BWDIK: Brash, Clapp, Clarke, Naylor, O'Neill, Smith, Soroka, Stottlemyre
Toronto Mets and Junior National Team alum Denzel Clarke (Pickering, Ont.) has won MLB’s Electric Play of the Week Award a record three consecutive weeks. Photo: Athletics
June 22, 2025
By Kevin Glew
Canadian Baseball Network
Some Canadian baseball news and notes from the past week:
Happy Birthday to my mom!
Happy Birthday to my mom, Glenyce Glew! I got my love of baseball from my dad, but my love of reading and writing came from my mom, who was a teacher. She has always supported me and continues to make me delicious meals. She has taught me empathy and that there are two sides to almost every story and I think I’m a better, more compassionate person (with much room for improvement) as a result. My mom also values brevity, so I’ll keep this short. Happy Birthday, mom, and I look forward to celebrating with you later today.
Clarke makes history and yet another jaw-dropping catch
On Monday, Athletics centre fielder Denzel Clarke (Pickering, Ont.) was named the winner of Major League Baseball’s Electric Play of the Week Award for a record third consecutive week. This time, he captured the honour for this jaw-dropping, wall-climbing catch at Angels Stadium in the first inning on June 9 that robbed Nolan Schanuel of a home run:
And to add to his already impressive list of amazing catches, Clarke made another diving grab in the ninth inning on Friday to rob Cleveland Guardians slugger Carlos Santana of an extra-base hit. You can watch it here.
To put into perspective just how great Clarke has been defensively, he already has a 1.0 dWAR (Defensive Wins Above Replacement) in just 26 games for the A’s this season. The only American League outfielder with a higher dWAR is Seattle Mariners’ centre fielder Julio Rodriguez, who has recorded a 1.5 dWAR in 74 games.
Clarke was recalled from the triple-A Las Vegas Aviators on May 23. Selected by the A’s in the fourth round of the 2021 MLB draft, the Toronto Mets and Junior National Team grad is in his fifth pro season.
Ontario Blue Jays and Junior National Team grad Josh Naylor (Mississauga, Ont.) turns 28 day. Photo: Arizona Diamondbacks
Happy Birthday to Josh Naylor!
Arizona Diamondbacks slugger Josh Naylor (Mississauga, Ont.) turns 28 today.
Happy Birthday to him!
Hopefully he had time to celebrate with his family when the Diamondbacks battled the Blue Jays in three games at Rogers Centre this past week. In that series, Naylor went 5-for-13 (.385 batting average) with a double and three runs.
In the D-Backs’ 9-5 win on Thursday, the Ontario Blue Jays and Junior National Team grad notched his 10th stolen base of the season to equal his career-high that he set with the Guardians in 2023.
Naylor, who is in his seventh major league season, clearly enjoys hitting at the Rogers Centre. For his career, he is batting .314 with 16 hits – including three doubles and a home run – in 12 games at the Dome.
Most Stolen Bases by a Canadian in MLB in 2025
10 – Josh Naylor
8 – Otto Lopez (Montreal, Que.)
2 – Vladimir Guerrero Jr. (Montreal, Que.), Tyler O’Neill (Maple Ridge, B.C.)
1- Bo Naylor (Mississauga, Ont.)
Funeral arrangement for Dr. Ron Taylor
Visitation for two-time World Series-winning pitcher and former Blue Jays doctor, Ron Taylor, will be held on Wednesday. His funeral will take place the following morning at 11 a.m. Details can be found here.
Taylor passed away on Monday at the age of 87 after a lengthy illness. For more about his remarkable and inspirational life, you can Bob Elliott’s excellent tribute here.
Clapp recorded first MLB hit 24 years ago
It was 24 years ago today that Stubby Clapp (Windsor, Ont.) registered his first MLB hit with the St. Louis Cardinals. The national team grad pinch-hit for pitcher Luther Hackman in the bottom of the ninth inning and hit a leadoff double off San Francisco Giants righty Livan Hernandez. Unfortunately, he was left stranded on second in the Giants’ 10-5 win.
Happy Birthday to Tyler O’Neill!
Baltimore Orioles outfielder Tyler O’Neill turns 30 today.
Happy Birthday to him!
Unfortunately, he is still sidelined with a left shoulder impingement that has kept him out since May 16. The Junior National Team and Langley Blaze alum played three rehab games with the triple-A Norfolk Tides between June 7 and June 10 when the pain in his shoulder recurred, and he was shut down. According to MLB.com, he is expected to start another rehab assignment soon.
This is O’Neill’s second stint on the injured list with the O’s this season. He was previously sidelined by neck inflammation from April 26 to May 9.
In total, in 24 games in 2025, O’Neill is batting .188 with two home runs and 10 RBIs.
He signed a three-year, $49.5-million contract with the O’s in December. He belted 31 home runs for the Red Sox last season and played his first six big league campaigns with the Cardinals.
Even more zeroes for Brash
Right-hander Matt Brash (Kingston, Ont.) has not allowed a run in 15 relief appearances since being activated by the Mariners on May 3. He has struck out 13 batters in 13 1/3 innings.
It has been a strong return for Brash who had not pitched in the big leagues since undergoing Tommy John surgery in May 2024.
In 2023, the 6-foot-1 righty developed into a go-to late-inning reliever for the Mariners. He led major league pitchers with 78 appearances and had a 9-4 record and a 3.06 ERA. He fanned 107 batters in 70 2/3 innings, good for a 13.6 strikeout-per-nine-inning rate.
Smith continues to excel
Speaking of outstanding Canadian relievers, Guardians right-hander Cade Smith (Abbotsford, B.C.) has allowed just one run in seven relief appearances this month. In 7 1/3 innings, he has struck out 11 batters, while permitting only four hits.
In total, the 6-foot-5 Canuck owns a 2.41 ERA and has fanned 52 batters in 33 2/3 innings in 34 appearances for the Guardians this season.
In his rookie campaign in 2024, Smith posted a 6-1 record and a 1.91 ERA in 74 relief appearances and fanned 103 batters in 75 1/3 innings. For his efforts, he finished fifth in the American League Rookie of the Year voting and ninth in AL Cy Young voting.
Pivetta earns seventh win
San Diego Padres right-hander Nick Pivetta (Victoria, B.C.) collected his seventh win of the season last Sunday when he limited the Diamondbacks to two runs on two hits, while striking out nine, in seven innings in the Pads’ 8-2 win.
He followed that up with a no-decision on Friday when he gave up four runs in 4 2/3 innings to the Kansas City Royals. The Royals eventually won 6-5.
For the season, Pivetta is 7-2 with 3.64 ERA in 15 starts. He has 91 strikeouts in 84 innings. The veteran right-hander is tied for second in the National League in wins, winning percentage (.778) and starts.
Pivetta is in his ninth big league season, but his first with the Padres after signing a back-loaded four-year, $55-million contract with them in February.
Young goes deep for Mets
Outfielder Jared Young (Prince George, B.C.) belted a solo home run in the eighth inning on Saturday to help the New York Mets to an 11-4 win over the Philadelphia Phillies at Citizens Bank Park.
That homer was his third of the season for the Mets and it established a new MLB career-high for Young. He had clubbed two in 16 games for the Chicago Cubs in 2023.
The Mets signed Young to a major league contract in December, but he started the season with triple-A Syracuse. In 22 games in triple-A, he batted .259 with five home runs and 21 RBIs. He was called up by the Mets on May 24.
Soroka likely available at deadline
Last week, I wrote that the Blue Jays, who are in the market for starting pitching depth, should consider pursuing right-hander Cal Quantrill (Port Hope, Ont.) who is on a one-year, $3.5-million deal with the Miami Marlins.
Another Canadian hurler that will likely be available at the trade deadline is righty Michael Soroka (Calgary, Alta.) The 27-year-old signed a one-year, $9-million contract with the Washington Nationals in December. He is 3-5 with a 5.06 ERA in nine big league starts this season. He has tossed at least five innings in each of his last six starts.
With the Nats floundering in the National League East, they will probably be sellers at the deadline.
Soroka, a Junior National Team alum, is in his sixth major league season.
Stottlemyre back in Canada
Former Blue Jays right-hander Todd Stottlemyre was back in Canada last week for an abbreviated cross-country tour. He threw out the first pitch to his onetime batterymate Pat Borders at a Vancouver Canadians game on June 14.
He then dropped by the Rogers Centre on Wednesday to watch the Blue Jays take on the Diamondbacks. There Stottlemyre met up with, among others, former Blue Jays executives and Canadian Baseball Hall of Fame inductees Paul Beeston and Howard Starkman (See photo below).
Paul Beeston, Todd Stottlemyre, Howard Starkman at the Blue Jays game at Rogers Centre on Wednesday. Photo: Todd Stottlemyre/X
Stottlemyre pitched seven sevens with the Blue Jays and was a key pitcher on both World Series-winning squads (1992, 1993). He ranks seventh all-time among Blue Jays pitchers in starts (175), eighth in wins (69) and is tied for eighth in shutouts (4).
Fun Fact of the Week
Left-hander John Hiller (Toronto, Ont.) pitched 150 innings all out of the bullpen for the Detroit Tigers in 1974. That’s the most innings ever thrown in a season by a LEFT-HANDED reliever in MLB history.