Hall Pass

We look at the 2019 Canadian Baseball Hall of Fame induction class.

It includes former Calgary Cannon pitcher Ryan Dempster, long-time Blue Jays GM Gord Ash, former Yankee bench coach Rob Thomson and Trail, B.C. product Jason Bay.

Striving for More

During a season in which Danny Jansen realized his dream of playing Major League Baseball (MLB), it was Giancarlo Stanton who provided the “pinch me” moments for the Toronto Blue Jays catcher.

In the bottom of the first inning on Aug. 18, 2018, the 6-foot-6 pinstriped baseball beast stepped into the batter’s box at Yankee Stadium and gave Jansen his first game-action look at the chiseled outfielder’s 245-pound frame.

Jansen and fellow rookie starting pitcher Sean Reid-Foley got the better of Stanton during that at bat, watching him strike out swinging.

But in the fourth inning, Stanton sent a fastball 412 feet away from home plate and over the centre-field wall. It was Reid-Foley’s second start for the Jays and Jansen’s fourth game with the big club. Welcome to the major leagues.

MLB Draft Review

The 2018 Major League Baseball (MLB) First-Year Player Draft took place from June 4-6 and we’ve got a rundown on what it means to some of Alberta’s most talented players.

Some of the athletes selected were born and raised in the province, others have become familiar faces through our baseball academies, Some are players we’ve come to know from their time in the Western Major Baseball League (WMBL).

Here’s a look at the selections we had our eye on …

Jet Setters

For Vauxhall Baseball Academy players Jaden Griffin, Damiano Palmegiani and Martin Vincelli-Simard, you just hope their suitcase-packing skills are as good as their baseball abilities.

The trio barely had a chance to return to Alberta from Florida – where they suited up for Baseball Canada’s Junior National Team (JNT) during a hectic 12-day stretch of spring training action against MLB prospects – before they were headed south again for tournament play in Las Vegas.

Vauxhall’s team name – Jets – was never more appropriate.

The Scott Richmond World Tour

Scott Richmond’s road in baseball hasn’t been paved in gold, but he does have a gold medal to show for it. He also has more than a few stops around the world stamped on his passport. And another leg of the Vancouver native’s journey is set to begin.

Keeping Score at Home

Box scores are full of loads of information, and while they never lie, they never tell the whole story either.

Take the recent box score from the Toronto Blue Jays spring training game against the Canadian Junior National Team (JNT), for example.

It will tell you that JNT shortstop Cesar Valero stepped to the plate in the top of the first inning against starting pitcher Marcus Stroman and struck out to end the inning.

What it won’t tell you is how smooth and clean Valero’s swing is or how nasty Stroman’s breaking ball can be. It also won’t tell you that Valero, an Okotoks Dawgs Academy product, is just 16 years old, while Stroman is a 26-year-old veteran of four MLB seasons.

Diamond in the Rough

More than a century of baseball in Edmonton’s historic river valley could be lost to the wrecking ball as the area faces a major redevelopment.

At the team’s annual gala fundraising dinner on Feb. 24th, Edmonton Prospects owner Pat Cassidy sounded the alarm about the future of ReMax Field, which is home to the Western Major Baseball League (WMBL) club.

“This is an extremely important year, a critical year, for the ballpark because this is the year the City (of Edmonton) is going to determine its long-term fate,” Cassidy told those in attendance.

Depth of Field

You may not be able to identify Amanda Fewer if you see a picture of her. But, if you’re a Canadian baseball fan, chances are you can spot a picture taken by her.

The Calgary photographer has made a name for herself shooting the Okotoks Dawgs, the Toronto Blue Jays and the World Baseball Classic (WBC).

Ian Wilson, of Alberta Dugout Stories, recently caught up with the talented shooter to talk sports photography, baseball players and martial arts.

Ballot of Alberta

The ballots have been cast and we’ll soon know who will be inducted into the National Baseball Hall of Fame.

Of the 34 candidates, five players spent time playing on Alberta minor-league teams.

Edgar Martinez and Omar Vizquel were teammates on the Triple-A Calgary Cannons in the 1980s, while lefty Johan Santana fine-tuned his game with the Edmonton Trappers before winning two Cy Young Awards in the mid-2000s.

Another Cy Young Award winner, Chris Carpenter, cut his teeth with the Medicine Hat Blue Jays in 1994 and second baseman Orlando Hudson also got his start with the Baby Jays.

Here’s a look at the Alberta hopefuls and their chances of finding immortality in Cooperstown …

The Thrill of the Grass

If Major League Baseball ever wanted the ultimate advertisement for its product it could be found in this year’s edition of the postseason.

For those of us lucky enough to be watching it was truly a thrill.

Fans also may have noticed that the game has changed … and changed for the better.

Old school has given way to the new school and the unwritten rules are being rewritten.