VANCOUVER – The relationship is a natural one, Canada’s lone major-league club and its last remaining affiliated minor-league team.
And as the finish line approaches on their first season together, both the Toronto Blue Jays and the short-season A-ball Vancouver Canadians feel they’ve started something special.
"It’s been better than we could have anticipated," says Canadians president Andy Dunn, a former player development executive with the Florida Marlins and Washington Nationals. "We expected it to be strong, but it’s just been fantastic.
"One of the things we envisioned is everybody waving the Canadian flag and up here, everybody is either a Mariners fan or a Jays fan. The Jays fans just so far outnumber the Mariners fans, and the relationship is great because we have quality guys in the clubhouse, the coaching staff is fantastic, the front office in Toronto has been unbelievably supportive. It’s just a great partnership all the way around."
There are draws aplenty in Vancouver beyond the obvious business and marketing ties for a franchise like the Blue Jays, which places a strong emphasis on its player development system.
Having a farm team in Canada gives them a chance to demystify the country early in their players’ careers, helps mature them, and also tests their ability to handle many of the temptations found in bigger cities in the upper levels of the minors and the majors.
The nightlife is obviously more robust and tempting in Vancouver than in most other spots.
Young men, some away from home for an extended period for the first time, also learn to deal with passports, customs and currency exchanges, all while coping with the demands of professional baseball.
"It really helps them with the things they’re going to have to go through when they get to Toronto," said Rich Miller, the Blue Jays roving hitting instructor who took over as Canadians manager when John Schneider left Aug. 10 to deal with a family matter.
MORE SHI DAVIDI: B.C. Place eyes MLB game | Beede part of broken system
Another plus from a developmental perspective are the packed houses the Canadians have played in front of at charming Nat Bailey Stadium, an old-but-rejuvenated facility sitting in the middle of a residential neighbourhood idyllically set against the backdrop of Queen Elizabeth Park.
Crowds of 4,000-5,000 regularly take in games at the 5,100-capacity park affectionately dubbed "the Nat," an audience much larger than many players that age are used to.
It’s also good business for the Blue Jays, who get to build relationships with new fans from the ground up.
"Every third, fourth day I’m in the stands charting and you just hear fans talking about us, like, ‘We can’t wait to see Noah Syndergaard pitch,’" says left-hander Justin Nicolino, a 19-year-old chosen in the second round of the 2010 draft. "It’s a really cool experience, and to think all these fans who grew up Blue Jays fans, they have a minor-league affiliate that’s a part of it, and they can watch us grow in the organization and hopefully become Blue Jays."
Such a thought process helped bring the Canadians and Blue Jays together last year, when the Northwest League club’s player development contract was expiring with the Oakland Athletics and Toronto was seeking to add another minor-league franchise to its roster.
Since Paul Beeston rejoined the club as president after the 2008 season, the Blue Jays have returned to their roots in actively seeking to connect with fans across the country, and the relationship with the Canadians provides a strong western base for that on many levels.
The well-regarded University of British Columbia baseball program run by Terry McKaig has also been tied in, with the Blue Jays signing a small handful of Thunderbirds graduates to play in Vancouver.
"It really just helps capturing the excitement of both baseball locally here with the Canadians, but also on the West Coast for the Jays," says Dunn. "Let’s face it, we wanted to have the Blue Jays, they wanted to be out here in Vancouver because what better way is there to increase your TV audience in the area.
There has been talk recently of some groups in Ottawa, once home to the triple-A Lynx, seeking a double-A franchise for the city and an affiliation deal with the Blue Jays, and while on the surface that makes sense, there are many significant hurdles to clear before that can become a reality.
Key among them is how far out of the Eastern League’s geographic footprint Ottawa sits, the bad travel the team would need to endure as a result, plus a climate that promises numerous postponements and lots of early spring misery.
All are unappealing.
The Blue Jays are also very happy with their current double-A affiliate in New Hampshire, and are committed to the Fisher Cats through the 2012 season. While they would certainly examine any potential opportunity in Ottawa afterwards, it wouldn’t be an easy sell.
Not in the way Vancouver was, at least.
Another former triple-A city, the franchise was energized when principal owner Jake Kerr took over in 2007 and signed a 25-year lease to operate Nat Bailey Stadium, which was then in desperate need of a facelift. High up on the list of needs was a power upgrade, since operating the laundry machines during games would often trip the breakers for the concession stands.
New lights and a new scoreboard followed, and the outfield wall was moved in 15 feet in the power alleys, putting an end to the disconnect between the left-field wall and the centre-field wall.
"The left-fielder could literally run off the field and into the lot through the gap," says Dunn.
Miller now describes the facility as one of the better ones for the level, and says last year’s juggling that moved the Blue Jays’ short-season A-ball team to Vancouver from Auburn of the New York-Penn League, and the addition of a rookie advanced team in Bluefield of the Appalachian League, is really paying off.
"Now we can be much more patient with players, we don’t have to push some of them," says Miller. "If we feel someone is ready then we can push them, but we also have an opportunity to keep some players for a full season."
---
ROD.com: Don't miss a second of the action. Visit rogersondemand.com now for live streaming footage of Jays games | More info
---
The Canadians will typically be the starting point for college draft picks signed by the Blue Jays, but also home to players who have some experience with either of the franchise’s teams in the rookie ball Gulf Coast League or the Dominican Republic, plus some who have progressed beyond Bluefield.
Syndergaard, the 18-year-old fireballer chosen in the supplemental first round, 38th overall, in 2010, fits into the latter category.
The right-hander pitched in seven games with Bluefield, five of them starts, but after he struck out 37 in 32 innings while allowing only 23 hits and 11 walks, he got the bump to Vancouver.
Thursday night was his fourth start with the Canadians and he threw five hitless innings, walking two and striking out eight.
"I was a little nervous coming to Canada from Bluefield, being a small city, and going to a big city like Vancouver, I didn’t really know what to expect," says Syndergaard, a native of Mansfield, Texas. "Now that I’m here I love it, it’s a little bit different from the U.S., but it’s pretty easy to get accustomed to."
Exactly what the Blue Jays and the Canadians want to hear.
