Delgado heads Canadian Hall of Fame class
Former Blue Jay will join Koskie, Stairs, Alou, Elliott for ’15 baseball induction
Carlos Delgado may have been snubbed by Cooperstown, but he will at least be welcome in St. Marys, Ont.
The former Blue Jays slugger headlines the Canadian Baseball Hall of Fame’s 2015 induction class, which also includes Matt Stairs and Corey Koskie, as well as former Montreal Expos manager Felipe Alou and long-time Toronto Sun baseball columnist Bob Elliott.
“This is a great feeling,” said Delgado, who grew up in Puerto Rico and played 12 seasons in Toronto, in a conference call with reporters.
“Obviously, I’m not Canadian, but I had the opportunity to play in Toronto for a long time. I met some great fans and I got to know the country a little bit and I’m extremely proud and looking forward to the ceremony in the summer.”
Now 42, Delgado still holds Jays’ franchise records for home runs, runs, RBI and on-base-plus-slugging percentage. He did not receive enough votes last month to remain on the National Baseball Hall of Fame’s crowded election ballot, falling off in his first year of eligibility. Some have argued he may be the best player ever to be dropped from the ballot in his first year.
Joining Delgado is Stairs, a native of Saint John, N.B., who played 19 bigleague seasons — the most ever by a Canadian position player — and holds the major-league record for pinch-hit home runs with 23. The stocky Maritimer, whose 265 career homers are second most by a Canadian behind Larry Walker, played for 12 different teams, including the Jays in 2007 and part of ’08 before he was traded to Philadelphia, where he famously homered in his only plate appearance of the 2008 NLCS. He won a World Series with the Phillies that year.
On how he excelled in the unheralded task of pinch-hitting, Stairs said: “You have to accept your job. I accepted being a platoon player and being a pinch hitter.”
Koskie, who hails from Anola, Man., also had a brief stop in Toronto, playing an unremarkable, injuryriddled season in 2005. The six-foot-three third baseman played the bulk of his career in Minnesota, hitting .280 with an .836 OPS over seven seasons with the Twins. In 2001, he became the first third baseman in American League history to hit 25 home runs, score 100 runs, record 100 RBI and steal 25 bases.
A highly touted junior hockey goalie in Manitoba, Koskie said baseball was an after-thought and he only
“I had the opportunity to play in Toronto for a long time. I met some great fans and I got to know the country.”
CARLOS DELGADO
pursued it seriously when his hockey scholarship to a U.S. college fell through.
“My dream was to play for the Canadian Olympic hockey team, but I got the next best thing and got to represent Canada at the World Baseball Classic.”
Alou, the first Dominican manager in Major League Baseball, won 691 games as manager of the Expos, the most in franchise history. He later went on to manage the San Francisco Giants and became the first Latin manager to reach 1,000 wins. He also had a 17-year playing career.
“I feel like I’m a Canadian,” the 79year-old said by phone from the Dominican Republic.
This year’s induction ceremony will take place June 13 at the Canadian Baseball Hall of Fame and Museum in St. Marys.