Find the Canadian connection – 1980 Topps Jerry Turner

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Today I’m introducing a feature to the blog. For this “Find the Canadian Connection” feature, I will close my eyes and reach into a random box of baseball cards in my basement and pull out a single card. I will then try to establish a Canadian connection for the player featured on the card.

The first card I pulled is a 1980 Topps Jerry Turner (#133).

Selected in the 10th round of the 1972 MLB draft by the San Diego Padres, Turner played parts of 10 big league seasons with the San Diego Padres (1974 to 1981, 1983), Chicago White Sox (1981) and Detroit Tigers (1982).

In 733 major league games, the 5-foot-9, 180-pound outfielder, who hails from Los Angeles, batted .257 with 45 home runs and 45 stolen bases. He was at his best with the Padres between 1976 and 1979. In 1978, he batted a career-best .280 and belted eight home runs in 106 games.

Following his big league career, he served as a coach with the independent California League’s Fullerton Flyers (2006) and Orange County Flyers (2007).

Let me tell you, it took some serious digging to unearth a few Canadian connections for Turner, but here’s what I found:

– He made his major league debut on September 2, 1974 for the Padres against the Atlanta Braves in a game at Atlanta Stadium. In that contest, Canadian Paul Runge (St. Catharines, Ont.) was umpiring second base. Turner started in left field and batted third ahead of Hall of Famers Willie McCovey and Dave Winfield. Turner went 0-for-4  against Hall of Fame knuckleballer Phil Niekro and the Braves won 8-2.

-Turner’s only home run on Canadian soil came at Olympic Stadium in Montreal on May 19, 1977 when he socked a two-run home run off Expos right-hander Don Stanhouse in the top of the third inning to help lead the Padres to a 5-2 win. Bill Atkinson (Chatham, Ont.) pitched two scoreless innings in relief for the Expos that game. That was one of 11 hits that Turner would have at Olympic Stadium during his career. He also went 2-for-15 at Jarry Park.

– For his career, Turner was 0-for-3 against Atkinson, but he was 2-for-2 (with a triple) against another Canadian – Chicago Cubs hurler Ken Crosby, who was born in New Denver, B.C.

13 thoughts on “Find the Canadian connection – 1980 Topps Jerry Turner”

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  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/
    Tom Valcke says:

    Great idea Kevin, challenging, and fun too! A nice break in anybody’s day!

    Reply
    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, Tom. Hope the next one is easier than Jerry Turner 🙂

      Reply
    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, Scott. Hope the next one is easier. But at least I got to mention Bill Atkinson 🙂

      Reply

  3. Wow, hard to imagine any cards more challenging than that. Reminds me that I should dig out my shoeboxes of cards. They are still at my mother house. Next time I visit, whenever that might be, I should get them.
    The first card that I got in 1978 would be among the easiest. It was none other than Gary Carter. (You probably have it.)

    Reply
    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 your comment, David. Yes, this was a challenging card. I do have that Carter card somewhere I believe. It’s always fun to revisit the old collection. Thank you again for your support.

      Reply
    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:

      Hi Don. Thanks for your support. Yes, that took some serious digging.

      Reply
    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 support. It will be challenging, but I will enjoy the challenge.

      Reply
    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, Tom, for your support. Yes, Bill Atkinson would certainly be easier to write about for this feature. Hope you are safe and well.

      Reply
  7. Pingback: Random Card – Find the Canadian connection . . . 1974 Topps Jerry Terrell | Cooperstowners in Canada

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