TORONTO — George Springer, in the aftermath of electrifying Canadian ballfans from Newfoundland to Yukon, couldn’t help but feel immense pride in his adopted nation.
The hero of the moment, the man whose goosebump-inducing homer propelled the Toronto Blue Jays to their first World Series in more than 30 years, stood tall on the Rogers Centre turf, overcome with emotion.
Advertisement
“I’m so happy for our team,” Springer, understandably still out of breath, told Fox Sports’ Ken Rosenthal in the minutes after the final out of ALCS Game 7. “Our fans, our city, our country.”
Our country.
Springer was born and raised in Connecticut. He played at UConn and featured for the U.S. Collegiate National team. Before signing a six-year, $150 million free-agent deal with the Jays ahead of the 2021 season, the 36-year-old had never lived north of the border. Springer remains exclusively an American citizen and spends his offseasons in Florida. He is American and proud of it.
And yet, on Monday, he felt sufficiently Canadian to refer to Canada as “our country.”
“I think when you hear the anthem tomorrow,” the veteran slugger explained to Yahoo Sports on Thursday during the Jays’ batting practice session, “you hear them sing it, and you realize, you know, like, ‘Oh, wow. I’m representing a country.’”
Advertisement
Springer highlights a fascinating reality about Canada’s team, set to take on the Dodgers in World Series Game 1 on Friday: The players aren’t very Canadian. As the nation’s only MLB franchise, the Jays garner interest on a national level. It’s a unique situation, one emphasized by this postseason’s television ratings. A whopping 11.8 million Canadians, or roughly 28% of the population, tuned in for the Game 7 clincher. That’s the equivalent of 97 million Americans.
And while the Blue Jays have historically carried a relatively high number of local players, their current roster is almost entirely bereft of Canucks.
[Get more Toronto news: Blue Jays team feed]
Toronto’s only Canadian is superstar first baseman Vladimir Guerrero Jr., who was born in Montreal when his Hall of Fame dad was playing for the Expos. But while Guerrero the younger still holds Canadian citizenship, he spent most of his childhood in the Dominican Republic and represents the island nation in international competition. In fact, the only player in this World Series to ever play for Team Canada is Dodgers first baseman Freddie Freeman, who was born to Canadian parents in Southern California.
Advertisement
The Jays’ World Series roster will probably feature 22 Americans, one Venezuelan, one Mexican, one Dominican and Guerrero, a dual citizen. Cuban Yariel Rodriguez was on the ALCS roster but is a prime candidate to be replaced by Bo Bichette. Despite all of that, the team often endures a healthy share of anti-Canadian banter from opposing fans while on the road.
“There’s been a few different interesting interactions with Yankee fans,” starting pitcher Shane Bieber said. “Just a lot of their chirps, as much as I love them, they’re assuming I’m Canadian just because I play for the Blue Jays.”
That disconnect applies to Toronto’s coaching staff as well. Bullpen catcher Alex Andreopoulos is from Toronto, and assistant pitching coach Sam Greene went to McGill University in Montreal and has a Quebecois mother, but most of the staff does not hail from Canada. Manager John Schneider has been in the organization in some capacity for 23 years, but he’s originally from New Jersey.
Advertisement
Still, for many of the non-Canadians, living in Toronto and winning in Toronto have engendered a wonky yet inspiring sense of adopted national pride.
“We’re part-Canadian almost, you know?” Schneider, who has been the big-league skipper since 2022, told Yahoo Sports. “Because you’re here six months, seven months out of the year, and you just get immersed in the culture and the people. So you really grasp onto it.”
That dynamic has intensified over the past month, as these mostly-American Jays have stampeded through October, galvanizing all of Canada along the way. Baseball is a big deal here right now, with the team’s bird-and-maple-leaf logo plastered all around the city. Mark Carney, the Canadian prime minister, even made an appearance at Rogers Centre during the workout day, holding an extended conversation with Schneider, general manager Ross Atkins and team president Mark Shapiro.
“Whenever you’re doing anything, you want the biggest fan base possible for yourself and your team,” Floridian outfielder Myles Straw said. “So I think it’s really cool, obviously, to have the country behind us. It’s got to be the biggest fan base.”
Advertisement
“You understand that you are the only baseball team for this country,” reserve first baseman and Californian Ty France explained. “So it means more, you know?”
According to those who do it, that emotional boost and the perks of Toronto living make it easy to overcome the various logistical quirks that come with big-league life north of the border. For instance, every road trip concludes with a flurry of customs forms, handed out after takeoff on the team plane. Straw joked about having to be more aware of where he keeps his passport. Converting everything from Canadian to American dollars can get old after a while.
Advertisement
“I didn’t have a full grasp on, like, the metric system,” Springer recalled of his first year in Canada. “Speed limits and, you know, like, the price of gas, or, like, the way gas is computed.”
That stuff comes easy to Springer now. He can convert from Fahrenheit to Celsius in a jiffy. Kilometers don’t perplex him anymore. This place has become his home. He’s proud to live here, to play here. This glorious month has only solidified that feeling.
And Canadians, all across the country, are happy to have him.
