Elliott: Originally not in Pan Am plan, Canada now invited to qualifier
Former Ontario Blue Jays INF Peter Orr (Newmarket, Ont.) may look like he is King of the World … that’s because he was … Orr scored the second run on two throwing errors for the walk-off gold medal victory.
March 27, 2023
By Bob Elliott
Canadian Baseball Network
Stubby Clapp was Mr. International baseball for Canada dating back to 1999 in Winnipeg, to 2015 in Ajax and many diamonds in lots of countries in between.
And he would often say “in an international tournament you always see something you have never seen before.”
Well, if Clapp (Windsor, Ont.) was still diving for ground balls deep in right field, colliding catchers and snapping flags placed on the Canadian mound -- rather than coaching first base for the St. Louis Cardinals -- he wouldn’t have seen anything at this year’s Pan Am qualifier or the Pan Am Games.
Nothing.
On March 6 during the World Baseball Classic, Canada was told that there would no longer be a Pan Am qualifier -- since no one would host it -- and the eight teams entered in the Pan Am Games would not include Canada.
Hold on a second ... the best team in the last three Pan Am Games did not get either a seat at the table or a chance to compete?
Yep.
That was then. And on March 24, Baseball Canada was notified a host had been found and Canada would be allowed to qualify. A lot can change in 18 days and for once it did ... for Canada.
We’d like to think Canada looking at the past three Pan Am Games:
RHP Scott Richmond (North Vancouver, BC) has been on two gold medal and a silver medal winning Canadian team.
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2011
Pan American Stadium, Lagos de Moreno, Mex.
Gold: Canada; Silver: Team USA; Bronze: Cuba.
(Scott Richmond gets the win.)
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2015
President’s Choice Field, Ajax, Ont.
Gold: Canada; Silver: Team USA; Bronze: Cuba.
(Rene Tosoni hit a three-run homer in the third, Chris Leroux with the win as Skyler Stromsmoe and Peter Orr scored on two errors without putting the ball into play in the 10th.)
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2019
Villa María del Triunfo, Lima, Peru
Gold: Puerto Rico, Silver: Canada; Bronze: Nicaragua.
(Canada lost 6-1 to Puerto Rico in the gold medal game, Leroux took the loss, taking over for R.J. Freure in the fourth. Tosoni doubled and Connor Panas singled.)
* * *
So two gold and a silver were not good enough to qualify on March 6? The proposal from WBSC Americas to alter the format was issued, with the intent to confirm with Pan Am sports.
Instead of taking four countries from the Americas in a qualifying tournament the second, third and fourth-place teams from the Central American and Caribbean Series along with the highest ranked WBSC Americas team (Team USA).
Essentially, Canada was out and completely out with zero chance to qualify.
* * *
The original Pan Am field, as of March 6, consisted of
_ Host Chile
_ Winner of the Junior Pan Ams in Cali in 2021, Colombia
_ Winner of the South American tournament, Brazil
_ Winner of the Central America and Caribbean Games to be held this summer in San Salvador.
_ Second-place finisher of the Central America and Caribbean Games this summer in San Salvador.
_ Third-place finisher of the Central America and Caribbean Games this summer in San Salvador.
_ Dourth-place finisher of the Central America and Caribbean Games this summer in San Salvador.
_ Country in the Americas with the best position in the WBSC rankings as of June 30, Team USA.
* * *
There have been plenty of Canuck heros on the international stage we saw front and centre: 1B Justin Morneau (New Westminster, BC), C Pierre Laforest (Hull, Que.), LHP Adam Loewen (Surrey, BC), INF Peter Orr (Newmarket, Ont.), C Chris Robinson (Dorchester, Ont.), OF Adam Stern (London, Ont.), LHP Andrew Albers (North Battleford, Sask), RHP Mike Johnson (Thunder Bay, Ont.), RHP Phillippe Aumont (Gatineau, Que.), RHP Chris Leroux (Mississauga, Ont.), RHP Noah Skirrow (Stoney Creek, Ont.), and Clapp.
Some credit for stick handling through this now-solved Pan Am mess should go to the old right-hander and current CEO Jason Dickson (Chatham, NB). He sent an initial letter that Canada did not have a chance to compete. There was back and forth via e-mail with WBSC Americas voicing concerns and a request to review and reconsider options. The WBSC, Canadian Olympic Committee and Pan Am sports were aware of the issue and communications.
The new proposal was issued on March 21, with confirmation of format and formal invitation sent to Canada on March 24.
The WBSC proposed, and Pan Am sports approved, a new format in which Canada will go to Argentina from June 16 to June 21 to qualify for a final spot at the Pan Ams. Six teams will compete for one Pan Am berth. The newly released rankings — post WBC — show that Canada has the highest ranking, up one spot to 13th.
The rest of the field includes the 14th ranked Panama, 29th ranked Argentina, 40t-ranked Peru, 43rd Honduras and unranked Aruba.
Which ever country wins the qualifier in Argentina takes the spot which was supposed to go to the fourth-place finisher of the Central America and Caribbean Games this summer in San Salvador.
And so Canada still has a shot at continuing their Pan Am glory years.
The 2011 and 2015 teams consisted of gold medal finishes and in 2019 Canada lost the gold medal game.
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Canada’s gold medal winning team in 2011
LHP Andrew Albers (North Battleford, Sask.), C Cole Armstrong (Surrey, BC), INF Chris Bisson (Orleans, Ont.), INF Shawn Bowman (New Westminster, BC), RHP Nick Bucci (Sarnia, Ont.), OF Michael Crouse (New Westminster, BC), C-INF Emerson Frostad (Vancouver, BC), LHP Mark Hardy (Campbell River, BC), RHP Jim Henderson (Calgary, Alta.), RHP Shawn Hill (Mississauga, Ont.), LHP Jay Johnson (Sussex Corner, NB), RHP Mike Johnson (Sherwood Park, Alta.), RHP Chris Kissock (Trail, BC), INF Brock Kjeldgaard (Londont, Ont.), OF Marcus Knecht (North York, Ont.), RHP Kyle Lotzkar (Delta, BC), INF Jonathan Malo (Joliette, Que.), RHP Dustin Molleken (Regina, Sask.), RHP Scott Richmond (North Vancouver, BC), C Chris Robinson (Dorchester, Ont.), INF Jamie Romak (London, Ont.), OF Tim Smith (Toronto, Ont.), Skyler Stromsmoe (Bow Island, Alta.) and 1B Jimmy Van Ostrand (Vancouver, BC).
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Canada gold medal winning team in 2015
Albers, RHP Phillippe Aumont (Gatineau, Que.), LHP Shane Dawson (Drayton Valley, Alta.), C Kellin Deglan (Langley, BC), RHP Brock Dykxhoorn (Goderich, Ont.), LHP Jeff Francis (North Delta, BC), OF Tyson Gillies (Vancouver, BC), Hill, INF Jesse Hodges (Victoria, BC), INF Sean Jamieson (Simcoe, Ont.), Kjeldgaard, 1B Jordan Lennerton (Langley, BC), RHP Chris Leroux (Mississauga, Ont.), Lotzkar, RHP Jared Mortensen (Abbotsford, BC), OF Tyler O’Neill (Maple Ridge, BC), INF Pete Orr (Newmarket, Ont.), RHP Jasvir Rakkar (Brampton, Ont., Richmond, Robinson, LHP Evan Rutckyj (Windsor, Ont.), Smith, Stromsmoe and OF Rene Tosoni (Port Coquitlam, BC).
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Canada silver medal winning team in 2019
RHP Ben Abram (Georgetown, Ont.), Aumont, RHP Jordan Balazovic (Mississauga, Ont.), Eric Cerantola (Oakville, Ont.), Crouse, INF Wes Darvill (Langley, BC), RHP RJ Freure (Burlington, Ont.), Gillies, C Dustin Houle (Penticton, BC), INF Edouard Julien (Quebec, Que.), LHP Ryan Kellogg (Whitby, Ont.), Lennerton, Leroux, Malo, RHP Will McAffer (North Vancouver, BC), Molleken, INF-OF Connor Panas (North York, Ont.), Tristan Pompey (Mississauga, Ont.), C Jordan Procyshen (Calgary, Alta.), Rakkar, Richmond, Rutckyj, Tosoni and INF Eric Wood (Ajax, Ont.).