St. Marys – The Pittsburgh Pirates will host a brief on-field ceremony at PNC Park Friday night just prior to their 7:05 E.T. game time against the San Francisco Giants to allow the Canadian Baseball Hall of Fame & Museum to present the 2004 Tip O'Neill Award to Pirates star Jason Bay.
In the year where there was a good argument for more than ten candidates, the Pirates rookie sensation from Trail, British Columbia, edged two-time winner Eric Gagné, nine-time winner Larry Walker, fellow rookie Jeff Francis and slugger Justin Morneau for the award given annually by the Ball Hall to the Canadian player judged to have excelled in individual achievement and team contribution while adhering to the highest ideals of the game of baseball. Other Major League Canadians receiving consideration were Rich Harden, Corey Koskie, Matt Stairs, Paul Quantrill, Shawn Hill, and Peter Orr.
The award has traditionally been presented in Montreal or Toronto. However, with the Montreal Expos having moved to Washington, and because Pittsburgh does not play any interleague games in Toronto this year, it was agreed to make the presentation outside of Canada for the first time in Pittsburgh.
"We are thrilled for Jason and honoured to host this ceremony for him in his home park," said Pirates public relations director Jim Trdinich. "With the bright future Jason has in this game, we're counting on having the folks from the Canadian Hall back a few more times down the road!"
Bay, the first Canadian to be named National League Rookie of the Year, compiled a Pittsburgh Pirates and Canadian rookie record with 26 homeruns along with 82 RBI, a .282 batting average and .550 slugging percentage. The stats are even more staggering considering that the 26-year-old did all that in just 120 games, as he missed Spring Training and the first month of the season due to a shoulder injury. He was the lone unanimous selection to the Topps Rookie All-Star Team picked by MLB managers. He also was named Sporting News Rookie of the Year and Players Choice NL Rookie of the Year.
"The other names on the Tip O'Neill trophy are huge," said an elated Bay. "Canadians are very patriotic people, and the support that I received throughout those post-season accolades has served as tremendous incentive to keep producing this year."
"Jason's accomplishments speak for themselves, and his class and professionalism gives Canada yet another tremendous ambassador in the major leagues" explained Ball Hall president & CEO Tom Valcke. "It isn't that we're taking a 45-save year (Gagné) or a the first World Series appearance by a Canadian in 11 years (Walker, who batted .298 with 17 HR in just 82 games) or the first Canuck ever to be named Minor League Player of the Year (Francis) or a 41-homerun season (Morneau - 22 in Triple-A and 19 with the Twins) for granted."
"And how about Harden's 8-1 record for the A's in the second half, or Koskie's 25 homers, or Stairs 117 hits, or Quantrill's fourth consecutive season with 80-plus appearances, not to mention the outstanding performances by our National Team players? It was truly an amazing year in Canadian baseball history. Any one of these athletes could have won the Tip with easy justification."
Bay, whose sister Lauren played on Canada's Olympic Softball team in Athens, has his game jersey and the bat he used in his 8 RBI game on display in the museum of the Canadian Baseball Hall of Fame.
Note: James 'Tip' O'Neill was one of Major League baseball's first legitimate stars. With the St. Louis Browns in 1887, O'Neill batted .492, Slg-.691, Hits-225, Doubles-52, Triples-19, Homeruns-14, Total Bases-357, Runs-167 (4th all-time for a single season), RBI's 123. The outfielder from Woodstock, Ontario set major league records in hits, doubles, slugging percentage, and total bases that season while compiling an astounding .492 batting average (walks were included as hits in 1887, but if his average was calculated by today's standard, it was .435, the second highest in major league history to Hugh Duffy, .438). The former US Speaker of the House was named after the Canadian slugger.
Moonie Gibson the best of the Canadians who have played for the Pittsburgh Pirates:
There have been a total of 22 Canadians who have played for the Pittsburgh Pirates over the course of history. While Jason Bay is out of the gates faster than any of his predecessors, the most famous story still belongs to Canadian George "Moonie" Gibson.
During the 1909 regular season, Detroit Tiger star Ty Cobb stole a record 76 bases. As the mighty Tigers were headed to the World Series against Pittsburgh, the consensus was that the Tigers and Cobb would run wild on Pirate catcher Moonie Gibson, who honed his skills on the sandlots of London, Ontario.
When it was all said and done, the Pirates beat the Tigers in seven games and Gibson's brilliance behind the plate was recognized as one of the key factors in the World Series victory. Gibson held Cobb to just a pair of steals, one in each of the first two games. He was credited for handling rookie starter Charles "Babe" Adams , who won three straight games for Pittsburgh. Gibson also helped out at the plate, stroking six hits and knocking in the game-winning run in the Series opener.
Gibson later became the Pirates field manager.
ST MARYS – 28 April 2005
Mark your calendar with these key dates in 2005:
June 24 – 9th Annual Celebrity Golf Classic
June 25 – 2005 Induction Ceremony
2005 SUMMER CAMPS for Boys & Girls
* Week-long camps (drop off Sunday, pick-up Saturday), including accommodation & meals
* Focus on baseball FUNdamentals, swimming, soccer & tennis, trip to SkyDome
* Social Justice and Cultural Awareness programs incorporated
* Baseball Celebrities to take part
