Kevin Glew’s Canadian Baseball History Blog
My weekly observations and notes about some Canadian baseball stories: The Toronto Blue Jays signed first baseman Justin Smoak to a two-year contract extension on Saturday. The question many Blue Jays fans are asking is why? Though the payout is relatively modest by today’s standards ($4.125 million per season in 2017 and 2018 and a... Continue Reading →
My weekly observations and notes about some Canadian baseball stories: It has become an Easter tradition on this blog to pay tribute to ex-big league slugger Luke Easter on Easter Sunday. “Luscious Luke” was a hulking, six-foot-four, 240-pound slugger who became the 11th African-American to compete in the big leagues when he debuted with the... Continue Reading →
My weekly observations and notes about some Canadian baseball stories: • Happy Valentine’s Day to you! Former Montreal Expos outfielder Ellis Valentine is the most talented player with the last name “Valentine” to suit up in the big leagues, but here’s a list of the some of the other “Valentines” that have competed in the... Continue Reading →
My weekly observations and notes about some Canadian baseball stories: • If you’re not convinced that Tim Raines should be inducted into the National Baseball Hall of Fame after reading this Sporting News article, you’ll never be convinced. This story shares many of the former Montreal Expo’s supporting statistics that were up dug up by... Continue Reading →
My weekly observations and notes about some Canadian baseball stories: • Toronto Blue Jays third baseman Josh Donaldson is on pace to post a 9.2 WAR (Wins Above Replacement) this season. WAR is an all-encompassing statistic that measures the number of wins a player (taking into account their offensive and defensive contributions) adds to their... Continue Reading →
My weekly observations and notes about some Canadian baseball stories: • For a major league team to make the postseason these days, they require their stars to be stars, but they also need to have one or two outstanding performers that come out of nowhere. The Toronto Blue Jays have five such players. Twenty year-old... Continue Reading →
My weekly observations and notes about some Canadian baseball stories: • Today seems like an appropriate day to remember “Luscious Luke” Easter, a hulking, six-foot-four, 240-pound slugger who became the 11th African-American to compete in the big leagues when he debuted with the Cleveland Indians on August 11, 1949. Known for clubbing tape-measure homers –... Continue Reading →
My weekly observations and notes about some Canadian baseball stories: • ESPN’s Darren Wolfson reports that free agent left-hander Scott Diamond (Guelph, Ont.) threw for the Tampa Bay Rays on Friday. With Alex Cobb, Drew Smyly and Alex Colome sidelined with injuries and ailments and Matt Moore still recuperating from Tommy John surgery, the Rays... Continue Reading →
My weekly observations and notes about some Canadian baseball stories: • The first spring training game I ever went to was in Dunedin, Fla., on March 20, 1987. The Cincinnati Reds were playing the Toronto Blue Jays and I was an eager 13-year-old with an autograph book. I was shy, but I stood above the... Continue Reading →
My weekly observations and notes about some Canadian baseball stories: • Chris Cotillo of SB Nation reported on Monday that Mark Teahen (Canadian citizen) had retired. This came three months after I reported it here. Apparently, I need a better marketing plan for my blog. This belated retirement report prompted the ever-witty Teahen to tweet,... Continue Reading →