BWDIK: Boucher, Brash, Hicks, Pivetta, Quantrill, Sabrowski, Siddall
Victoria Eagles alum Nick Pivetta (Victoria, B.C.) is nearing a return with the San Diego Padres.
September 6, 2026
By Kevin Glew
Cooperstowners in Canada
Some Canadian baseball news and notes:
Pivetta nearing return
San Diego Padres right-hander Nick Pivetta (Victoria, B.C.) allowed just two hits and struck out seven batters in 4 1/3 scoreless innings in a rehab start with the triple-A El Paso Chihuahuas last Sunday.
This came just five days after he threw three innings in a rehab outing for the Class-A Lake Elsinore Storm.
These are positive signs for the veteran righty and the Padres, who are in a battle with the Arizona Diamondbacks for the third and final Wild Card spot in the National League.
On Saturday, Padres manager Craig Stammen told the San Diego Union-Tribune that Pivetta will throw a bullpen session at Petco Park this weekend. The team will then evaluate him after this, but it seems likely Pivetta will be activated to start for the Padres sometime this week.
Pivetta has been sidelined since April 14 with right elbow inflammation (later diagnosed as a flexor strain). The 33-year-old Canadian, who was the Padres’ Opening Day starter, made just four starts this season before suffering the injury.
The Victoria Eagles and Junior National Team grad put together the finest of his 10 MLB seasons with the Padres last year when he went 13-5 with a 2.87 ERA in 31 starts.
Sabrowski did not allow a run in August
Cleveland Guardians left-hander Erik Sabrowski (Edmonton, Alta.) did not allow a run in 11 appearances in August.
In 8 1/3 innings, he permitted just four hits and struck out 13 batters. Opponents hit just .138 off him.
Sabrowski continued his dominant stretch with two scoreless innings in the Guardians’ 7-6 win over the Detroit Tigers in Game 1 of a doubleheader on Friday.
In 52 appearances this season, Sabrowski owns a 2.83 ERA and has 66 strikeouts in 41 1/3 innings.
The Edmonton Prospects Academy grad has pitched in parts of three MLB seasons with the Guardians. He was originally selected in the 14th round of the 2018 MLB draft by the Padres.
Another excellent start for Quantrill
Fresh off being named the Texas Rangers’ Pitcher of the Month for August, Cal Quantrill (Port Hope, Ont.) started and surrendered just two hits in seven scoreless innings to lead his club to 6-0 win over the Tampa Bay Rays on Thursday. The veteran righty fanned five batters in the contest.
Quantrill boasts a 1.18 ERA in his last seven games (six starts) and has 34 strikeouts in 38 innings.
In what has been an outstanding comeback season for Quantrill, he is 7-5 with a 2.79 ERA in 29 games (12 starts).
Earlier on Thursday, the Terriers and Junior National Team grad, who began the season in triple-A, became the first player to be named Rangers’ Pitcher of the Month during a year in which they didn’t open the regular season on the team’s 40-man roster since right-handed pitcher Joe Barlow (September/October 2021).
Hicks continues to shine for Rays
Catcher Liam Hicks (Toronto, Ont.) has been one of the Rays’ best hitters since they acquired him from the Miami Marlins on August 3.
In 25 games with the Rays, the Toronto Mets alum owns a .316/.402/.481 slash line and has three home runs and 14 RBIs.
Prior to joining the Rays, Hicks had been enjoying a breakout campaign with the Marlins. Combining his stats with the Marlins and Rays this season, he has played 126 games and he leads Canadian-born hitters in home runs (17) and RBIs (76).
Joe Siddall (left) and Denis Boucher (right) formed an All-Canadian battery for the Montreal Expos 33 years ago today.
Boucher, Siddall, Walker made Canadian baseball history 33 years ago
It was 33 years ago today that Denis Boucher (Lachine, Que.) pitched his first game for the Montreal Expos in front of more than 40,000 fans at Olympic Stadium.
With Windsor, Ont., native Joe Siddall catching and Maple Ridge, B.C., native Larry Walker in right field, the contest represented the first time in modern baseball history (after 1900) that three Canucks have been in the starting lineup for the same team. Boucher held the Colorado Rockies to one run in six innings in the Expos’ 4-3 victory.
“That was a very special day,” Siddall told me an interview in 2018. “I didn’t realize it was going to be such a big deal until I was in the dugout before the game and I was out there early, as I usually was, waiting for the starting pitcher to come out and then I would go and do my stretching and long toss with him. And when Denis came out of our tunnel and out of our dugout and we started walking towards the bullpen, the fans went crazy. And that’s when I think it really hit me . . . But we can talk about the [all-Canadian] battery all we want, the biggest draw was that Denis Boucher was pitching for the Montreal Expos.”
Making the day even more memorable for Siddall was that all three Canucks contributed to the Expos’ win.
“Denis got a no-decision but he pitched very well. He pitched six innings and only allowed one run. I threw a guy out stealing and I think I also hit a double and Larry homered so it was pretty neat all-around,” recalled Siddall.
Lopez second in MLB in hits
Though his offensive numbers have dipped in the second half, Miami Marlins shortstop Otto Lopez remains second in the major leagues with 167 hits behind only Philadelphia Phillies infielder Luis Arraez (170 hits).
Lopez’s .300 batting average ranks fourth in the National League, while he is tied for second with eight triples. His 5.6 bWAR (Baseball Reference WAR) is also second among NL position players.
Lopez, who spent part of his youth in Montreal and has played for Canada at the last two World Baseball Classics, has already set several career-highs in his second full big league season.
CBL’s Chatham-Kent Barnstormers introduce Atkinson award
The Canadian Baseball League’s Chatham-Kent Barnstormers have honoured local ex-big leaguer and team ambassador Bill Atkinson by creating the Bill Atkinson Community Involvement Award.
The team announced the new honour on Thursday.
The award was created to recognize Barnstormers players who went above and beyond to make a difference in the Chatham-Kent community during the season. Infielder Julien Monks and utility player Robert Mackie (Vancouver, B.C.) were the first recipients.
“From supporting local charities and community events to dressing up as hot dogs at a BBQ and even letting snakes crawl all over them at the animal shelter, they were always willing to show up, pitch in and put a few smiles on faces along the way!” the Barnstormers said in a statement about Monks and Mackie.
The award is the second honour bestowed upon Atkinson by the Barnstomers. In August 2024, the Barnstormers honoured Atkinson with a portrait on the stadium wall at Fergie Jenkins Field.
The Chatham-born Atkinson posted an 11-4 record and a 3.42 ERA in 98 games in four big league seasons for the Montreal Expos from 1976 to 1979.
Following his playing career, Atkinson returned to Chatham and raised his family in the community. Over the past four decades, he has served as a coach and mentor for countless local kids.
O’Neill back on IL
The Baltimore Orioles placed outfielder Tyler O’Neill (Maple Ridge, B.C.) on the 10-day injured list on August 26 with right shoulder inflammation.
This marks his second time on the injured list this season.
O’Neill has hit .212 with 10 home runs and 23 RBIs in 85 big league games in 2026. Three of his homers have been of the pinch-hit variety.
He is in his ninth big league campaign.
Happy Birthday to Mark Teahen!
Happy 45th Birthday to former Toronto Blue Jay and Canadian citizen Mark Teahen!
Teahen’s father, Mike, was born in St. Marys, Ont., and played on the Canadian national team in the 1970s. So to honour his family’s roots, Mark suited up for Canada at the 2009 World Baseball Classic.
In his seven-season major league career, the third baseman/outfielder batted .264 in 831 games with the Kansas City Royals, Chicago White Sox and Blue Jays.
Brash’s season over
On Friday, the Seattle Mariners announced that right-hander Matt Brash (Kingston, Ont.) will be out for the rest of the season after an MRI showed continued inflammation in his right lat.
The Canuck reliever, who has been sidelined since June 10 with the injury, seemed to be progressing towards a rehab assignment and possible September return.
Brash will now be shut down from throwing for eight weeks. The positive news is the MRI showed no structural damage.
The 28-year-old righty has had two tenures on the IL with the lat strain this season. After being out from May 1 to May 20, he reaggravated the injury in early June.
When healthy, Brash was one of the best set-up men in the majors in 2026. He was 3-0 with a 0.54 ERA in 20 appearances, spanning 16 2/3 innings.
A Kingston Thunder grad, Brash was in his fourth campaign with the Mariners. In total in his MLB career, he is 17-11 with eight saves and a 3.06 ERA with 242 strikeouts in 190 games (five starts).
Anniversary of Hiller’s MLB debut
Sixty-one years ago today, left-hander John Hiller (Toronto, Ont.) made his MLB debut with the Tigers.
He tossed a scoreless ninth inning for the Tigers in their 4-1 loss to the Boston Red Sox at Tiger Stadium.
Hiller went on to enjoy an outstanding 15-year big league career with the Tigers. His best season was in 1973 when he pitched in 65 games, notched 10 wins, posted a 1.44 ERA and recorded 38 saves (a major league record at the time) and was named American League Fireman of the Year. A member of the All-Time Detroit Tigers’ All-Star Team, Hiller registered 87 career wins, 125 saves and had a 2.83 ERA.
Twenty-nine years ago, Rich Butler made MLB debut with Jays
It was 29 years ago today that Rich Butler (Toronto, Ont.) made his big league debut with the Blue Jays.
Batting seventh and playing right field, he went 0-for-3 against the Rangers in the Blue Jays’ 2-1 win at SkyDome.
Three days later, he recorded his first MLB hit and finished his seven-game big league stint that September with four hits in 14 at bats (.286 batting average).
Following that season, Butler was selected by the Rays with the 10th pick in the expansion draft and he played parts of two seasons with the Rays, prior to splitting his final pro campaign in the affiliated ranks between the Mariners’ and Rangers’ organizations.
Stewart debuts on same day as Butler
While Butler was making his MLB debut, Andy Stewart (Oshawa, Ont.) was appearing in his first MLB game with the Kansas City Royals.
The Canuck catcher, who was signed by the Royals as an amateur free agent in 1989, pinch ran for Mike Macfarlane in the bottom of the eighth inning and then caught Ricky Bones in the ninth in the Royals’ 9-3 loss to the Oakland A’s at Kauffman Stadium.
Stewart would go 2-for-8 (.250 batting average) in five games down the stretch for the Royals.
In all, he played in parts of 11 professional seasons.
Tougas named head coach at Laurier
Laurier University has named Jake Tougas as the new coach of their men’s baseball program.
He replaces Paul Ewart and becomes the fifth baseball coach in the school’s history.
A North Bay, Ont., native, the 33-year-old Tougas is returning to lead the program in which he spent five seasons as a pitcher from 2012 to 2016. Tougas was on the Golden Hawks team that captured the Ontario University Athletics (OUA) championship in 2013. Six years later, he helped guide the team to a conference title as an assistant coach.
Tougas’s coaching resume also includes experience at the university, high school and player development levels, including at West Ferris Secondary School and with the North Bay Baseball Association.
Anniversary of Wallach’s MLB debut
It was 46 years ago today that Tim Wallach pinch-hit for Ron LeFlore and belted a solo home run in the eighth inning off San Francisco Giants pitcher Phil Nastu at Candlestick Park in his first major league at bat.
With that, he became the first Expo to homer in their first MLB at bat. It was the first of 204 home runs that Wallach would belt in his 13 seasons with the Expos.