Meet Mike Walton

Mike is The Blade’s assistant night city editor.

He comes to Toledo from Pittsburgh, where he was a reporter for the Tribune-Review. Before that, he worked at the Traverse City Record-Eagle in Michigan, and the Rio Grande Sun, a newspaper in Española, New Mexico.

As a reporter, he once agreed to be Tasered by New Mexico State Police detectives. More recently he tried to eat lemon grass from a chef’s hand — the chef wanted him to smell the lemon grass, not try to take a bite from it. The incident was… awkward… but that’s life.

Mike just moved into his girlfriend Sarah’s duplex along with his dog, Wallace. Mike is pretty sure the apartment is in South Toledo, but he’s still learning the local geography.

Outside of work, Mike enjoys spending time in northern Michigan, eating and drinking, watching movies and TV, and reading. He plays basketball, too, if anyone is looking for an extra head in pickup games. He’s strong going to his left but can’t make jump shots or free throws to save his life. He’s also a few, or maybe several, steps slower than he used to be.

As a Metro Detroit native, Mike cheers on all the Motor City’s pro teams. But he admits to jumping on the Penguins bandwagon while living in Pittsburgh. Don’t be too hard on him for that. The Wings will always have his heart.

Mike’s email address is mwalton@theblade.com and his work extension is 6085. Mike, welcome to The Blade.