Edgar: Almost A Dodger or Yankee?

Can you imagine one of your favourite athletes in a uniform other than the one they became famous in?

Over the years, many have been able to play with one team. But in the free agency era, they have become fewer and further between.

As we found out with author Larry Stone, Baseball Hall of Fame inductee Edgar Martinez almost didn’t stick around Seattle after not seeing a clear path out from the Calgary Cannons.

Alberta’s AL Dugout Connections

Major League Baseball (MLB) may feel like it is far removed from the ball diamonds of Alberta, but if you play a quick game of six dugouts of separation you’ll discover there are plenty of coaching connections between the majors and our province.

In our first of a two-part series exploring those connections, we look at the American League squads who have former Alberta players on the payroll.

The Long Road to Edgar Martinez Drive

It’s a long road from Crowchild Trail in Calgary to Atlantic Street in Seattle.

And for the man who would eventually have a section of that Emerald City street named after him, it was wrought with twists, detours and roadblocks.

Unlike Ken Griffey Jr., who made everything look so easy, including his journey to the big leagues, Edgar Martinez never took the express lane to stardom.