Current Philadelphia Phillies manager Rob Thomson (Corunna, Ont.) here with the class-A Lakeland Tigers after he signed with the Detroit Tigers after the 1985 draft. (He was known as Bob then.)

July 6, 2023

By Kevin Glew

Canadian Baseball Network

The Canadian Baseball Network will have extensive coverage of the Major League Baseball draft, which runs from Sunday through Tuesday.

We’ll be live-tweeting the names of the Canadian players as they’re chosen and we’ll also be posting on Facebook and sharing profiles of each Canuck taken.

For a look at the Canadians that are likely to be selected, you can view the 2023 Canadian Baseball Network Draft List or read our pre-draft profiles.

As we prepare for our coverage, we thought it would be fun to take a look back at some of Canadians chosen over the years.

It’s important to remember that Canadians were not officially eligible for the draft until 1985 – and even then, it was only Canucks attending U.S. colleges that could be picked.

Canada didn’t officially became a draft region until 1991, which opened the doors for Canadian high schoolers to be selected.

But even with these restrictions, some Canadians did manage to get selected much earlier.

Here are some fun facts about Canadians in the MLB draft over the years:

First Canadian ever selected (also the first selected by a National League team and the first by a Canadian team):

OF Richard Trembecki (Drumheller, Alta.), Montreal Expos, 1968

Trembecki was taken by the Expos in the 15th round in June 1968. Best known as a hockey player at the University of Denver at the time, Trembecki (who is also referred to as Bob Trembecky online) was chosen by the Expos as a centre fielder. The selection was later voided, however, when the club was informed that players born in Canada weren’t eligible for the draft.

First Canadian selected by an American League team:

INF Jim Chapman (Victoria, B.C.), California Angels, 1970

Chosen in the third round out of Columbia Basin College by the Angels, this Victoria, B.C.-born infielder was also ruled ineligible. However, the Expos later signed Chapman as an amateur free agent and he played four seasons in their system, rising as high as triple-A. In 417 minor league games, he batted .232 and had five home runs.

First Canadian pitcher selected:

RHP Kirk McCaskill (Kapuskasing, Ont.), California Angels, 1982

This multi-sport athlete was chosen in the fourth round by the Angels out of the University of Vermont in 1982 (He was also selected by the Winnipeg Jets in the fourth round of the NHL draft the previous year). Though born in Kapuskasing, Ont., the right-hander only lived there briefly during his father’s hockey career before moving back to the U.S. with his family. He enjoyed a fine big league career, picking up 106 wins in 12 major league seasons with the Angels and Chicago White Sox.

First Canadian selected after Canadians playing in U.S. colleges officially became eligible in 1985:

OF-1B Martin Robitaille (St. Foy, Que.), California Angels, 1985

Robitaille was selected in the sixth round out of Cochise College in the January Secondary Phase Draft by the Angels, but he didn’t sign with the club. Like Chapman, Robitaille later inked a deal with the Expos as an amateur free agent. He batted .213 in 111 games in parts of two seasons in the Expos’ system in 1987 and 1988, making it as high as the Low-A level.

First Canadian ever to be drafted AND signed by a MLB team (tie):

LHP Steve Wilson (Victoria, B.C.), Texas Rangers and C Rob Thomson (Corunna, Ont.), Detroit Tigers, Both signed on the same day in 1985.

Selected in the fourth round by the Rangers out of the University of Portland, Wilson signed with the big league club on June 7, 1985. On the same day, catcher Rob Thomson (Corunna, Ont.), who had been drafted in the 32nd round by the Tigers, landed his first pro contract.

Wilson went on to post a 4.40 ERA in parts of six big league seasons with the Rangers, Chicago Cubs and Los Angeles Dodgers, while Thomson would spend four seasons in the Tigers’ organization before becoming a highly respected coach for more than three decades. He’s currently the manager of the Philadelphia Phillies.

First Canadian selected by the Toronto Blue Jays:

OF-1B Michael House (Victoria, B.C.) 1986

Selected in the seventh round in the 1986 January Secondary Phase draft by the Blue Jays out of Bellevue Community College, House opted not to sign and instead headed to Hawaii Pacific University. The Minnesota Twins then chose him in the 18th round in the 1989 MLB draft. He signed with the Twins and spent two seasons in their organization, advancing to High A, batting .312 with 22 home runs in 152 games.

First Canadian selected after Canadian high schoolers became eligible in 1991:

OF Jason Wuerch (Leamington, Ont.), New York Yankees, 1991

Selected in the 11th round (282nd overall) by the Yankees, Wuerch, a 6-foot-2, 190-pound outfielder, would play parts of five seasons in the Bombers’ organization, rising as high as the class-A Advanced level. In 299 games, he hit .244 with two home runs.

First Canadian to be selected in the first round:

RHP Dave Wainhouse (Toronto, Ont.), Montreal Expos, 1988

The Expos chose Wainhouse 19th overall in the 1988 draft out of Washington State University (suiting up alongside then two-way player John Olerud). He proceeded to pitch parts of seven big league seasons with the Expos, Seattle Mariners, Pittsburgh Pirates and St. Louis Cardinals. He posted a 6.35 ERA in 29 major league appearances.

Highest Canadian selected in the first round:

LHP Adam Loewen (Surrey, B.C), Baltimore Orioles, 2002

Of players born in Canada, Loewen, who was taken fourth overall by the Orioles in 2002, is the highest pick, but right-hander Jameson Taillon, who maintains a Canadian citizenship and has pitched for Canada at the World Baseball Classic, was selected second overall by the Pittsburgh Pirates in 2010.

Loewen battled injuries throughout his pitching career and he also spent time in the big leagues as an outfielder with the Blue Jays. In parts of five MLB seasons on the mound with the O’s, Phillies and Arizona Diamondbacks, he posted a 10-8 record and a 5.85 ERA in 63 appearances (29 starts).

Most Canadians ever selected in a single MLB Draft:

48 in 2002

The bumper crop of Canadians selected in the 2002 draft included first-rounders Loewen and LHP Jeff Francis (North Delta, B.C.), who went ninth overall, and 1B Joey Votto (Etobicoke, Ont.) who went in the second round (44th overall) to the Cincinnati Reds.

View the complete list of Canadians selected in 2002 here.

Most Canadians selected in the first round in a single year:

Four years tied with two.

2002 – Loewen, O’s (4th overall); Francis, Rockies (7th overall)

2007 – Phillippe Aumont, Mariners (Gatineau, Que., 11th overall), Kyle Lotzkar, Reds, (Delta, B.C., 53rd overall, compensation pick)

2010 – Taillon, Pirates (2nd overall), Kellin Deglan (Langley, B.C., 22nd overall)

2015 – Josh Naylor, Marlins, (Mississauga, Ont., 12th overall), Mike Soroka, Braves (Calgary, Alta., 28th overall)

Latest round that the first Canadian has been selected since 2010:

Eric Wood (Toronto, Ont.) in the sixth round by the Pirates in 2012.

Only two Canadian brothers to be selected in the first round:

1B Josh Naylor (2015, 12th overall by Miami Marlins) and C Bo Naylor (2018, 29th overall by Cleveland). Both are from Mississauga, Ont. Will Myles Naylor make it three brothers this year?

Highest signing bonus received by a Canadian draft pick:

By a player with Canadian citizenship: Taillon, $6.5 million US from the Pirates in 2010.

By a player born in Canada: RHP Cal Quantrill (Port Hope, Ont.), $3,963,045 from the Padres in 2016.

Fun facts and firsts, some Canadian MLB draft trivia