“You have to know the past to understand the present.”
I’ve thought a lot about that saying in the aftermath of my last editorial surrounding the current state of baseball in Alberta.
The sport in this province continues to grow. It continues to turn heads on the national and international stage. We have great athletes with fantastic coaches, impactful programs and associations, and amazing facilities in every corner of Alberta.
Honestly, I will continue to contend that we punch above our weight, but that we also need to celebrate it more. We need to tip our caps to those doing great things and, in some cases, pay tribute to those who laid the groundwork for us today.
The recent call for nominations for the Canadian Baseball Hall of Fame got me thinking about the impact of affiliated baseball in Alberta.
The Lethbridge Expos/Dodgers/Mounties/Black Diamonds, the Medicine Hat Athletics/Blue Jays, the Calgary Cardinals/Expos/Cannons and the Edmonton Trappers all had a role to play in growing the game of baseball in this province between 1975 and 2004.
They exposed many of today’s builders to high-level baseball they hadn’t seen before, and made them aspire to create their own professional environments.
Many people were behind those affiliated efforts, but a few standout in their respective communities. Whether it was organizing friends to invest, working feverishly to get stadiums built, managing the day-to-day operations of their respective ball clubs, or simply making sure a cold beverage was on tap, these baseball personalities made an immeasurable impact on sports in Alberta.
Reno Lizzi – Lethbridge
If Reno Lizzi doesn’t try to bring the first Pioneer League team to Alberta, we don’t see Andre Dawson in his first professional baseball season with the Lethbridge Expos in 1975.
A man known for his generosity – described as someone who would “give you the shirt off his back” – Lizzi was first approached by the league’s president about getting a team set up in the city.
After quickly gathering a team of local businessmen willing to invest in the idea, he worked hard to bring Henderson Stadium (now Spitz Stadium) up to professional standards.
After two years with the Expos, Lizzi and his group went looking for another affiliation, originally asking the newly formed Toronto Blue Jays if they wanted to connect.
The new Canadian MLB team couldn’t commit to the 1977 season, so the Lethbridge contingent connected with the Los Angeles Dodgers, leading to a seven-year marriage.
Fans in Lethbridge were treated to several future MLB players including Mike Marshall, Candy Maldonado, Ron Kittle, Steve Sax and Sid Fernandez, as well as three Pioneer League championships (1977, 1979 and 1980).
The Pioneer League returned to the city in 1992 with the Mounties, then with the Arizona Diamondbacks’ new affiliate, the Black Diamonds, from 1996-1998.
Nicknamed “Mr. Baseball” in Lethbridge, Lizzi passed away in 2005, but his name lives on in the Reno Lizzi Scholarship at the Vauxhall Academy of Baseball. He was also honoured with the Spirit of Baseball Award by the Lethbridge Bulls at their Legends of Sports Gala in 2016.
Russ Parker – Calgary
A long-time coach and manager in Calgary during the 1960s and 1970s, Parker’s first major role came as first commissioner of the Alberta Major Baseball League from 1972-1975.
Always one to dream bigger, he saw an opportunity to bring a higher level of the sport to his city and, in 1977, the Calgary Cardinals took to the field for the first time at the new Foothills Stadium.
The Cardinals stuck around for a couple of years, before the affiliation changed to the Expos, where it would stay until 1984.
In 1985, Parker bought the Salt Lake City Gulls of the Pacific Coast League and brought them to Calgary, where the Cannons would call home until 2002.
His teams brought a number of future MLB players to Calgary, including Andres Galarraga, Danny Tartabull, Edgar Martinez, Tino Martinez, Bret Boone, Alex Rodriguez and Jim Abbott.
Parker, meantime, was inducted into the Alberta Sports Hall of Fame in 2012.
Bill Yuill and Larry Plante – Medicine Hat
You know you’ve made an impact on the baseball world when Lloyd Moseby recalls getting picked up by a helicopter when he first arrived in Calgary on his way to Medicine Hat.
That was the first memory “Shaker” shared after being named to the Canadian Baseball Hall of Fame in 2019.
The helicopter belonged to Bill Yuill, the decorated businessman who had begun investing in sports teams, including the Pioneer League franchise in his hometown of Medicine Hat.
The team’s first affiliation with the Oakland Athletics only lasted a year, then they were able to bring the Toronto Blue Jays on-board for a relationship that lasted the longest of any in Alberta: 25 years.
Larry Plante, meantime, was the public face and one of the driving forces for the team.
Acting as the spokesperson for the ownership group as they tried to persuade the Pioneer League to set up shop in Medicine Hat, Plante held a number of positions with the franchise, including general manager and concessions manager. He passed away in 2019.
The Blue Jays went onto win one Pioneer League championship in 1982, while producing a number of future MLB players including Moseby, David Wells, Pat Borders, Jimmy Key, Chris Carpenter, Kelvim Escobar and John Cerutti.
Mel Kowalchuk – Edmonton
Best remembered for his efforts to bring Triple-A ball to Edmonton, Mel Kowalchuk was always very active in baseball.
The former president of the semi-pro Edmonton Central Tigers of the Alberta Major Baseball League, Kowalchuk started to crave high-level baseball while taking regular time off to go watch MLB spring training games.
After Lethbridge, Medicine Hat and Calgary all entered the Pioneer League, he spearheaded efforts to add Edmonton into the mix.
Unfortunately, those plans never materialized, but when the Pacific Coast League came calling in 1980, he refused to let that opportunity pass by.
The Edmonton Trappers were born in 1981 and stayed in the capital until 2004, bringing with it several stars including Ron Kittle, Devon White, Dante Bichette, Fernando Valenzuela, Jason Giambi and Johan Santana.
The Trappers also captured league titles in 1984, 1996, 1997 and 2002.
Without these five influential baseball people, Alberta never sees professional baseball with affiliations to Major League Baseball organizations. Not only do we not see the players who donned the uniforms of the respective clubs, but we also don’t get a glimpse of some of the greats as visitors.
Beyond that, they gave us a dream of high-level baseball in this province. They helped build stadiums that are still used to this day. Many fans of the teams went on to their own baseball journeys, or helped build the next generation of baseball programs like in Okotoks, Vauxhall, St. Albert and all across Alberta.
While nominations for the 2024 Class of the Canadian Baseball Hall of Fame closed on Dec. 1, we hope all five of these baseball builders find their rightful home in the Canadian Baseball Hall of Fame in the years ahead.
Hello; Great article, great memories. I was the starting pitcher for the Lethbridge Expos in their 1st game in 1975. Loved my time there and your beautiful city. Lethbridge reminded me of my home in Tinmouth, VT. Best to all. Mike & Mary Grabowski, VT.