TORONTO – A generation of Canadian baseball came of age at the 1999 Pan American Games in Winnipeg, when a scrappy edition of the men’s national team made an inspired run to a bronze medal.
Right in the middle of it all was Stubby Clapp, the diminutive middle infielder from Windsor, Ont., whose bases-loaded walk-off single in the 11th inning of a 7-6 win over the United States helped springboard the program to the Prairie podium, and beyond.
“That was a fun time, obviously,” Clapp recalled. “That group of players is just special because of the culture we had. It was not only on the field, but off the field. If three or four guys went to eat, you had 15 guys at the same table. We always travelled together, ate together, did everything together and that turned into winning together on the field.
“I think that’s when we really started to put Baseball Canada back on the map.”
Very much so and deserved recognition for Clapp, the longtime heart and soul of the men’s national team, and the late Jim Baba, the beloved executive who touched the sport at all levels both at home and abroad, came Thursday when they were named for induction to the Canadian Baseball Hall of Fame.
Joining them on induction day, June 20 in St. Marys, Ont., will be women’s national team stalwart Kate Psota; Devon White, the Toronto Blue Jays’ five-time Gold Glove centre-fielder; Bill Stoneman, who threw two no-hitters for the Montreal Expos and later became the club’s general manager; and Paul Runge, who umpired 3,196 games in the majors.
Recognition for the entire class was long overdue, given the breadth and depth of their contributions to Canadian baseball.
Clapp first rose to prominence at those Pan Am Games, but credited Baba’s decision to make him the last cut from a junior national team nearly a decade earlier for being “a huge springboard” in his career.
“Baseball Canada has been everything for me,” he said. “If Baseball Canada wasn’t around, I probably would have been working in the automotive industry. That’s just the truth.”
Instead, Clapp enjoyed an 11-year pro career that included 23 games in the majors with the St. Louis Cardinals in 2001, along with numerous other appearances with the national squad, including the 2004 and 2008 Olympics and the World Baseball Classic in 2006 and 2009, often with a penchant for big hits
Now first-base coach for the Cardinals, Clapp became so ingrained within the national team program that Baseball Canada named one of its annual awards after him, given to a player “whose perseverance, resilience and determination” carries them to the majors.
Asked to describe the characteristics of the national team culture he helped build, Clapp replied: “One word comes to mind – grit, you know? Grit and never quit. It’s a lot of fun to be a part of when you’re in these tournaments. It’s not like you have 162. Everybody understands you get four games to do what you have to do and move on to the next round. So everyone puts their head down, plays for each other and then we see what happens at the end.”
As big as Clapp’s front-facing impact was, Baba’s work behind the scenes may have been even more significant.
The native of Moose Jaw, Sask., who died of cancer last September, served as Baseball Canada’s executive director from 2000-2021, helping to build up both grassroots and high-performance programming across the country while also serving as a technical official within international federations.
“My dad put his whole life into baseball,” said Baba’s daughter Melani. “Even up into his last days, he was still contributing his thoughts and ideas to the WBSC. So it really means a lot to have him honoured in this way. We wish he could be here with us to see the honour, but it means the world to see the impact he’s made on baseball through Canada and through the world.”
Psota, a first baseman from Burlington, Ont., was a member of the women’s national team from 2004 to 2018, winning seven medals, including silver at the 2015 Pan Am Games in Toronto and at the Women’s World Cup in 2008 and 2016.
Along with 2024 inductee Ashley Stephenson, she was among the trailblazers who helped build up the women’s national team program she now helps coach.
“It’s really incredible to see the growth from when we started in 2004 ’til now,” said Psota. “Even coaching in 2024, the skill level has increased significantly in the level of play in those tournaments. I’m just really excited moving forward building our program here in Canada, and hopefully getting a little bit of traction with this pro league that’s going on in the United States right now. I know there are a lot of excited people locally for that, a lot of my friends in Australia and the U.S. are on board. So I’m just hoping we get a lot of traction and move the game forward.”
White, among the most gifted defenders in Blue Jays history, was an integral part of the 1992 and 1993 World Series championship clubs, helping to both set the table atop the batting order and make life easier for his pitchers by stealing hits all over the outfield.
The native of Kingston, Jamaica, spent five of his 17 big-league seasons in Toronto and remains involved with the organization in player development, calling “preparation, discipline and work ethic” the traits from his own career he aims to pass down.
“We always talk about, if I ask you to be out on the field at nine o’clock, 8:45 is late to me,” said White. “So I try to emulate being that person, to be on time, prepare yourself for the game. When you practise, you’re supposed to practise harder than when you play the game. Those are things that made me successful. Every day I was shagging fly balls, regardless of whether I was a Gold Glove winner or not. I did it. You have to try to instill that in the younger players because they will take advantage of you if you don’t push them.”
Stoneman, a right-hander from Oak Park, Ill., spent five of his eight big-league seasons with the Expos and once his playing days were done, returned for a second chapter in Montreal, working in banking before rejoining the club and working his way up to GM. He served in that role in 1987 and ’88 and later spent nine seasons as GM of the Angels, winning the World Series in 2002.
He credited Jim Fanning, the first GM of the Expos and another member of the Canadian Hall, for teaching him “how to build a club – you build it from the ground up.”
“To me,” he continued later, “it was about developing people and seeing good young players become, great major-league players.”
Runge, born in St. Catharines, Ont., carved out a 25-year career umpiring in the National League, following in the footsteps of his father, Ed, who umpired in the American League from 1954-1970. Paul called four World Series – including the 1993 edition won on Joe Carter’s ninth-inning homer – and three all-star games.
He described the Carter homer as “pretty spectacular,” but later added that calling such high-stakes games is “pretty intense.”
“I can name three or four umpires that were very good officials who had that one play that lasted the rest of their life,” Runge continued. “I think of Larry Barnett in Boston (during Game 3 of the 1975 World Series), he made the correct call that was rated as wrong. Don Denkinger in Kansas City (during Game 6 of the 1985 World Series), that in St. Louis, they maintain it cost them the game. Both of those people had to move out of their houses in the winter. It can get pretty intense, and we’re well aware of that, so there is a certain degree of pressure. I was very fortunate. I had some good games in the World Series, but there was a lot more pressure.”
from Sportsnet.ca
via
i9bet
