Paxton shares his no-hitter with Canadian hometown

TORONTO» There’s a sign on the Ladner Trunk Road outside Ladner, British Columbia, the hometown of Seattle Mariners pitcher James Paxton, welcoming visitors to the coastal community south of Vancouver.

The sign’s main feature is a heron, and locals occasionally dress the bird up for big events, such as Canada Day or a Canucks playoff game.

Late Tuesday, the heron was clad in a Seattle Mariners jersey with Paxton’s name and number 65 on the back, honoring the lefty’s no-hitter against the Toronto Blue Jays. A Canadian flag was stuck in the bird’s mouth, and hand-lettered signs were taped up reading “Congrats James” and “Big Maple with a no-hitter,” a reference to Paxton’s nickname, and the large maple leaf tattoo on his right forearm.

“Some friends did it last night and they sent me a picture of it,” Paxton said Wednesday. “That was really cool to see. The support I have back home is really special. It’s just so great of them to think to do something like that.”

Paxton became the second Canadian to throw a no-hitter, and the first to do it north of the border, with Tuesday’s 5-0 win over the Blue Jays.

That the game was in Canada meant it aired on television in his hometown, which meant a lot to the sixyear veteran.

“It was definitely special to do in Canada,” Paxton said. “Having talked to all the people I’ve talked to since the game, just the ability they had to watch the game because it was in Canada, was really special.

Paxton’s gem also gave Mariners manager Scott Servais plenty to talk about Wednesday at his previously scheduled appearance at a luncheon for the Jays Care Foundation, the Blue Jays’ registered charity.

The most popular story, Servais said, was about Mariners arranging to have ‘O Canada,’ the country’s national anthem, play over the clubhouse sound system when Paxton walked in following the game.

“The whole team was waiting for Pax to come in off the field after doing all the interviews and whatnot,” Servais said. “Everybody has got their champagne, ready to dump the champagne on his head and do that stuff. As he walks in, ‘O Canada’ was playing, which I thought was pretty cool. The guys were fired up about it. Pax thought it was great.”

Price diagnosed with carpal tunnel.

NEW YORK»

Boston Red Sox left-hander David Price was diagnosed Wednesday with carpal tunnel syndrome after twice experiencing numbness in his pitching hand this season.

Red Sox manager Alex Cora confirmed the diagnosis prior to a game at Yankee Stadium, which Price was supposed to start.

“For me this is quote-unquote good news compared to anything else,” Cora said.

Diamondbacks reach deal on leaving their stadium.

The Arizona Diamondbacks can leave Chase Field to find a new home by 2022 without penalty following a vote by the Maricopa County Board of Supervisors on Wednesday.

The Diamondbacks reached an agreement with the Maricopa County Stadium District last week to allow the team to leave Chase Field up to five years early if it drops lawsuit demanding $187 million in upgrades.

Palmeiro signs with independent team at 53.

CLEBURNE, TEXAS» Rafael Palmeiro has signed to play for the independent Cleburne Railroaders at age 53, nearly 13 years after his last major league game.

The second-year American Association team announced the deal Wednesday.

The Railroaders also signed Palmeiro’s 28-yearold son, Patrick, who has played for other independent teams the past three seasons.