers in a Spring Training Game against the Cincinnati Reds after training with the team for three weeks—an experience he looked back on fondly. 

“I was kind of living the dream, and it helped me an incredible amount for that movie,” he told Hour Detroit last November. “The first day was great, and the nicest thing was when Al Kaline asked if I would like to do long toss with him. So I got to play catch with my hero,” he remembered. 

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The night before he was set to show his stuff in the exhibition game, Selleck pulled his hamstring running wind sprints. “All I heard from my teammates was ‘If you can’t run with the big dogs, stay on the porch.’ Sparky [Tigers manager Sparky Anderson] calls me in the next day, and I thought he was going to talk about my hamstring, but he says, ‘You have to know what this is really like, so I’m going to have you pinch-hit.’”

Though he wasn’t at his best physically due to the hamstring injury, the experience allowed Selleck to live out a lifelong dream, the actor telling The Athletic in 2018, “If anybody asked me what I wanted to be when I was a kid, it wasn’t an actor. It was to be a professional baseball player.”

Still a devoted fan of the game, here’s to hoping Tigers fans will catch the star at another game this season. As for which ballpark snack he’s going for? “I’m just an old sentimental guy. I want a hot dog and a beer,” he told the folks in the Tigers press box at a previous game.