But What Do I Know? . . . Baseball Canada 2024 National Teams Banquet Edition

January 14, 2024

By Kevin Glew

Cooperstowners in Canada

Some news and notes from Baseball Canada’s National Teams Awards Banquet and Fundraiser held at the Toronto Marriott City Centre Hotel inside Rogers Centre on Saturday:

-Thank you to the Baseball Canada team of Greg Hamilton, Adam Morissette, Eugenio Matos, Nancy Dunbar and Jason Dickson for all their efforts in making Saturday’s national teams banquet such a wonderful and memorable evening.

-Congratulations to all of Baseball Canada’s 2024 National Team Award winners. The following awards were handed out on Saturday night:

Russell Martin Award (Junior National Team MVP) – Myles Naylor (Mississauga, Ont.)

Canadian Futures Award – Owen Caissie (Burlington, Ont.)

Stubby Clapp Award – Damiano Palmegiani (Surrey, B.C.)

Larry J. Pearson Alumni Award – Cal Quantrill (Port Hope, Ont.)

Special Recognition Award – Edouard Julien (Quebec City, Que.)

Special Achievement Award – Josh, Bo and Myles Naylor (Mississauga, Ont.)

Baseball Canada Wall of Excellence – Michael Saunders (Victoria, B.C.)

-For the second consecutive year, Myles Naylor (Mississauga, Ont.) was named the Russell Martin Award winner, as Junior National Team MVP. Like his big league brothers, he honed his skills with the Ontario Blue Jays and Junior National Team. Unlike his brothers, the 6-foot-2 infielder bats right-handed. After he was selected in the first round (39th overall) by the Oakland A’s in the 2023 MLB draft, the Naylor family became just the second family to have three brothers chosen in the first round. The only other family to accomplish this is the Drews, from Valdosta, Ga.: Tim Drew (Cleveland, 1997), J.D. Drew (St. Louis, 1998) and Stephen Drew (Arizona, 2004). After joining the A’s class-A Stockton Ports following the draft, the youngest Naylor, who’s just 18, hit six home runs and registered 17 RBIs in 32 games for the club. He was drafted as a third baseman, but he played shortstop for 28 of his 32 games with Stockton, which even surprised him. “When I saw the lineup and they had me at shortstop [the first time], I was like ‘Oh damn,'” he said from the stage on Saturday. But he quickly adjusted and showed promise at the position.

–Owen Caissie (Burlington, Ont.) was the recipient of the Canadian Futures Award, presented by the Toronto chapter of the Baseball Writers’ Association of America (BBWAA). After starting the year with a home run and four RBIs in three games for Canada at the World Baseball Classic in March, Caissie, who turned 21 in July, proceeded to have a breakout season with the Chicago Cubs’ double-A Tennessee Smokies. In 120 games, he batted .289 with 22 home runs and 84 RBIs. He also had 31 doubles, a .399 OBP and a .918 OPS. For his efforts, he was named the Cubs’ Minor League Player of the Year by Baseball America and the Cubs’ Hitting Prospect of the Year by MLB Pipeline. He was also selected to the Southern League’s All-Star Team, to the MLB All-Prospects First Team and to the Cubs Organization All-Star Team by Minor League Baseball (milb.com). “I was just being me and trying to hit the ball up the middle,” said Caissie from the stage on Saturday night when asked about his success at the plate in 2023. “I was pretty locked in.” Chosen by the San Diego Padres in the second round of the 2020 MLB draft, the Junior National Team and Fieldhouse Pirates alum never played a game in the Padres organization before he was dealt to the Cubs as part of the package for right-hander Yu Darvish in December 2020.

–Damiano Palmegiani (Surrey, B.C.) was the winner of the Stubby Clapp Award, presented by Mizuno. Born in Caracas, Ven., Palmegiani grew up in Surrey, B.C. before honing his skills at the Vauxhall Academy in Lethbridge, Alta., and with the Junior National Team. Originally selected in the 35^th round of the 2018 MLB draft by the Blue Jays, he declined to sign and ended up starring with the College of Southern Nevada Coyotes. In 2021 with the Coyotes, he batted .389 and belted 26 home runs, which earned him a spot on the Canadian Baseball Network’s All-Canadian First Team. His performance also convinced the Blue Jays to draft him again, this time in the 14^th round in 2021. Palmegiani signed and belted 24 home runs and drove in 83 in 118 games between low-A Dunedin and High-A Vancouver in 2022. After being named to Canada’s roster for the World Baseball Classic, Palmegiani batted a combined .255 with 23 home runs and 93 RBIs in 128 games between double-A New Hampshire and triple-A Buffalo in 2023. He then boosted his stock with a stellar performance with the Surprise Saguaros in the Arizona Fall League (AFL). In 22 games, the 23-year-old infielder batted .263 with six home runs and 21 RBIs. He also belted 22 home runs in the Home Run Derby at the All-Star Game and helped the team to an AFL championship. From the stage on Saturday night, he said one of the keys to his success in 2023 was being able to “slow things down” on the field, which had been a challenge for him in the past.

–Cal Quantrill (Port Hope, Ont.) was the recipient of the Larry J. Pearson Alumni Award. The 6-foot-3 right-hander honed his skills with the Ontario Terriers and the Junior National Team before starring at Stanford University. He was selected eighth overall by the Padres in the 2016 MLB draft and he’d play parts of three minor league seasons in their organization before making his big league debut on May 1, 2019. After being employed both as a starter and reliever during his major league tenure with the Padres, Quantrill was dealt to the Cleveland Guardians on August 31, 2020, as part of a package for right-hander Mike Clevinger. In 2021, he began the season in the Guardians’ bullpen but joined the starting rotation on May 31 and proceeded to go 8-2 with a 3.12 ERA in 22 starts. He was even better in 2022 when he led the Guardians and set a career-high with 15 wins (fourth in the American League). Quantrill also hurled a career-best 186 1/3 innings and posted a 3.38 ERA. After starting the opening game of the World Baseball Classic for Canada in 2023, he was limited to 19 big league starts by shoulder woes. He completed the season with a 4-7 record and a 5.24 ERA in 99 2/3 innings. He registered a 2.76 ERA in his final six starts. On November 17, the Guardians traded him to the Colorado Rockies in exchange for catching prospect Kody Huff. “For a lot of us here, when we were 14 or 15 years old, the dream was to put on this [Canada] jersey and play for Greg [Hamilton],” Quantrill said from the stage after being presented with the alumni honour on Saturday night.

–Edouard Julien (Quebec City, Que.) received a Special Recognition Award, presented by the MLB Players Association. After going 7-for-13 with two home runs as Canada’s leadoff hitter in the World Baseball Classic, Julien vaulted up the Minnesota Twins’ prospects ranks and into the major leagues in 2023. During 109 regular season games with the Twins, Julien set a record for most home runs by a Canadian second baseman in a major league season with 16. He also topped Twins’ regulars in walks (64) and OBP (.381). His OBP was second among major league rookies and he led Canadian major leaguers in OBP and WAR (2.6). He then had a hit, a run and a walk in the Twins’ two-game Wild Card Series sweep over the Blue Jays. “I grew up a Blue Jays fan. I remember the Bautista [bat flip] homer,” said Julien from the stage on Saturday night. “I don’t mean to be mean, but hopefully we play the Blue Jays and beat them every year.” In the sixth inning of Game 4 of the American League Division Series against the Houston Astros, Julien became the first Canadian rookie to homer in the post-season. For his efforts, he finished seventh in the American League Rookie of the Year voting. Selected in the 18^th round of the 2019 MLB draft by the Twins, Julien honed his skills with the Junior National Team and at Auburn University before rising up through the Twins’ minor league ranks.

-One of the most touching scenes at the banquet on Saturday night was when the Naylor brothers’ parents, Chris and Jenice, were invited on stage as their sons Josh, Bo and Myles were presented with a Special Achievement Award by the MLB Players Association. It was Myles’ second trip to the stage. Here are profiles of his older brothers:

-Although Bo Naylor played five games for the Guardians in 2022, the 2023 season was his official rookie big league campaign. Following a strong performance with Canada at the World Baseball Classic, Naylor proceeded to belt 11 home runs for the Guardians during the regular season. That set a new record for the most by a Canadian catcher in their rookie season. The Ontario Blue Jays and Junior National Team alum also had a .339 OBP, an .809 OPS, 30 walks and five stolen bases in 67 major league games. Before his first big-league call-up late in the 2022 season, the 23-year-old catcher, a first round pick of the Guardians in 2018, batted .263 with a .392 on-base percentage, while belting 21 home runs and stealing 20 bases, in 118 games between double-A and triple-A. For his efforts, Baseball America named him the Guardians’ Minor League Player of the Year and he was named to the International League All-Star Team.

-Despite missing more than a month with an oblique injury, the oldest Naylor brother, Josh, put together his best major league season for the Guardians in 2023. He topped all Canadian big leaguers in batting average (.308), slugging percentage (.489), OPS (.843), RBIs (97) and stolen bases (10). In 121 games with the Guardians, he had 139 hits, including 31 doubles. He had the sixth highest batting average in the major leagues of any player who suited up for at least 120 games. He also garnered a 10^th place vote in the American League MVP voting. For his efforts, he was named the Canadian Baseball Hall of Fame’s Tip O’Neill Award winner, as the top Canadian player. The 2023 campaign was Naylor’s fourth with the Guardians. After honing his skills with the Ontario Blue Jays and Junior National Team, Naylor was selected 12^th overall by the Miami Marlins in the 2015 MLB draft. After tenures in the Marlins and San Diego Padres organizations, he was traded to the Guardians, along with Quantrill on August 31, 2020.  

–Michael Saunders became the 12th member of Baseball Canada’s Wall of Excellence on Saturday. The national team alum and ex-big leaguer was the third outfielder to be honoured on the wall, joining Larry Walker (Maple Ridge, B.C., 2008) and Jason Bay (Trail, B.C., 2014). The left-handed hitting outfielder, who honed his skills with the Victoria Mariners of the B.C. Premier Baseball League, joined the Junior National Team in 2003 and would later play in several competitions for Canada, including the 2008 Olympics and the 2013 World Baseball Classic. After being selected by the Seattle Mariners in the 2004 MLB draft, Saunders also forged a successful nine-season major league career in which he hit 81 home runs (12th most by a Canadian) in 775 games with the Mariners, Blue Jays and Philadelphia Phillies. The 6-foot-4 outfielder hit 10 or more home runs in a major league season four times, including clubbing 24 for the Blue Jays in an All-Star campaign in 2016. These days, Saunders works an outfielder/baserunning coordinator in the Atlanta Braves organization. “Once you’re blessed enough to wear this [Canada] jersey, you’re family forever,” Saunders told the crowd from the stage on Saturday night after being inducted on to the Wall of Excellence.

-This week’s trivia question: Who was the first pitcher inducted on to Baseball Canada’s Wall of Excellence? Please provide your answer in the “Comments” section below.

-The answer to last week’s trivia question (While Ross Grimsley was the Montreal Expos’ only 20-game winner, three other Expos pitchers had 18 or 19 wins in a season. Can you name one of them?) was either Carl Morton who won 18 games in 1970, Steve Rogers who won 19 in 1982 or Bryn Smith who collected 18 wins in 1985.