Kevin Glew’s Canadian Baseball History Blog
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: • On a New York Mets broadcast in 1988, Hall of Famer Ralph Kiner said, “On this Father’s Day, we’d like to wish all you fathers out here a Happy Birthday.” So to paraphrase Kiner, Happy Birthday and Happy Father’s Day to my wonderful dad,... 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 →
[twitter-follow screen_name='coopincanada'] My weekly observations about stories around the baseball world from a Canadian perspective: - I continue to ask everyone to please keep former Montreal Expo catcher Joe Siddall and his family in your thoughts and prayers. Joe's 14-year-old son, Kevin, was diagnosed with blood cancer in August and is fighting for his life.... Continue Reading →
Twenty-five years ago, 2013 Canadian Baseball Hall of Fame inductees Tim Raines and George Bell graced the cover of Bill Mazeroski's Baseball Annual. With these former all-stars set to be inducted into the St. Marys, Ont.-based ball shrine on June 29, it seemed fitting that I stumbled upon this publication when I was cleaning out... Continue Reading →
My weekly opinions, observations and rants about some Canadian baseball stories (Please follow me on Twitter: @kevinglewsports): The Toronto Blue Jays have recalled seven different pitchers from their Triple-A affiliate Las Vegas ’51s this season. Unfortunately, none of them have been named Scott Richmond. The 32-year-old Vancouver native has started 13 games in Vegas... Continue Reading →
For longtime Blue Jays fans, the memory of Tom Henke fanning Orioles pinch-hitter Larry Sheets on September 30, 1989 to clinch the club’s second division title remains vivid. What many have forgotten, however, is that without the four shutout innings supplied by right-hander Frank Wills in relief of Jimmy Key that day, there likely wouldn’t... Continue Reading →
With Bill Caudill faltering as the Toronto Blue Jays’ closer in 1985, general manager Pat Gillick looked within the organization to solve the club’s ninth-inning woes. Fortunately, a bespectacled, 27-year-old fireballer that the Jays had plucked from the Texas Rangers as free agent compensation for Cliff Johnson was dominating International League batters. In 51-1/3 innings... Continue Reading →
My weekly opinions, observations and rants about some Canadian baseball stories (Please follow me on Twitter: @kevinglewsports): During a media scrum with former Blue Jays closer Tom Henke prior to his Canadian Baseball Hall of Fame induction last June, one reporter asked why he wasn’t more involved with the Jays as a spring training... Continue Reading →
My weekly opinions, observations and rants about some Canadian baseball stories (Please follow me on Twitter: @kevinglewsports): No one will ever truly know what drove former Blue Jay Mike Flanagan to take his own life last Wednesday, but it’s clear that he had a profound impact on his teammates. Both Tom Henke and Todd... Continue Reading →
