Vancouver Canadians

This article is about baseball team competing since 2000. For the earlier team of the Pacific Coast League, see Vancouver Canadians (PCL).

The Vancouver Canadians are a Minor League Baseball (MiLB) team located in Vancouver, British Columbia. They are members of the Northwest League and are affiliated with the Toronto Blue Jays. The Canadians play their home games at Nat Bailey Stadium. They are currently the only MiLB team based in Canada.

Vancouver Canadians
Founded in 2000 Vancouver, British Columbia
Team logo Cap insignia
Minor league affiliations
Class	High-A (2021–present)
Previous classes	Class A Short Season (2000–2020)
League	Northwest League (2022–present)
Previous leagues	High-A West (2021) Northwest League (2000–2020)
Major league affiliations
Team	Toronto Blue Jays (2011–present)
Previous teams	Oakland Athletics (2000–2010)
Minor league titles
League titles (5)	2011 2012 2013 2017 2023
Division titles (7)	2004 2005 2011 2012 2013 2014 2017
First-half titles (1)	2023
Wild card berths (1)	2022
Team data
Colors	Red, dark red, black, silver, white
Mascot	Bob Brown Bear^[1]
Ballpark	Nat Bailey Stadium (2000–present), Ron Tonkin Field (2021)
Owner(s)/ Operator(s)	Diamond Baseball Holdings^[2]
President	Andy Dunn
General manager	Allan Bailey
Manager	Brent Lavallee

A game at Nat Bailey Stadium in 2007

History

Prior to the 1999 season, the Vancouver Canadians Pacific Coast League franchise was purchased by a group led by Art Savage with the intention of relocating to Sacramento, California.^[3] Despite winning the Pacific Coast League title and the Triple-A World Series the Canadians moved to California's capital city. Vancouver would not be without baseball as the Southern Oregon Timberjacks of the Northwest League announced relocation to fill the void in Vancouver.^[4] The Canadians name resumed as members of the Class A-Short Season Northwest League in 2000.

Like the predecessor Pacific Coast League franchise, the new Canadians signed a player development contract with the Oakland Athletics. The Canadians had players such as Nick Swisher, Jeremy Brown, Jason Windsor, Joe Blanton, Rich Harden, Travis Buck, Dallas Braden, and Dan Straily on teams during this period.

In 2007, local Vancouver businessmen Jake Kerr and Jeff Mooney purchased the Vancouver Canadians and secured a 25-year lease with the City of Vancouver Parks Board. Extensive work began that offseason in a full-scale stadium renovation which improved washrooms, concessions, concourses, and children's play area. Point-of-purchase concessions increased substantially.

In January 2008, former Washington Nationals executive Andy Dunn become the President and General Manager of the Canadians.

In the spring of 2010, the Vancouver Canadians and Scotiabank announced a long-term partnership that would see Nat Bailey Stadium renamed to Scotiabank Field at Nat Bailey Stadium.

The Canadians became the Short Season A affiliate of the Toronto Blue Jays following the 2010 season. This helped see the team's attendance rise to 162,162 for the season, a team record. In September 2011, the Vancouver Canadians won their first Northwest League championship title, defeating the Tri-City Dust Devils, 9–2, to win the final series, 2–1. The following year, the Vancouver Canadians became back-to-back champions for the first time in franchise history, defeating the Boise Hawks, 12–9, to win the final series, 2–1.

In August 2013, outfielder Kevin Pillar became the first alumnus of the team to play in the major leagues for Toronto.^[5]

On September 9, 2013 the Canadians became just the third Northwest League team to win three straight championships, defeating the Boise Hawks, 5–0, at Scotiabank Field at Nat Bailey Stadium to win the final series, 2–1, in front of a sellout crowd.^[6] The 2013 season also saw the Vancouver Canadians draw over 195,000 fans to Scotiabank Field, a fifth consecutive team record which included 23 sold-out games.

On November 4, 2013, the Vancouver Canadians were named the 2013 recipient of the John H. Johnson President's Award. The prestigious award is given to Minor League Baseball's top organization. It was the first time that a Canadian-based franchise won MiLB's top award.^[7]

In 2016, the Canadians led the Northwest League with a total attendance of 222,363, averaging 6,177 per game.^[8] This earned them the 2016 Esurance "Home Field Advantage Award" given to the organization in each affiliated minor league with the greatest attendance per percentage capacity.^[9] In 2017, the Canadians won another championship, defeating Eugene, 2–1, to win the series, 3–1.^[10] They beat their previous record in attendance with 239,527 people in total attendance for the 2017 season, averaging to 6,303 per game. On January 26, 2018, Toronto extended their player-development contract with Vancouver through the 2022 season.^[11]

While the Canadians were unable to make the playoffs in 2018, coming in a close second in both the first and second half of the season, they still lead the league in attendance with an impressive 239,086 in total attendance.

Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the Minor League Baseball season was cancelled. In the winter of 2020 as part the reorganization of minor league baseball, Vancouver received an invitation to continue as the Blue Jays' High-A affiliate.^[12] In a further change, they were organized into the High-A West along with five other teams previously of the Northwest League.^[13]

The team began the 2021 season playing its home games at Ron Tonkin Field (the home field of the Hillsboro Hops) in Hillsboro, Oregon due to COVID-19 border restrictions.^[14] The Canadians finished 5th in 2021, missing out on playoffs.

Prior to the 2022 season, the High-A West became known as the Northwest League, the name historically used by the regional circuit prior to the 2021 reorganization.^[15] Vancouver finished 2nd in the 2022 season, qualifying for the first time to the new Northwest League playoffs system. Under the new playoffs system, a single best-of-5 series is played to determine the championship winner. Vancouver lost 3–0 to Eugene to finish runner-up.

In the 2023 season, the Canadians had the best overall record in the Northwest League at 77–54 and qualified for the playoffs by winning the first-half title with a 38–27 record. Vancouver defeated Everett 3–1 to win their first High-A Northwest League Championship.

Early professional baseball in Vancouver

Vancouver was an influential entity in the early history of the Northwest League. They were charter members of every version of the league that would eventually form the NWL, most notably as the sole team that survived the collapse of the Western International League (WIL) in 1922 when it reformed in 1937, winning four pennants in the WIL (1942, 1947, 1949, and 1954) as the Vancouver Capilanos (1939–1954). However, even though they were the final champions of the WIL, Vancouver was not part of its reformation into the Northwest League, due to the NWL's shedding of all of its Canadian teams in order to focus on the American Pacific Northwest. Vancouver was without professional baseball in 1955, but in 1956 the highest calibre of minor league play, in the form of the Open classification Pacific Coast League, came to British Columbia when Oakland Oaks transferred there as the Vancouver Mounties. The Mounties played in the PCL from 1956 through 1962, and from 1965 through 1969.

Ballpark

The Canadians play their home games at Nat Bailey Stadium which had hosted previous minor league teams.

Season-by-season records

Season	PDC	Division	Finish	Wins	Losses	Win%	Post-season	Manager	Attendance
Vancouver Canadians
2000	OAK	West	2nd	39	37	.513		Dave Joppie	109,576
2001	OAK	West	2nd	37	39	.487		Webster Garrison	118,357
2002	OAK	West	4th	37	39	.487		Orv Franchuk	127,099
2003	OAK	West	3rd	35	41	.461		Dennis Rogers	137,026
2004	OAK	West	1st	42	34	.553	Lost to Boise in championship series 0-3	Dennis Rogers	140,037
Vancouver Canadians
2005	OAK	West	1st	46	30	.605	Lost to Spokane in championship series 2-3	Juan Navarrette	124,708
2006	OAK	West	3rd	39	37	.513		Dennis Rogers	123,878
2007	OAK	West	2nd	37	38	.493		Rick Magnante	126,491
Vancouver Canadians
2008	OAK	West	3rd	34	42	.447		Rick Magnante	129,073
2009	OAK	West	2nd	36	40	.474		Rick Magnante	149,297
2010	OAK	West	2nd	42	34	.553	Lost to Everett in division series 0-2	Rick Magnante	154,529
2011	TOR	West	2nd	39	37	.513	Defeated Eugene in division series 2–1 Defeated Tri-City in championship series 2–1	John Schneider	162,162
2012	TOR	West	2nd	46	30	.605	Defeated Everett in division series 2–0 Defeated Boise in championship series 2–1	John Schneider	164,461
2013	TOR	North	2nd	39	37	.513	Defeated Everett in division series 2–0 Defeated Boise in championship series 2–1	Clayton McCullough	184,042
Vancouver Canadians
2014	TOR	North	1st	46	30	.605	Defeated Spokane in division series 2–0 Lost to Hillsboro in championship series 0-2	Clayton McCullough	180,187
2015	TOR	North	4th	34	42	.447		John Schneider	215,535
2016	TOR	North	4th	29	45	.392		John Tamargo	222,363
2017	TOR	North	1st	43	33	.566	Defeated Spokane in division series 2–0 Defeated Eugene in championship series 3-1	Rich Miller	239,527
2018	TOR	North	1st	40	36	.526		Dallas McPherson	239,068
2019	TOR	North	4th	30	46	.396		Casey Candaele	235,980
2020	Season Cancelled due to COVID-19 Pandemic
2021	TOR	-	5th	55	64	.462		Donnie Murphy	15,882
2022	TOR	-	2nd	67	62	.519	Lost to Eugene in championship series 3-0	Brent Lavallee	313,256
2023	TOR	-	1st	77	54	.588	Defeated Everett in championship series 3-1	Brent Lavallee	297,437

Division winner

League champions

Canadians attendance

Year	Total Attendance	Average	Percent Change	Ref
2000	109,576	2,884	N/A	^[16]
2001	118,357	3,115	+8.0%	^[17]
2002	127,099	3,345	+7.4%	^[18]
2003	137,026	3,606	+7.8%	^[19]
2004	140,037	3,685	+2.2%	^[20]
2005	124,708	3,370	–8.5%	^[21]
2006	123,878	3,260	–3.3%	^[22]
2007	126,491	3,419	+4.9%	^[23]
2008	129,073	3,585	+4.9%	^[24]
2009	149,297	3,929	+9.6%	^[25]
2010	154,592	4,068	+3.5%	^[26]
2011	162,162	4,267	+4.9%	^[27]
2012	164,461	4,445	+4.2%	^[28]
2013	184,042	4,843	+9.0%	^[29]
2014	180,187	4,870	+0.6%	^[30]
2015	215,535	5,825	+19.6%	^[31]
2016	222,363	6,177	+6.0%	^[32]
2017	239,527	6,303	+2.0%	^[33]
2018	239,086	6,292	–0.2%	^[34]
2019	235,980	6,210	–1.3%	^[35]
2020^[Note 1]	-	-	-	^[36]
2021^[Note 2]	15,822	286	-	^[37]
2022^[Note 3]	313,256	4,746	+1879.88%	^[37]
2023	297,437	2,306	–5.05%	^[37]

Roster

Vancouver Canadians roster

• v
• t
• e

Players				Coaches/Other
Pitchers -- Ben Baggett 15 Cooper Benson 21 Ryan Boyer 35 Ian Churchill 29 Pat Gallagher 16 Hunter Gregory 26 Devereaux Harrison 32 Ryan Jennings  9 Justin Kelly 25 Conor Larkin 30 Adam Macko 28 Leam Mendez 17 Kevin Miranda 43 Eric Pardinho  4 Naswell Paulino 31 Sam Ryan 18 Rafael Sanchez  1 Dahian Santos -- Donnie Sellers 36 Anders Tolhurst -- Geison Urbaez		Catchers 19 Jommer Hernandez 10 Lyle Lin 20 Kekai Rios Infielders 27 Alex De Jesus 31 Angel Del Rosario  7 Cade Doughty 34 Nick Goodwin  8 Josh Kasevich 14 Estiven Machado 22 Ryan McCarty  1 Glenn Santiago  5 Jeffrey Wehler 40 Peyton Williams Outfielders  6 Dasan Brown 89 Marcos De La Rosa 11 Gabriel Martinez -- MacKenzie Mueller 13 Garrett Spain		Manager 33 Brent Lavallee Coaches -- Deiferson Barreto (bench) 38 Austin Bibens-Dirkx (pitching) -- Carson Phillips (bench)  2 Ashley Stephenson (coach) 12 Ryan Wright (hitting)   7-day injured list * On Toronto Blue Jays 40-man roster ~ Development list # Rehab assignment ∞ Reserve list ‡ Restricted list § Suspended list † Temporarily inactive list Roster updated February 12, 2024 Transactions → More rosters: MiLB • Northwest League → Toronto Blue Jays minor league players

Media

In the 2019 season, radio rights moved from CKST to CISL Sportsnet 650. As part of the deal, Sportsnet Pacific also gained rights to air a package of Canadians games on television.^[38]

Notable former players in the major leagues

• Davis Schneider (2019, 2021–2022)
• Spencer Horwitz (2019, 2021)
• Alek Manoah (2019)
• Vinny Capra (2018)
• Cavan Biggio (2016)
• Tim Mayza (2014)
• Tim Locastro (2014)
• Miguel Castro (2014)
• Ryan Borucki (2014)
• Franklin Barreto (2014)
• Richard Urena (2014)
• Roberto Osuna (2012)
• Daniel Norris (2012)
• Dalton Pompey (2012)
• Marcus Stroman (2012)
• Kevin Pillar (2011)
• Aaron Sanchez (2011)
• Noah Syndergaard (2011)
• Justin Nicolino (2011)
• A. J. Griffin (2010)
• Ian Krol (2009)
• Dan Straily (2009)
• Max Stassi (2009)
• Sean Doolittle (2007)
• Andrew Bailey (2006)
• Justin Sellers (2005)
• Jeff Gray (2005)
• Anthony Recker (2005)
• Travis Buck (2005)
• Kurt Suzuki (2004)
• Dallas Braden (2004)
• Landon Powell (2004)
• Gregorio Petit (2004)
• Alexi Ogando (2004)
• Omar Quintanilla (2003)
• Andre Ethier (2003)
• Santiago Casilla (2002)
• Jared Burton (2002)
• Joe Blanton (2002)
• Mark Teahen (2002)
• Nick Swisher (2002)
• Nelson Cruz (2002)
• John Baker (2002)
• Mike Wood (2001)
• Rich Harden (2001)
• Neal Cotts (2001)
• Dan Johnson (2001)
• Franklyn Germán (2000)
• Ron Flores (2000)
• Freddie Bynum (2000)

Notes

1. The 2020 Minor League Baseball season was cancelled due to the advent of the COVID-19 Pandemic.
2. Due to pandemic restrictions during the 2021 MiLB Season, the Canadians played in front of reduced crowds at Ron Tonkin Field in Hillsboro, OR.
3. Due to being promoted from Class A Short Season to High-A, Northwest League teams began playing an increased number of games beginning in 2021.

References

1. "Meet Bob Brown Bear".
2. Ewen, Steve. "Vancouver Canadians sold to American company, promise business as usual". theprovince.com. Retrieved 2 September 2023.
3. Johnson, Kelly. "Who's on first? Baseball war heats up after team purchased". www.bizjournals.com. Retrieved 2020-09-20.
4. "Timberjacks will make move to Vancouver, B.C." Eugene Register-Guard. Oregon. Associated Press. October 27, 1999. p. 6F.
5. . Backinblue.kc-media.net. 2013-06-11. Archived from the original on 2014-07-26. Retrieved 2013-09-05.
6. "Canadians win third consecutive championship". milb.com\date=September 10, 2013. Retrieved March 15, 2014.
7. "Canadians earn 2013 President's Award". milb.com. November 4, 2013. Retrieved November 5, 2013.
8. "Northwest League Attendance | MiLB.com Stats | The Official Site of Minor League Baseball". MiLB.com. Retrieved 2017-06-19.
9. @vancanadians (April 11, 2017). "We have the best fans in @MiLB! Come celebrate winning the 2016 @esurance Home Field Advantage Award with your hometown team today!" (Tweet) – via Twitter.
10. "Canadians win fourth title in seven years". MiLB.com. Retrieved 2018-02-17.
11. "Vancouver Canadians on Twitter". Twitter. January 26, 2018. Retrieved January 26, 2018.
12. "Blue Jays retain Vancouver Canadians as minor league affiliate". Sportsnet.ca. Retrieved 2020-12-14.
13. Mayo, Jonathan (February 12, 2021). "MLB Announces New Minors Teams, Leagues". Major League Baseball. Retrieved February 12, 2021.
14. "Vancouver Canadians to call Oregon home at start of baseball season due to COVID-19". CBC.ca. The Canadian Press. March 29, 2021. Retrieved April 17, 2021.
15. "Historical League Names to Return in 2022". Minor League Baseball. March 16, 2022. Retrieved March 16, 2022.
16. "Canadians Attendance (2000)". thebaseballcube.com. Retrieved November 27, 2018.
17. "Canadians Attendance (2001)". thebaseballcube.com. Retrieved November 27, 2018.
18. "Canadians Attendance (2002)". thebaseballcube.com. Retrieved November 27, 2018.
19. "Canadians Attendance (2003)". thebaseballcube.com. Retrieved November 27, 2018.
20. "Canadians Attendance (2004)". thebaseballcube.com. Retrieved November 27, 2018.
21. "Canadians Attendance (2005)". MiLB.com. Retrieved November 27, 2018.
22. "Canadians Attendance (2006)". MiLB.com. Retrieved November 27, 2018.
23. "Canadians Attendance (2007)". MiLB.com. Retrieved November 27, 2018.
24. "Canadians Attendance (2008)". MiLB.com. Retrieved November 27, 2018.
25. "Canadians Attendance (2009)". MiLB.com. Retrieved November 27, 2018.
26. "Canadians Attendance (2010)". MiLB.com. Retrieved November 27, 2018.
27. "Canadians Attendance (2011)". MiLB.com. Retrieved November 27, 2018.
28. "Canadians Attendance (2012)". MiLB.com. Retrieved November 27, 2018.
29. "Canadians Attendance (2013)". MiLB.com. Retrieved November 27, 2018.
30. "Canadians Attendance (2014)". MiLB.com. Retrieved November 27, 2018.
31. "Canadians Attendance (2015)". MiLB.com. Retrieved November 27, 2018.
32. "Canadians Attendance (2016)". MiLB.com. Retrieved November 27, 2018.
33. "Canadians Attendance (2017)". MiLB.com. Retrieved November 27, 2018.
34. "Canadians Attendance (2018)". MiLB.com. Retrieved November 27, 2018.
35. "Northwest League Attendance | Northwest League Stats". Northwest League. Retrieved 2019-10-08.
36. "2020 Minor League Baseball season shelved". MiLB.com. Retrieved 2023-08-20.
37. "Vancouver Canadians". TheBaseballCube.com. Retrieved 2023-08-20.
38. "Vancouver Canadians jump to Sportsnet 650, get TV games in the deal". The Province. 2018-10-23. Retrieved 2019-06-29.

External links

• Official website

Preceded by Southern Oregon Timberjacks

Northwest League franchise 2000–present

Succeeded by