Kevin Glew’s Canadian Baseball History Blog
September 30, 2022 By Kevin Glew Cooperstowners in Canada He was Pat Gillick’s favourite player. At least that’s how Willie Upshaw was described in some newspaper articles in the 1980s. And the description seems appropriate. After all, it was Gillick who drafted and signed Upshaw for the New York Yankees in 1975 and then again,... Continue Reading →
By Kevin Glew Cooperstowners in Canada It would’ve been understandable if Kevin Reimer was too exhausted to savour the fact that he had just made Canadian baseball history. After all, on August 24, 1993, when the left-handed hitting slugger became the first Canadian to record six hits in a major league game since 1900, he... Continue Reading →
It would’ve been understandable if Kevin Reimer was too exhausted to savour the fact that he had just made Canadian baseball history. After all, on August 24, 1993, when the left-handed hitting slugger became the first and only Canadian to record six hits in a major league game, he accomplished this in a grueling, extra-inning... Continue Reading →
My weekly observations and notes about some Canadian baseball stories: If Hall of Fame closer Goose Gossage, who regularly reminds people that he pitched multiple innings in his relief appearances, was angered by Jose Bautista’s bat flip last October, I can just imagine his opinion about Toronto Blue Jays set-up man Drew Storen not being... Continue Reading →
My weekly observations and notes about some Canadian baseball stories: With every exhibition game in Montreal, I seem to get more sentimental. But this year’s festivities had a deeper meaning for those of us involved with the Canadian Baseball Hall of Fame in St. Marys, Ont., because Jim Fanning was honoured prior to Saturday’s game.... Continue Reading →
My weekly observations and notes about some Canadian baseball stories: • Rule No. 1 of Canadian baseball blogging is don’t criticize Jose Bautista unless you’re prepared for an onslaught of vitriol from his online supporters. I’ve learned this the hard way over the years. So on Thursday, when Goose Gossage called Bautista “a disgrace to... Continue Reading →
Cooperstowners definitely starred in Canada on September 21, 1978. At first glance, the contest between the New York Yankees and Toronto Blue Jays at Exhibition Stadium that night appears to be little more than another late-season loss by the last-place Jays. However, upon closer inspection of the box score, you'll notice that three Bronx Bombers... Continue Reading →
For the first time in his 24-year major league career, Omar Vizquel is suiting up for a Canadian team. The likely Hall of Famer, who will turn 45 on April 24, won the Toronto Blue Jays’ utility infielder’s job over Mike McCoy. But though the 11-time Gold Glove Award winner hasn’t called Canada his big... Continue Reading →
Phil Niekro, Dave Winfield, Paul Molitor and Rickey Henderson are Hall of Famers that once suited up for the Toronto Blue Jays. And Roberto Alomar will, of course, have his day in Cooperstown this summer. But in the club’s 34-year history, a number of other legends were also rumoured to be coming to Toronto. Part... Continue Reading →
My weekly opinions, observations and rants about some Canadian baseball stories: Blue Jays fans: The good news about Juan Rivera, acquired in the Vernon Wells deal, is that he hits like George Bell. The bad news is that he also fields like George Bell. In reading Larry Millson’s 1987 book, Ballpark Figures: The... Continue Reading →