But What Do I Know? . . . Mark Buehrle, Chris Colabello, Tyler O’Neill

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My weekly observations and notes about some Canadian baseball stories:

• Among the pitchers that Toronto Blue Jays left-hander Mark Buehrle has passed on the all-time wins list this season are Roy Halladay, Orel Hershiser and Hall of Famer Rube Marquard. But while I agree with the sabermetricians that say that wins aren’t a defining measurement of a pitcher’s success (so many factors (e.g. run support) can impact a pitcher’s ability to win or lose a game), there’s no denying that Buehrle has been remarkably consistent. With his victory on Friday night, the crafty lefty now has 205 career wins and sits 105th on MLB’s all-time list. By the end of 2015, he’s likely to pass Hall of Famers Hal Newhouser, Bob Lemon (both had 207 wins) and Don Drysdale (209 wins) on that list.

• After reviewing Chris Colabello’s minor league statistics, I guess I shouldn’t be that surprised by his .374 batting average with the Blue Jays this season. In 11 minor league campaigns, Colabello has hit over .300 nine times and his on-base percentage in those 11 seasons is .386. Just how good has Colabello been with the Blue Jays this season? He has as many hits in 24 games (34) as Jose Bautista has recorded in 44 contests.

• Tyler O’Neill, who was selected by the Seattle Mariners in the third round of the 2013 MLB draft, is proving that Larry Walker is not the only player from Maple Ridge, B.C., who can hit them out of the park. The 19-year-old outfielder has belted 11 homers for the class-A Bakersfield Blaze of the California League this season. This ranks him second in the circuit. A Canadian Junior National Team alumnus, O’Neill is in his third season in the Mariners’ organization.

• One concerning development from this past week is that Justin Morneau (New Westminster, B.C.) was placed on the disabled list on Saturday due to a recurrence of post-concussion symptoms. The Colorado Rockies first baseman, who has battled concussion-related issues since colliding with Blue Jays shortstop John McDonald while attempting to break up a double play on July 7, 2010, experienced the symptoms again after making a diving play in a game against the Los Angeles Angels on May 13. The 2006 American League MVP captured the National League batting title with the Rockies in his first season with the club in 2014.

• Left-hander James Paxton (Ladner, B.C.) was placed on the disabled list on Friday after straining a tendon in the middle finger of his throwing hand in the fifth inning of his start against the Cleveland Indians on Thursday. The 6-foot-4 southpaw, who’s in his third major league season, is 3-3 with a 3.70 ERA in 10 starts this year.

• And speaking of the disabled list, it won’t surprise Blue Jays fans to learn that San Padres right-hander Brandon Morrow has been on it since May 5. The oft-injured, ex-Jay had a promising start to the season, posting a 2.73 ERA in five starts, before being sidelined by inflammation in his throwing shoulder. Morrow threw a simulated game on Thursday and reportedly threw a side session on Saturday. He could head out on a rehabilitation assignment as early as this week.

• Blue Jays players have had some interesting injuries over the years. The most memorable one that comes to mind occurred in 1990 when outfielder Glenallen Hill reportedly crashed through a glass table in a semi-conscious state while he was having a nightmare about being chased by spiders. Well, in my continued review of the Toronto Star archives from 1977, I discovered another freak Blue Jays injury. During the franchise’s inaugural spring training, infielder Bob Bailor missed six days after cutting the base of his thumb while opening a can of oysters.

• Thanks to the Canadian Baseball Hall of Fame’s Scott Crawford for reminding me that Cincinnati Reds first baseman Joey Votto (Etobicoke, Ont.) will play his 1,000th major league game today. Votto, who has hit .309 in parts of nine seasons in the majors, will become the 16th Canadian to play 1,000 games at the big league level.

• Thirty-five years ago today, Canadian Baseball Hall of Famer Gary Carter went 4-for-4 and clubbed two home runs for the Montreal Expos at Busch Stadium in St. Louis. Unfortunately, the all-star catcher’s performance wasn’t enough to propel the Expos past the Cardinals. The Expos lost 8-6.

• This week’s trivia question: The 1985 Calgary Cannons team photo below features several players that went on to enjoy successful big league careers, but one of the players in this photo also appeared in a Seinfeld episode. Can you name that player? Please provide your answer in the “Comments” section below. The first to provide the correct answer will win a 1983 Fleer Rickey Henderson baseball card and a 1990 Leaf John Smoltz baseball card.

13 thoughts on “But What Do I Know? . . . Mark Buehrle, Chris Colabello, Tyler O’Neill

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    1. cooperstownersincanada – Kevin Glew is a professional writer based in London, Ontario. His work has been featured on CBC Sports, Sportsnet.ca, MLB.com and Sympatico.ca. He has also written articles for Baseball Digest, Baseball America, The Hockey News, Sports Market Report and the Canadian Baseball Network. He has been involved with the Canadian Baseball Hall of Fame for more than 16 years, including a two-year stint as the museum's acting curator.
      cooperstownersincanada says:

      Wow. That was lightning fast, Brent. You are correct. I’ll mail the cards to you tomorrow.

  1. Tom Valcke – Stratford, Ontario – Tom Valcke put his iCASE Baseball Academy as well as his position of Head Coach at George Brown College into hiatus, when Hong Kong brought him there in 2018 to serve as head coach of their Men's Olympic baseball team, where he finished with unprecedented success in the 2018 Asian Games held in Jakarta, Indonesia, spiking their WBSC World Ranking from #41 to #28 in just one year under his tutelage. China then scooped up Valcke, as he became the GM and Head Coach of Panda Sport and Culture, a division of the China Olympic Federation, overseeing baseball and softball, and training the national team coaches of baseball and softball, men's and women's teams. Panda Sport and Culture is based in Zhongshan, China's nationally recognized "#1 Baseball City," located on the southeast tip of China, and has a climate much like Florida. On his own initiative, he spent his evenings working with the local coaches of Zhongshan's local amateur youth baseball teams. For the first time in history, the same city won all four 2019 China National Championship gold medals, in 18U, 15U, 12U and 10U, that city being Zhongshan! Valcke worked with the China Baseball Association and Major League Baseball in helping the world's largest country accelerate their evolution into baseball, and helped them design and build a professional baseball stadium, a 600-room dormitory, and a new HQ for Panda Sport and Culture, where he held the role of CEO, in charge of a staff of 60. Valcke, former Technical Director, and Executive Director of Baseball Canada, and former coach of Team Canada, remains a baseball analyst with CBC Canada Radio and TV. The former president/CEO of the Canadian Baseball Hall of Fame, who spent a decade as the Canadian Supervisor with the Major League Baseball Central Scouting Bureau, served as a television broadcaster for the Montreal Expos, the GM of the Calgary Cannons Triple-A club, and the CEO/Head Coach of the World Children's Baseball Fair. He is the proud father of Alanna, Jaxon and Mia, and lucky husband of Paula since 1987. Jaxon and Mia are current star players and captains, respectively, of the University of British Columbia Thunderbirds baseball and softball teams. Mia also became the second female in history to play in World Cups for Team Canada Women's baseball team as well as Team Canada Women's softball team. https://www.canadianbaseballnetwork.com/canadian-baseball-network-articles/baseball-nomad-valcke-a-top-amateur-executive http://www.wbsc.org/csta-prestige-awards-honors-tom-valcke/ https://cooperstownersincanada.com/2012/01/23/valcke-recognized-for-global-baseball-efforts/
    tomvalcke says:

    Cannons stuff always intrigues me, and of course, the answer is Tartabull. Russ Parker taught me first-hand that money does not buy happiness. What a miserable grump!

    Tom Valcke Field Manager/GM iCASE Baseball Academy International Canadian Academy of Sports Excellence http://icasebaseball.com Personal Email: valcke@quadro.net Cell: 519.703.4088

    1. cooperstownersincanada – Kevin Glew is a professional writer based in London, Ontario. His work has been featured on CBC Sports, Sportsnet.ca, MLB.com and Sympatico.ca. He has also written articles for Baseball Digest, Baseball America, The Hockey News, Sports Market Report and the Canadian Baseball Network. He has been involved with the Canadian Baseball Hall of Fame for more than 16 years, including a two-year stint as the museum's acting curator.
      cooperstownersincanada says:

      Thanks for the comment, Tom. What years were you in Calgary as GM?

  2. Devon Teeple – Highly motivated and hard-working professional offering solid business skills in both baseball and corporate enterprises. Lifetime’s experience in athletics, culminating with a pro contract in 2001. Intimate knowledge of the athletic industry from the inside, with specific knowledge of what it takes to win, on the field and in the back office. Outgoing and extremely hard working with a passion for athletics and an ability to contribute immediately.
    Devon Teeple says:

    Good for Colabello, he’s been doing this for over decade. He truly deserves it

    1. cooperstownersincanada – Kevin Glew is a professional writer based in London, Ontario. His work has been featured on CBC Sports, Sportsnet.ca, MLB.com and Sympatico.ca. He has also written articles for Baseball Digest, Baseball America, The Hockey News, Sports Market Report and the Canadian Baseball Network. He has been involved with the Canadian Baseball Hall of Fame for more than 16 years, including a two-year stint as the museum's acting curator.
      cooperstownersincanada says:

      Thanks for the comment, Devon. Colabello seems like a nice guy on top of everything else.

    1. cooperstownersincanada – Kevin Glew is a professional writer based in London, Ontario. His work has been featured on CBC Sports, Sportsnet.ca, MLB.com and Sympatico.ca. He has also written articles for Baseball Digest, Baseball America, The Hockey News, Sports Market Report and the Canadian Baseball Network. He has been involved with the Canadian Baseball Hall of Fame for more than 16 years, including a two-year stint as the museum's acting curator.
      cooperstownersincanada says:

      Thanks for the comment. I didn’t know Buehrle had that many pickoffs.

  3. Only if Chris could play the OF he might start more in the big leagues.

    great to see old canadian pro team photos. Thanks Kevin.
    I worry for Justin.

    1. cooperstownersincanada – Kevin Glew is a professional writer based in London, Ontario. His work has been featured on CBC Sports, Sportsnet.ca, MLB.com and Sympatico.ca. He has also written articles for Baseball Digest, Baseball America, The Hockey News, Sports Market Report and the Canadian Baseball Network. He has been involved with the Canadian Baseball Hall of Fame for more than 16 years, including a two-year stint as the museum's acting curator.
      cooperstownersincanada says:

      Thanks for the comment, Scott. Colabello is a classic first baseman/DH. Unfortunately, the Jays have an abundance of those. 🙂

  4. Bill Young here…It would be interesting to know more about the SEVEN years that Chris Colabello spent in the Can-Am league> What happened that it took this long for someone to recognize his talent. He finally made his debut in 2012 at Class-AA and by May of 2013 had been promoted to the Twins. I follow the Can-Am League and the fortunes of the Quebec Capitales. He would have visited that city a couple of times each year: it would be fun to know what he thought
    of that experience! I would bet that if asked his answer would be ‘fantastic.” The historic Quebec ballpark alone makes it worthwhile – built in the 1930s and still a true gem.
    As always thanx for another great job…
    Bill

    1. cooperstownersincanada – Kevin Glew is a professional writer based in London, Ontario. His work has been featured on CBC Sports, Sportsnet.ca, MLB.com and Sympatico.ca. He has also written articles for Baseball Digest, Baseball America, The Hockey News, Sports Market Report and the Canadian Baseball Network. He has been involved with the Canadian Baseball Hall of Fame for more than 16 years, including a two-year stint as the museum's acting curator.
      cooperstownersincanada says:

      Thanks for the comment, Bill. Yes, it certainly would be interesting to ask Colabello about his Can-Am experiences.

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