Stubby Clapp to be inducted on to Baseball Canada’s Wall of Excellence

December 7, 2024

By Kevin Glew

Cooperstowners in Canada

National team legend and longtime St. Louis Cardinals coach Stubby Clapp will be inducted on to Baseball Canada’s Wall of Excellence on January 11.

Clapp will be honoured as part of Baseball Canada’s annual Awards Banquet and Fundraiser that will take place at the Toronto Marriott City Centre Hotel inside Rogers Centre.

Clapp, who will become the 13th inductee on to Baseball Canada’s Wall of Excellence, was born in Windsor, Ont., in 1973. Prior to playing 23 games with the Cardinals in 2001, Clapp honed his skills with Baseball Canada’s Junior National Team. In 1991, he was an infielder on the Canadian youth team that won gold at the World Junior Baseball Championships in Brandon, Man.

While enjoying a successful pro playing career, Clapp continued to answer the call for the national team. He helped Canada to a bronze medal at the 1999 Pan Am games in Winnipeg. He later suited up for Canada in two Olympics – in Athens in 2004 and Beijing in 2008. He also donned the Maple Leaf during the first two World Baseball Classics in 2006 and 2009.

After he hung up his playing spikes, Clapp entered the pro coaching ranks and worked his way up to his current position as first base coach with the Cardinals. Over the years, he has also served as a coach for the national team, including for Canada’s bronze medal-winning squad at the 2011 IBAF Baseball World Cup and for the gold medal-winning team at the 2015 Pan Am Games.

This year’s Baseball Canada Awards Banquet and Fundraiser will also celebrate current Canadian big leaguers Tyler Black (Stouffville, Ont.), Cade Smith (Abbotsford, B.C.) and Michael Soroka (Calgary, Alta.), Women’s national team standouts Sena Catterall (Pierrefonds, Que.) and Mia Valcke (St. Marys, Ont.) along with rising stars Mitch Bratt (Newmarket, Ont.), Denzel Clarke (Pickering, Ont.) and Sean Duncan (Port Coquitlam, B.C.).

Current Cleveland Guardians catcher Bo Naylor (Mississauga, Ont.), former MLB All-Stars Russell Martin (Montreal, Que.) and Michael Saunders (Victoria, B.C.), along with Super Bowl champion and TV personality Luke Willson (LaSalle, Ont.), a former member of the Junior National Team, will also be in attendance. They will be joined by Canadian Baseball Hall of Famers Jeff Francis (North Delta, B.C.), Ashley Stephenson (Mississauga, Ont.) and Ernie Whitt. 

In addition to the awards presentation, the evening will include a cocktail hour (beginning at 6 p.m. E.T.) and silent auction featuring unique fantasy sports packages from the likes of former MLB All-Star Ryan Dempster, Cleveland Guardians brother duo Josh and Bo Naylor, a Seattle Seahawks experience with Luke Willson, WestJet flights to any destination in North America along with several autographed pieces of memorabilia.

Tickets to the event are $500 per person and tables of eight and 10 guests are also available for purchase. Baseball Canada has registered charitable status.

For more information, please contact Greg Hamilton, director of national teams, at 613-748-5606 ext. 225 or via e-mail at ghamilton@baseball.ca.

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