Mark Grote

Mark Grote

I am living out a dream that I have had since I was ten years old growing up in Itasca. Our backyard was a whiffle ball field and I liked pretending to be the announcer as much as playing the game.

I became a full time member of the Score staff in August 2010 when I was named the morning anchor for the Mully and Hanley show and co-host of the Rosenbloom and Grote show on Saturday mornings from 8AM to noon.

My professional radio career began in Peoria, while still attending Illinois State University. In Peoria, I was the overnight board operator and the high school sports pre-game host.

My next stop was in Lincoln, Illinois. I was the morning show host, play- by- play guy, and sales associate for a radio station that was literally located in the middle of a cornfield.

Then I moved on to Springfield at about the same time someone named Barack Obama was cutting his teeth in the State Senate. I spent two years as a news reporter and talk show host.

In 2002, I began a great eight year journey working for WBBM Radio. I worked every locker room in town and delivered sports reports across the board. I am glad those great people are just a floor down from where I now work at the Score.

Career highlights include covering every inch of the White Sox World Series run, following the Fighting Illini to its title match against North Carolina in 2005, and being scolded by Barry Bonds in the Wrigley Field clubhouse.

I still love to attend sporting events on my days off and if you ask me what my favorite food is, I will say a really good, medium rare burger. Pepperoni Combos are trouble for me. My favorite question? Asking people what their favorite food is.

My favorite movie is the first hour of Jurassic Park with honorable mentions to Fargo, and Seems Like Old Times. I still like Pearl Jam as much now as everybody else did in the 90′s, and I appreciate a lot of the impromptu street acts that you see in Chicago. Only costs a dollar!

That’s me. Talk to you soon.