By Danny Gallagher

Canadian Baseball Network

It’s an oddity in the annals of the Canadian Baseball Hall of Fame.

Sources tell me that four people were elected into the St. Marys, Ont. hall last Feb. 1 as 2018 inductees but only three were announced: Expos great Pedro Martinez, Blue Jays legend Lloyd Moseby and historian Bill Humber.

The fourth person informed the hall that he wouldn’t be available to attend the induction ceremony five and a half months later so his name wasn’t announced. That person’s induction was deferred to June, 2019.

Scott Crawford, the hall’s director of operations, didn’t respond to an email query I sent his way about this scenario involving the unannounced person.

The 2019 inductees will be announced this coming Feb. 1 and there is much speculation as to who will be elected. B.C. natives Ryan Dempster (Gibsons, BC) and Jason Bay (Trail, BC) are eligible because they have passed the three-year waiting period. They haven’t played since the 2013 season.

Dempster’s situation actually falls into a grey area. Does he actually qualify? He pitched for Team Canada in the World Baseball Classic in 2017. Does that make him a professional again or maybe it doesn’t re-open his pro career?

Others up for consideration include a number of former Expos and Blue Jays, numerous amateur executives and scouts along with people who have been transferred to the veterans list from the regular list of nominees.