Jays awarded for community commitment
Team remained engaged with loyal fan base despite virus disconnection
TORONTO — The stadiums were only 160 kilometres apart, a relatively civilized drive from the big-league dome in downtown Toronto to its minor-league satellite in Buffalo.
But for a Major League Baseball team so attached to the community not just in its home city but across Canada, the Blue Jays faced their share of off-field challenges in 2020, an uprooted season of turmoil.
How to remain engaged with a loyal fan base disconnected from the team was certainly one. Maintaining strong and charitable ties to the community was another, especially with a team that wouldn’t set foot on Canadian soil after being exiled to its temporary Western New York home base in July.
The Jays made good in both areas and for the latter were recognized for their efforts on Monday when Major League Baseball awarded the team the Allan H. Selig Award for Philanthropic Excellence.
While the young team led by Bo Bichette, Cavan Biggio and others was doing its thing at Sahlen Field in Buffalo — qualifying for the playoffs for the first time since 2016 — the Jays staff and volunteers stayed busy on the other side of the border, embarking on a $7.5-million COVID-19 effort to aid those acutely affected by the pandemic.
Included in the work carried out under the team’s Jays Care Foundation, Rogers Centre was made into a temporary food drive headquarters, mobilizing staff and volunteers to make a nonbaseball impact.
Those efforts extended far beyond the team’s longtime home, a coast-to-coast initiative that included an estimated 20,000 hours in volunteer work resulting in the delivery of 8.1 million meals to Canadians in need.
While it’s easy to be cynical about big-money sports franchises — especially those owned by corporate giants such as Rogers Communications — the Jays have long stressed the importance of community connection.
It has become a priority — and point of pride — under president and CEO Mark Shapiro’s watch where the Jays Care Foundation has been active in several charitable connections over the years. The work in 2020 certainly caught the attention of MLB as a standout set of accomplishments among its 30 teams.
“Despite not playing on Canadian soil this summer, our hearts remained in Canada — with those in our community that were experiencing urgent needs exacerbated by the pandemic,” Shapiro said in a statement. “Sport provides a tremendous opportunity for positive change.
“By turning challenges into opportunities this season, our fans, staff, players, alumni, and partners worked together to help thousands of Canadians when they needed us most.”
Once the pandemic began affecting Canadians, the Jays focused on addressing two specific areas: Feeding those in need and helping in areas of social isolation facing young Canadians across the country. Beyond the food drive, MLB officials were also impressed with some of the outreach projects such as Jays Care staff getting involved in the training of 1,500 teachers, youth leaders and volunteers in virtual programming initiatives and 2,000 adaptive equipment kits delivered to families of children living with disabilities.
Formerly known as the Commissioner’s Award when it was established in 2010, the Jays previously were recipients in 2012 for the team’s Blue Jays Baseball Academy to help support youth baseball across Canada.
Being recognized as “Canada’s team” has long been a strong marketing strategy for the Jays and Rogers, which reaps the rewards in the form of coast-to-coast popularity and television ratings.
To its credit, with baseball essentially shut down in Canada over the past 10 months, the charitable focus away from the field enhanced the reputation from a philanthropic perspective.
“The impact made by the Blue Jays and their Jays Care Foundation in critical issues amid the COVID-19 pandemic across Canada has been inspiring,” MLB commissioner Rob Manfred said in a statement. “All of us throughout baseball are proud of their contributions.”