30 Years Later: Chemistry was key to Canada’s 1991 world championship win

On August 4, 1991, at Westbran Stadium in Brandon, Manitoba, 18 scrappy teenagers did something that no Canadian baseball team had done to that point and that no Canadian baseball team has managed to repeat since, they won a world baseball championship. A 5-2 win over Chinese Taipei in the gold medal game of the World Youth Baseball Championships (now known as the WBSC U-18 Baseball World Cup) sent an overflowing crowd of 5,000 fans into mass jubilation when pitcher Jason Birmingham flipped a comebacker to first baseman Troy Croft for the final out.

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Elliott: Emily drove, Jordan pitched, as Woods siblings had 95-day US tour

“It wasn’t your typical brother and sister summer vacation. In the end, it all worked out for the best. As soon as Len and Julie Woods heard Ontario was headed into another lockdown in early April, they flew their daughter Emily Woods, 19, who had completed her first year at York University, and younger brother Jordan Woods to Florida. After all, a young man has to pitch. So lefty Jordan Woods (Oakville, Ont.) of the Ontario Terriers and sister Emily embarked on their own two-person vacation. They did experience some problems. Emily is studying for an honours BA but few professors prepared her for the course structure. Emily was too young to rent a car in Florida and too young to check into most hotels for that matter.”

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