Happy Canada Day to my Canadian readers.
I haven't written a Canada Day post in four years when once it was a semi-regular occurrence. This is no oversight, just someone writing a blog for two decades and running out of ideas.
For inspiration I went back to a post I wrote 10 years ago in which I researched a few MLBers who I didn't know were from Canada. I wondered if I could find some others. And I did.
This surprised me. I've lived near Canada for two-thirds of my life -- in three different places. I've attended baseball games in both Toronto and Montreal (and Welland, Ontario). And I've interviewed MLBers in one of them (Montreal). Maybe I should know more Canadians than Larry Walker, Joey Votto, Terry Puhl and Vlad Jr.
So here are a handful more of Canadian players I didn't know were Canadian. Although it's possible I did know at one time that they were. Facts are falling out of my brain all of the time these days.
JOHN AXFORD
(Simcoe, Ontario)
Entirely possible I knew at one time that he is Canadian. But you could also have convinced me that he was still playing in the major leagues.
JOHN BALAZ
(Toronto, Ontario)
I know almost nothing about John Balaz outside of this card. And this wasn't even one of the cards I pulled as a boy in 1976, it came to me decades later when I was completing the set. Balaz apparently was a strong minor league player and he appeared in 59 games for the Angels. He also played in the Red Sox, Dodgers and Padres organizations and was part of the Dick Drago trade when the Red Sox sent the World Series reliever to the Angels.
TIM HARKNESS
(Lachine, Quebec)
I love Canadian Dodgers. Harkness played briefly for the Dodgers at the end of the 1961 season and then in 92 games for L.A in 1962 before going to the Mets as part of the deal for pitcher Bob Miller. Harkness just passed away last November at age 87.
BILL HARRIS
(Duguayville, New Brunswick)
Another Canadian Dodger. Harris pitched in just two games for the Dodgers, including the final one of Roy Campanella's career. But Harris had more than 400 pitching appearances in the minor leagues from 1951-65.
EDOUARD JULIEN
(Quebec City, Quebec)
Had I followed the World Cup baseball tournament even a little bit I would know Julien was on Canada's team. Mostly what I know about him is how much trouble I have spelling his first name.
Also this is just an excuse to show the short-printed Heritage card in my collection (and, yes, I still think that cap looks like a Marlins cap).
DICK LINES
(Montreal, Quebec)
The world-famous Dick Lines (this is Dick Lines' rookie card!) appeared on just two Topps cards, in 1967 and 1968. Lines grew up in Virginia, he came to the United States as a baby.
ADAM LOEWEN
(Surrey, British Columbia)
OK, I bet I knew he is Canadian at some point during his career. But this card and the card at the top of the post gives me a chance to point out the resemblance.
The 2006 card is the Update card and the 2007 is the flagship card. Not the exact same photo but maybe a click away. Topps liked to do this with Update cards, I don't know if they thought flagship and update collectors were two different kinds of collectors? But we notice this stuff!
TRISTAN PETERS
(Winkler, Manitoba)
One of those cards that I pulled from my first 2026 packs and wondered who the heck he is. Then I saw a guy named Tristan Peters on the White Sox when I was watching a game and didn't make the connection until right now. I still haven't given up on following current major leaguers but maybe it's getting too difficult for me.
GORDY PLADSON
(New Westminister, British Columbia)
Pladson is one of those rare sports-playing Canadians who as a youth never played hockey. He played basketball and baseball. Also, ever since the Tragically Hip and Gord Downie I have associated the name Gordie/Gordon with being a Canadian name. I don't know what that says about Gordon of Sesame Street.
GOODY ROSEN
(Toronto, Canada)
Not Gordy, Goody! And another Canadian Dodger. Rosen's best season was 1945 when he finished third in the league in batting.
ERIK SABROWSKI
(Edmonton, Alberta)
The last card I'm going to show. Sabrowski has the honor of being the second-toughest card to land for me in the 2025 Heritage set (Pete Crow-Armstrong is still the undefeated champion).
There are other names of major leaguers that are Canadian that I found but I'll save those for the third edition of this post, whenever that will be. I'm sure by that point I will have forgotten that they're Canadian and it will be all new information to me!
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