C's Recap

Just over 53 percent of the players who suited up for the Toronto Blue Jays in Grapefruit League action had Vancouver Canadians connections.

A total of 58 of the 109 players who took to the field for the Jays this spring once donned the colours of Monty’s Mounties. The breakdown was an even split of 29 position players (out of 59 overall) and 29 pitchers (out of 50 overall).

The position players and pitchers are listed below with their spring training stats. Years spent with the C’s are in parentheses.

Position Players

  1. Michael Turconi (2022-2023) 1.000, 1/1
  2. Gabby Martinez (2022-2023) .875, 7/8, 3 2B, 2 HR, 7 RBI
  3. Addison Barger (2022) .444, 8/18, 3 2B, 2 RBI, SB
  4. Garrett Spain (2022-2023) .364, 4/11 2B, 3 RBI, SB
  5. Zach Britton (2022) .333. 2/6, 2B, 2 RBI
  6. Dasan Brown (2022-2023) .286, 2/7, 2B
  7. Cam Eden (2019, 2021-2022) .261, 6/23, 2 2B, RBI
  8. Alan Roden (2023) .250, 6/24, 2B, 2 HR, 6 RBI
  9. Phil Clarke (2019, 2021) .250, 2/8, 2 RBI
  10. Glenn Santiago (2022-2023) .250, 1/4 
  11. Cavan Biggio (2016) .241, 7/29, 4 2B, RBI
  12. Rafael Lantigua (2021) .233, 7/30, 2 2B, HR, 7 RBI, 2 SB
  13. Tanner Morris (2019, 2021) .231, 3/13, RBI
  14. Miguel Hiraldo (2022) .222, 2/9, RBI
  15. Josh Kasevich (2023) .200, 2/10, 2B, RBI
  16. Andrés Sosa (2022-2023) .200, 2/10, 2B
  17. Will Robertson (2019, 2021) .194, 6/31, 2B, 3B, HR, 5 RBI
  18. Orelvis Martinez (2021) .188, 3/16, 2B, 2 RBI
  19. Rainer Nuñez (2022-2023) .167, 1/6,  2B
  20. Davis Schneider (2019, 2021-2022) .159, 7/44, 2B, 2 HR, 3 RBI
  21. Steward Berroa (2022) .158/ 3/19, HR, 5 RBI, 2 SB
  22. Damiano Palmegiani (2022) .143, 2/14, HR, RBI
  23. Leo Jiménez (2022) .133, 2/15
  24. Spencer Horwitz (2019, 2021) .125, 5/40, 2B
  25. Luis De Los Santos (2019, 2021) .118, 2/17, 2B, 2 RBI
  26. Devonte Brown (2023) .077, 1/13
  27. Nick Goodwin (2023) .000 0/1
  28. Ryan McCarty (2023) .000, 0/2
  29. Jeff Wehler (2023) .000, 0/4

Pitchers

  1. Eric Pardinho (2022-2023) 0.00 ERA, 2.1IP 0BB-2K
  2. Luis Quiñones (2019, 2021) 0.00 ERA, 1.2IP, 1BB-2K
  3. Ryan Boyer (2022-2023) 0.00 ERA, 1.2IP 1BB-1K
  4. Troy Watson (2021-2022) 0.00 ERA 1.2IP 1BB-2K
  5. Nick Fraze (2019, 2021) 0.00 ERA, 0.2IP 0BB-1K
  6. Gabriel Ponce (2019, 2021-2022) 0.00 ERA, 0.2IP 0BB-1K
  7. Adrian Hernández (2021) 0.00 ERA, 0.1IP
  8. Alejandro Melean (2022) 0.00 ERA, 0.1IP 1BB-0K
  9. Abdiel Mendoza (2022-2023) 0.00 ERA, 0.1IP 1BB-0K
  10. Anders Tolhurst (2023) 0.00 ERA, 0.1IP, 1BB-1K
  11. T.J Brock (2022-2023) 3.00 ERA, 3IP , 3BB-4K
  12. Andrew Bash (2021) 1-2, 4.05 ERA, 6.2IP, 3BB-7K
  13. Hayden Juenger (2021) 0-1, 4.15 ERA, 1BB-9K
  14. Hagen Danner (2021) 0-1, 4.50 ERA, 1BB-8K
  15. Mason Fluharty (2022-2023) 0-1, 4.91 ERA, 4BB-12K
  16. Devereaux Harrison (2022-2023) 5.40 ERA, 5IP, 1BB-5K
  17. Ricky Tiedemann (2022) 1-0, 5.40 ERA, 6.2IP, 3BB-8K
  18. Brandon Eisert (2021) 0-2, 6.23 ERA, 8.2IP, 3BB-8K
  19. Nate Pearson (2017) 6.52 ERA, 9.2IP, 4BB-11K
  20. Jimmy Burnette (2022) 6.75 ERA, 1.1IP, 2BB-2K
  21. Tim Mayza (2014) 6.75 ERA, 5.1IP, 1BB-5K
  22. Jimmy Robbins (2022) 7.71 ERA, 2.1IP, 2BB-4K
  23. Chad Dallas (2022-2023) 8.31 ERA, 4.1IP, 1BB-7K
  24. C.J. Van Eyk (2021) 9.00 ERA, 2IP, 1BB-1K
  25. Connor Cooke (2022-2023) 0-1, 9.53 ERA, 3BB-5K
  26. Yosver Zulueta (2022) 0-1, 10.80 ERA, 5IP, 4BB-2K
  27. Ryan Jennings (2023) 18.00 ERA, 2IP, 1BB-3K
  28. Alek Manoah (2019) 21.60 ERA, 1.2IP, 1BB-0K
  29. Juan Nuñez (2017-2019, 2022-2023) 0-1, 54.00 ERA, 0.2IP 3BB-0K

Around the majors, there were 46 additional former C’s who took part in Grapefruit League and Cactus League action in Florida and Arizona respectively. Years spent with the C’s and the current MLB organization the player is with are in parentheses.

Vancouver Canadians Lyle Lin

Position Players

  1. Lyle Lin (2023, ARZ) .000, 0/2
  2. Kevin Pillar (2011, CWS) .234, 11/47, 6 2B, 5 RBI, SB
  3. Jon Berti (2011, MIA) .229, 8/35, 2 2B, HR, 6 RBI, SB
  4. Griffin Conine (2018, MIA) .182, 4/22, 2 2B, HR, 3 RBI
  5. Jonathan Davis (2014, MIA) .067, 1/15
  6. Vinny Capra (2018, MIL) .318, 7/22, HR, RBI. 3 SB
  7. Chavez Young (2017, MIL) .000, 0/8/ 2 SB
  8. Nick Podkul (2018, PHI) .200, 5/25. 2 RBI
  9. Trevor Schwecke (2019, 2021-2022, PHI) .125, 1/8
  10. Rowdy Tellez (2014, PIT) .220, 9/41, 2B, HR, 4 RBI
  11. Josh Palacios (2016, PIT) .000, 0/12, RBI
  12. Tim Locastro (2014, SD) .462, 6/13,  2 2B, BB, SB. 0 HBP!
  13. Michael De La Cruz (2014, SD) .000, 0/2
  14. Otto López (2018, SF) .227, 2B, HR, 5 RBI
  15. Samad Taylor (2017, SEA) 9/33, 2B, 2 HR, 6 RBI, 3 SB
  16. Lane Thomas (2015, WSH) 15/49, .306, 3 HR, 6 RBI, 5 SB
  17. Riley Adams (2017, WSH) 8/28, .286, 2 2B, HR, 4 RBI

Pitchers

  1. Miguel Castro (2014, ARZ) 7.88 ERA, 8IP, 4BB-10K
  2. Josh Winckowski (2017, BOS) 2-1, 4.60 ERA, 15.2IP, 3BB-10K
  3. Sean Reid-Foley* (2014, NYM) 4.50 ERA, 4IP, 2BB-7K
  4. Marcus Stroman (2012, NYY) 1-2, 2.61 ERA, 20.2IP, 7BB-16K
  5. Dany Jiménez (2017, OAK) 1-1, 3.12 ERA 8.2IP, 8BB-10K
  6. Zach Jackson  (2016 , OAK) 0-1, 6.48 ERA 8.1IP, 3BB-8K
  7. Ryan Borucki (2014-2015, PIT) 0-1, 5.14 ERA, 7IP, 1BB-11K
  8. Matt Svanson (2022-2023, STL) 3.00ERA, 3IP, 0BB-1K
  9. Adam Kloffenstein (2019, 2021-2022, STL) 4.50 ERA, 4IP 2BB-2K
  10. Sem Robberse (2022-2023, STL) 11.57 ERA 4.2IP, 3BB-5K
  11. Tayler Saucedo (2015, SEA) 1-0, 2.70 ERA, 6.2IP 1BB-10K
  • Added to C’s 2014 playoff roster but did not appear on the mound.

C-Notes

  • Vancouver Canadians Sam Ryan
    Sam Ryan
  • Vancouver Canadians Mack Mueller
    Mack Mueller
  • Vancouver Canadians Winder Garcia
    Winder Garcia
C's Changes Roster Notes

Baseball season is just around the corner but that also comes with the unfortunate side-effect of players being released. 2021-2023 C’s pitcher Sam Ryan, 2022 outfielder/pitcher Mack Mueller and 2019 hurler Winder Garcia have been let go by the Toronto Blue Jays.

Ryan was Toronto’s 12th-round pick in 2019 out of Virginia Commonwealth. The 6-foot-3 righthander started his pro career with the Bluefield Blue Jays that year. He began 2021 with the C’s in Hillsboro and also saw time with Double-A New Hampshire but was placed on the 60-day injured list in late June. Ryan did not return to the mound until July of 2022 when he split eight appearances between the Florida Complex League and Dunedin Blue Jays. The Fairfax, Virginia native finally made it to YVR in mid-August and remained with the C’s in 2023 to become a key member of the bullpen. Ryan ran off a streak of 13 scoreless appearances and did not give up an earned run over 23-2/3 innings. The 25-year-old was placed on the injured list late in the season but he was at Nat Bailey Stadium to join the celebratory dogpile when the C’s won the 2023 Northwest League. Even though Ryan went 5-0 with a 2.76 earned run average and enjoyed his finest season to date as a pro, it was not enough to keep him in the Toronto system. Hopefully, Sam will catch on with someone else. I wish him nothing but the best in his future endeavours.

Mueller got some notoriety for making emergency appearances on the mound from the outfield with the C’s in 2022. The former Baylor Tiger from Abilene, Texas signed with Toronto as a free agent in 2020 and made his pro debut with the Dunedin Blue Jays in 2021. The 6-foot-3 lefthanded thrower allowed just one earned run over 4-2/3 innings of relief and was to begin his conversion from the big grass to the bump in 2023. Unfortunately, the 26-year-old did not see any action at all in 2023. His last game was on July 28, 2022 with the C’s. All the best to Mack with his future plans.

Garcia made his lone C’s appearance by getting the start in the 2019 season finale at Everett as a 17-year-old. The young man from Caracas, Venezuela got the start that day in place of Alek Manoah who was shut down for the rest of the season due to an innings limit. Manoah was at Funko Field that day to watch Garcia limit the AquaSox to a solo home run over five innings. Save for a stint with the Dominican Summer League to begin his pro career and his lone start with the C’s, Garcia spent all of his pro career in the confines of Dunedin, Florida by pitching for the Gulf Coast League, Florida Complex League and the Dunedin Blue Jays. Stints on the injured list in 2021, 2022 and 2023 hindered the righthander’s progress with the latter two times on the shelf resulting in a stay on the 60-day injured list.

Garcia’s start was the last time the C’s would play a regular season game as the pandemic cancelled the 2020 minor league season. The club was then forced to play its 2021 Northwest League campaign in Hillsboro before finally being able to return home to Vancouver in 2022.

Other memories of Garcia’s start for me in Everett that day was being with press box colleague K.P. Wee for what turned out to be the final radio broadcast of Rob Fai‘s play-by-play career. Rob decided to step down after calling 1,000-plus Canadians games. All the best to Winder in his future undertakings.

2023 C’s righthander Al Pesto has announced his retirement. A free agent signing out of Southeastern College back on June 3 saw time with the Florida Complex League Blue Jays, Dunedin and New Hampshire. He logged 22 innings in total and won all three of his decisions. Best wishes to Al in his future endeavours.

Also released was pitcher Alan Carter. The righthander was signed by Toronto back in early January and had been assigned to the Canadians roster before his release.

2018 and 2021 Canadians outfielder Tanner Kirwer is staying involved in baseball as he will be the hitting coach for the Edmonton Riverhawks of the summer collegiate West Coast League. The Sherwood Park, Alberta native was a 20th round pick by Toronto in 2017 out of Niagara University. The 5-foot-11 speedster stole a combined 53 bases for the C’s before being selected in the 2021 minor league phase of the Rule 5 Draft by the Seattle Mariners. Kirwer spent 2022 with Double-A Northwest Arkansas and split 2023 with Arkansas and Triple-A Tacoma.

Kirwer’s fellow Canadian/Canadians teammate Will McAffer has signed on to pitch for the Kansas City Monarchs in 2024. The North Vancouver hurler was with the C’s in 2018, 2021 and 2022. A tip of the cap to Steve Ewen for pointing this out.

The Toronto Blue Jays recent trade of infielder Santiago Espinal to Cincinnati may see the pitcher acquired from the Reds wear the red C of Vancouver this season. 6-foot-0 righthander Chris McElvain has been assigned to the Vancouver roster. The Columbia, Tennessee hurler was an eighth-round pick by the Reds in 2022 out of Vanderbilt University. He was a college teammate of 2022 C’s utility man Harry Ray during the pandemic-shortened 2020 campaign with the Commodores. McElvain started his pro career in 2023 and pitched for the Low-A and High-A affiliates in Daytona (Florida) and Dayton (Ohio). Between the two stops, he split 10 decisions with a 3.75 ERA with an 87-41 strikeout/walk total in 96 innings. With the C’s exhibition game against the UBC Thunderbirds coming up on April 3, we should know in a few days if McElvain will be in Vancouver in the near future.

One player who will not be in YVR to start the year is slugging first baseman Peyton Williams. He has been placed on the 60-day injured list to start the year. It’s been a tough go on the injury front for the former Iowa Hawkeye. He jammed his shoulder on a diving stop for a ground ball in Everett to help preserve the seven-inning no-hitter authored by Devereaux Harrison and Matt Svanson in early June and cap off a doubleheader sweep. Williams then got hurt again in Game 2 of the Northwest League final at Funko Field when he jammed his wrist against the railing chasing down a fly ball in foul territory. Hopefully, the 23-year-old from Des Moines, Iowa will be back in Vancouver at some point in 2024. The left-handed hitter slugged seven homers and drove in 22 runs in 35 games while slashing .240/.327/.434.

Congratulations to the 17 former Canadians who earned a roster in the recent MLB Spring Breakout event to highlight the top prospects in baseball. The first 14 on the list are in the Toronto system.

  • Adam Macko, LHP
  • Yosver Zulueta, RHP
  • C.J. Van Eyk, RHP
  • Connor Cooke, RHP
  • Ian Churchill, RHP
  • Phil Clarke, C
  • Leo Jiménez, SS
  • Addison Barger, 3B
  • Damiano Palmegiani, 3B
  • Spencer Horwitz, 1B
  • Josh Kasevich, SS
  • Alan Roden, OF
  • Dasan Brown, OF
  • Gabriel Martinez, OF
  • Sem Robberse (STL), RHP
  • Adam Kloffenstein (STL), RHP
  • Griffin Conine (MIA), OF

In the front office ranks, all the best to Kendra Chin and Steven Maisey as they have moved on to other fields of work. Kendra was the team’s marketing services coordinator while Steven was managing the ticket office over the past two years. Taking over those roles are newcomer Rosemary Alberts from Richmond and Jacob Nakhleh—who worked in the ticket office last season—respectively.

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Published by Niall O'Donohoe

My name is Niall O’Donohoe and I am an avid follower of baseball. My blog beginnings began in 2007 with Batter’s Box under the alias #2JBrumfield. The blog formerly known as Niall On Baseball, C’s Plus Baseball strives to deliver plus coverage of the C’s through photos, observations and interviews of the players striving to make it to the major leagues. If you like what you see here, please spread the word about CsPlusBaseball.ca through your favourite social media platform. This blog began just before the C's championship season in 2017 and the goal is to deliver awesome content about Canada’s only affiliated professional minor league baseball club. Thanks a million for being here!

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