BWDIK: Mother's Day, Naylor, O'Neill, Quantrill, Queen, Soroka, Tong

My mom, Glenyce Glew, on the far right, even had her picture taken with me in a Blue Jays uniform in Cooperstown in 1988. From left to right: Mom, me, my dad and my brother.

May 11, 2025

By Kevin Glew

Canadian Baseball Network

Happy Mother’s Day!

Happy Mother’s Day to all of the moms out there! And especially to my mom, Glenyce Glew, who my dad and I have dragged to enough Toronto Blue Jays games over the years that she has become one of the team’s more spirited fans. I’m very fortunate in that not only does my mom enjoy baseball, she’s also loving, supportive, compassionate and generous. She also reads this blog. I love you, mom.

Fergie Jenkins’ mom

This is one of my favourite photos of Fergie Jenkins (Chatham, Ont.) (above). Here he is pictured with his mother Delores at Wrigley Field. Jenkins’ mom lost her vision after giving birth to him, but that didn’t stop her from coming to many of his games. She would sit in the stands and listen to the game on a portable radio.

Mets’ prospect Tong perfect in start on Saturday

Right-hander Jonah Tong (Markham, Ont.) started and tossed 6 2/3 perfect innings for the New York Mets’ double-A Binghamton Rumble Ponies in their 6-0 win over the Reading Fightin’ Phils on Saturday.

Tong fanned 13 batters in the second game of a doubleheader. He was removed after 99 pitches and right-hander T.J. Shook came in to record the final out. It was the first perfect game in Rumble Ponies’ history.

“Couldn’t have had a better day, especially before Mother’s Day,”Tong told MLB.com’s Brendan Samson after the game. “I’m going to dedicate that to my mom.”

With his performance, Tong earned his first win of the season. The Toronto Mets alum owns a 2.57 ERA and has 51 strikeouts in 28 innings in six starts in 2025 for the Rumble Ponies.

Last season, the 21-year-old right-hander was named the top pitching prospect in the Mets’ organization after he posted a combined 6-4 record with a 3.03 ERA in 25 appearances (23 starts), while striking out 160 batters in 113 innings, between class-A, High-A and double-A in the Mets’ organization.

The 6-foot-1 right-hander was selected in the seventh round of the 2022 MLB draft by the Mets.

O’Neill activated by Orioles

Outfielder Tyler O’Neill (Maple Ridge, B.C.) was activated by the Baltimore Orioles on Friday.

He had been on the 10-day injured since April 26 due to neck inflammation, an issue that also hampered him earlier in April.

In his first contest back, he batted sixth and played right field and went 1-for-3 with a run in the Orioles’ 4-1 victory over the Angels at Angel Stadium.

In total, in 20 games this season, O’Neill is batting .217 with two home runs and 10 RBIs.

The Langley Blaze and Junior National Team grad 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 St. Louis Cardinals.

Soroka back with Nationals

Right-hander Michael Soroka (Calgary, Alta.) was activated by the Washington Nationals on Wednesday to start against the Cleveland Guardians at Nationals Park.

Soroka proceeded to toss five innings, allowing four runs on five hits, while fanning eight batters, in the Nats’ 8-6 loss.

The Canadian righty actually threw five scoreless innings before the Guardians rallied in the sixth.

“I had a good amount of adrenaline [that] kept me going,” Soroka told MLB.com after the game. “I thought we executed our game plan really well. A lineup that’s probably the most lefties I’ve ever seen in a lineup. We knew the changeup needed to play right away, and we got off-speed in the zone and kind of let them feel the fastball. As a whole, I thought I threw the ball fairly well.”

Soroka was returning from a right biceps injury that he suffered in a start against the Toronto Blue Jays on March 31. He made three minor league rehab starts before returning to the Nationals.

The 27-year-old Junior National Team alum signed a one-year, $9-million contract with the Nationals on December 19. He is in his sixth major league season.

Romano rediscovering form in set-up role

After a rocky start to the season with the Philadelphia Phillies, Jordan Romano (Markham, Ont.) has not allowed a run in his last four relief appearances. In the process, he has lowered his ERA from 13.50 to 9.45.

Romano, who signed a one-year, $8.5-million deal with the Phillies on December 9 after the Blue Jays declined to offer him arbitration, has been working in a set-up role.

The 31-year-old reliever underwent arthroscopic surgery on his right elbow last July.

An Ontario Blue Jays and Junior National Team grad, Romano recorded 105 saves in six seasons with the Blue Jays prior to signing with the Phillies.

Toro to benefit from Devers’ decision not to play first base

One of the biggest beneficiaries of Boston Red Sox slugger’s Rafael Devers‘ decision to refuse to play first base in wake of the season-ending knee injury suffered by Triston Casas is Abraham Toro (Longueuil, Que.). The Canuck infielder has played four games at first base for the Red Sox since being called up on May 2.

After they signed Alex Bregman in the off-season, the Red Sox asked Devers to shift from the hot corner to DH in spring training. It was a move Devers begrudgingly accepted, but he says he will not change positions again for the Red Sox.

The switch-hitting Toro has been platooning with Romy Gonzalez at first base for the Red Sox. He is 2-for-14 in five games.

Prior to his promotion, Toro hit .310 with seven doubles and two home runs in 28 games with the triple-A Worcester Red Sox.

Toro, 28, has played in parts of six previous major league seasons with the Houston Astros, Milwaukee Brewers, Seattle Mariners and Oakland A’s.

Josh Naylor (Mississauga, Ont.) has six stolen bases for the Arizona Diamondbacks this season. Photo: MLB.com

Naylor rediscovers speed in desert

Scott Crawford, director of operations at the Canadian Baseball Hall of Fame, shared an interesting stat with me earlier this week. Slugger Josh Naylor (Mississauga, Ont.) already has six stolen bases for the Arizona Diamondbacks this season. That equals his total for all of 2024 with the Guardians. Naylor’s career-high is 10 stolen bases.

So who has helped Naylor find his wheels?

That would be Diamondbacks’ baserunning coach and Canadian Baseball Hall of Famer Dave McKay (Vancouver, B.C.).

But Naylor has been more than a speedster this season. He is leading all Canadian big league hitters with a .293 batting average, 43 hits, a .365 on-base percentage and 23 RBIs. He is also second to his brother, Bo, with four home runs.

The Ontario Blue Jays and Junior National Team alum is in his seventh major league season and his first with the D-Backs.

Quantrill sharp in start for Marlins

Miami Marlins right-hander Cal Quantrill (Port Hope, Ont.) limited the Los Angeles Dodgers to one run on four hits in five innings, while striking out six, in his start on Tuesday. The Marlins eventually won the game 5-4 in 10 innings.

It was Quantrill’s fourth start this season in which he pitched five or more innings.

With his performance, the Ontario Terriers and Junior National Team grad lowered his season ERA to 7.11 in seven starts.

Quantrill, 30, got a late start this spring when he didn’t sign with the Marlins until February 12. He is in his seventh big league season.

The jersey Joey Votto (Etobicoke, Ont.) wore with the class-A Dunedin Blue Jays in 2024. Photo: Canadian Baseball Hall of Fame

Votto’s Dunedin Blue Jays jersey on display at Canadian ball hall

The Canadian Baseball Hall of Fame has opened for another season in St. Marys, Ont.

I went down to see the new exhibits on Thursday. One of the highlights for me was the jersey Joey Votto (Etobicoke, Ont.) wore for his 13 games with the class-A Dunedin Blue Jays last year.

Some of the other new artifacts include jerseys worn by Edouard Julien (Quebec City, Que.) and Quantrill with the Minnesota Twins and Colorado Rockies respectively, as well as the jersey Dave McKay (Vancouver, B.C.) donned as a coach in last year’s All-Star Game.

In May, the Hall is open Wednesday through Sunday from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. For more information, click here.

Remembering Mel Queen

Please take a moment to remember former Blue Jays pitching coach Mel Queen who passed away 14 years ago today at the age of 69.

Born in Johnson City, N.Y., Queen made his big league debut with the Cincinnati Reds as an outfielder in 1964 but was transformed into a pitcher in 1966. He put together his finest major league campaign the following year when he won 14 games and recorded a 2.76 ERA in 31 appearances for the Reds. The 6-foot-1 right-hander would suit up for two more seasons with the Reds, before being sold to the California Angels.

Following his playing career, he started coaching with Cleveland in 1979 prior to joining the Blue Jays organization as a pitching instructor in 1986. In 1990, he was named the Blue Jays’ director of player development. But Queen is best known for his tenure as the Blue Jays’ pitching coach from 1996 to 1999. In his four seasons in that capacity, Blue Jays hurlers won three Cy Young Awards (Pat Hentgen, 1996, Roger Clemens, 1997-98). Two-time Cy Young Award winner Roy Halladay also credited Queen for helping him revive his career when he was shipped to the low minors in 2000.

Winnipeg Goldeyes begin season with record number of Canadians

The Winnipeg Goldeyes, who compete in the independent American Assocation, started their 2025 season on Thursday with six Canadians on their Opening Day roster. That’s the most in franchise history, according to Goldeyes’ GM Andrew Collier.

The Goldeyes have four Canuck pitchers – Landen Bourassa (Lethbridge, Alta.), Trevor Brigden (North York, Ont.), Landon Leach (Toronto, Ont.) and Will Sierra (Montreal, Que.) – and two Canadian position players – first baseman Matt Warkentin (Windsor, Ont.) and outfielder Jacob Robson (Windsor, Ont.).

According to Collier, the most Canadians the Goldeyes have had on their roster at one time was seven during the 2000 regular season. However, those seven were not on the Opening Day roster together.

Fun Fact of the Week

George Kottaras (Scarborough, Ont.) is the only Canadian to hit for the cycle in the majors since 2000. He accomplished this feat with the Milwaukee Brewers on September 3, 2011.