One of the things that made the Blue Jays what they are is the ability to trumpet the home-grown.  I don’t mean their prospects in the minors, but whomever is Canadian-born and playing on the team.  Each Canuck that has donned the baby blues (presently road grays / blacks) or any MLB uniform is reminded to the viewer/listener which city and province each player has been born or raised.  Presently, the notables in MLB are as follows: Reds infielder Joey Votto is from Etobicoke, ON; Red Sock Jason Bay is from Trail, B.C.; 2003 NL Cy Young winner Eric Gagne is from Masouche, QC; 2006 AL MVP Justin Morneau hails from New Westminster, B.C, and probably the greatest Canadian ever to play the game, Larry Walker, is from Maple Ridge, B.C.

Just imagine the prominence that is bestowed on the players who are on the only remaining team in Canada – the Toronto Blue Jays. 

And this brings me to Fredericton, N.B. native Matt Stairs.  Stairs’ tenure in Toronto was for the better part of almost two seasons, but he left quite an impression on me.  I was ready to overlook the man as an afterthought after the signing of Frank Thomas in the 2006 off-season.  Stairs was seen a spare bat off the bench, someone who could hit and spell a corner outfielder or a first baseman for a day off.  His nationality was also a nice p.r. move, as his love for hockey, an inherent Canadian trait, was lampooned (but not totally mocked) in commercials involving the Blue Jays.  But a funny thing happened in 2007; people got injured, positions opened up along with a spot in the starting nine.  And Stairs, who was a slugger with a decent hitting pedigree, displayed his talents and then some in a Toronto uniform.  Matt Stairs became the most feared hitter on a Blue Jays team in 2007 that underachieved offensively due to injury (Wells, Glaus, and Overbay) and needed an anchor from the left side of the plate.

I liked Matt Stairs, because he looked like a ballplayer should look – a little doughy, face mottled with a stubbled goatee, great hands and a quick bat that made any fastball in his crosshairs disappear over the fence.  He is a slimmer version of my all-time favorite hitter, Phillies swinger John Kruk.  He also gets brownie points for playing, albeit briefly, with the now-departed Montreal Expos in 1992-93, and playing for Canada in the 2006 World Baseball Classic.  And going over his wikipedia page, I saw that he was on the 1988 Olympic squad when baseball was a demonstration event (I’m a huge Olympics fan, just as much as baseball).  The only thing I didn’t care for in his arsenal was his walk-up music, as it was the intro for WWE wrestler “Stone Cold” Steve Austin.  I know he looks like the actor/grappler, but I think that’s the last thing Stairs needs to play up.

Stairs’ hitting during his time in a Jay uniform, had, as Commissioner Gordon would put it, “a taste for the theatrical.”  Indeed, the majority of his hits and RBI were in the clutch,  drawing his team closer or vaulting them in the lead.    These weren’t seventh-inning singles cutting the lead to six runs in favor of the opposing side.  The defining moment when I became a Stairs fan was when he hit a ninth-inning bolt a year ago off Oakland closer Huston Street to tie the game.  The situation defined Stairs in 2007 – two out, two strikes against one of the toughest relievers in MLB – and he golfed a shot to deep left centerfield that made me jump out of my seat.  The Jays would eventually lose the game, but I never forgot that at-bat or many others like that while he was in Toronto.

Stairs struggled a bit this season, but I kept rooting for him, wondering why The Big Hurt was still in Toronto when a more efficient alternative was on the bench.  The Blue Jays granted my wish by releasing Thomas (though without consulting me, their loss) but Stairs never regained up to the lofty heights of last year’s heroics.  There were still highlights; scoring the 2008 home opener’s first run on a line-drive swat into the Red Sox bullpen, and a career five-RBI day in his eventual last game in Yankee Stadium.  I saw his penultimate home run as a Blue Jay, a no-doubt line drive shot off the Mariners’ Miguel Batista; I didn’t know this would be the last time I would be seeing him round the bases as a Blue Jay.  The last game I did see him in a Toronto uniform was when he was thrown out at the plate against Boston; the throw beat Matt, but it looked like he slid in safely.  I never thought it’d be the way he ended his Blue Jays playing career, but such is baseball; his bat was needed elsewhere for a pennant drive, and where else does he go but to the Phillies! 

Stairs was probably the best Canadian hitter in a Blue Jays uniform; his brief Toronto totals make a good season for any batter; .270/.347/.476, 32 home runs, 108 RBI.  I’ll just never forget the approach of what Sportsnet Blue Jays play-by-play man Jamie Campbell deemed Stairs, “The Professional Hitter”.  Stairs may not have been flashy, but he knew how to hit.  Good luck in Philadelphia, Matt; I hope the Phillies make the playoffs and we get to see you rake with the red light on.