Alberta Links to Canada’s Top Baseball Influencers
A look at Alberta’s connections to Bob Elliott’s list of top baseball influencers …
Read More Alberta Links to Canada’s Top Baseball InfluencersCategory: pioneer league
Calgary Expos: All-Time Team
The Montreal Expos had a professional baseball following that was truly national in scope.
During their 36 years of operation, the Expos ran minor league affiliates across Canada, including Edmonton, Ottawa, Vancouver, Winnipeg, Quebec City, and Lethbridge.
They also had a Pioneer League club in Calgary between 1979 to 1984, leading to many star-studded performances that we highlight here.
Read More Calgary Expos: All-Time TeamBluebirds of a Feather
Duane Larson wanted to play an aggressive style of baseball.
Heading into the 1982 Pioneer League season, the Medicine Hat Blue Jays coach had high expectations.
His team, featuring a trio of future Toronto stars, delivered in a big way, winning the team’s only championship title.
Read More Bluebirds of a FeatherLethbridge Dodgers: All-Time Team
Our picks for the Lethbridge Dodgers All-Time Team.
See who made the cut at each position …
Read More Lethbridge Dodgers: All-Time TeamKey to the Game
Jimmy Key put up some fantastic numbers in his short visit with the Medicine Hat Blue Jays in 1982.
A 2-1 record with a 2.30 ERA and 25 strikeouts in 31+ innings of work earned the young lefthander a promotion.
However, the move didn’t sit well with everyone, even if the team went on to win the Pioneer League championship.
Read More Key to the GameThe Long Hall
We trace the ties between the National Baseball Hall of Fame ballot and the province of Alberta.
A pair of Calgary Cannons and an infielder who helped the Edmonton Trappers win a PCL championship are being considered …
Read More The Long HallSid-sational!
A look back at the first pro season of Sid Fernandez, who won a World Series with the New York Mets in 1986.
Fernandez got his start in the Pioneer League with the Lethbridge Dodgers …
Read More Sid-sational!Ageless Wonder
Happy birthday Junior Felix!
Err … happy belated birthday?! Or is it tomorrow?
As elusive as he was on the base paths at times during his playing career, the actual date of birth of Junior Francisco Felix Sanchez also proved hard to run down.
His official birthday is listed as October 3rd, 1967, but it was long suspected that the outfielder from Laguna Salada in the Dominican Republic was much older than that date would suggest.
Read More Ageless WonderHere Comes The Boom
David Wells could barely navigate connecting flights, let alone figure out where Medicine Hat was when he made his way outside of the United States for the first time.
The trip north in 1982, his introduction to professional baseball, offered the left-handed pitcher an education in sports and life. Wells was forthcoming about both aspects of his journey in his 2003 autobiography, Perfect I’m Not. One chapter of the book provides a compelling look at the minor-league experience at the lowest level.
Read More Here Comes The BoomIn The Cards: 1992 Medicine Hat Blue Jays
It’s difficult to measure where exactly the 1992 Medicine Hat Blue Jays rank on the lollygagger scale of professional baseball teams.
They weren’t quite as abysmal as the1988 edition of the ball club, but these Baby Jays were seemingly immune to winning.
Learn more in our latest edition of In The Cards …
Read More In The Cards: 1992 Medicine Hat Blue Jays