Former Toronto Blue Jays catcher Russell Martin (East York, Ont.) will be inducted into the Canadian Baseball Hall of Fame in St. Marys, Ont., in June. Photo: Canadian Baseball Hall of Fame/Toronto Blue Jays

February 6, 2024

Official Canadian Baseball Hall of Fame News Release

St. Marys, Ont. – The Canadian Baseball Hall of Fame and Museum’s class of 2024 will consist of six new inductees.

Former Toronto Blue Jays all-stars Russell Martin (East York, Ont.) and Jimmy Key will be inducted alongside national team infielder and trailblazing coach Ashley Stephenson (Mississauga, Ont.) and national team pitching legend Rod Heisler (Moose Jaw, Sask.). Onetime Blue Jays president and CEO Paul Godfrey, who played a significant role in bringing Major League Baseball to Toronto, and longtime Toronto Leaside baseball executive Howard Birnie will also be inducted in a ceremony at the Hall of Fame grounds in St. Marys, Ont., on June 15.

"Each member of this year’s class has had a tremendous impact on the game of baseball in Canada," said Jeremy Diamond, chair of the Canadian Baseball Hall of Fame’s board of directors. "We look forward to celebrating their outstanding careers in St. Marys this June."

Russell Martin

Born in East York, Ont., in 1983, Russell Martin moved to Montreal when he was two and honed his skills with the Junior National Team before being selected in the 17th round of the 2002 MLB draft by the Los Angeles Dodgers. He cemented himself as the club’s top catching prospect when he batted .311 and posted a .430 on-base percentage (OBP) in 129 games for the Double-A Jacksonville Suns in 2005. That performance earned him an invite to the MLB Futures Game.

Martin would make his big league debut with the Dodgers on May 5, 2006. He proceeded to bat .282 with 10 home runs in 121 games that season and be named to the Topps All-Star Rookie Team. For an encore, he hit .293 with 19 home runs and a career-best 87 RBIs in 2007 and was selected to his first All-Star Game. He was also honoured with a Silver Slugger Award, a Gold Glove Award and the Canadian Baseball Hall of Fame’s Tip O’Neill Award.

He followed that up with another All-Star campaign in 2008 in which he batted .280 with 13 home runs in 155 contests. After two more seasons with the Dodgers, he signed with the New York Yankees and belted 18 and 21 home runs in the 2011 and 2012 seasons respectively.

On November 30, 2012, he signed a two-year deal with the Pittsburgh Pirates. In his first season with the Pirates, he excelled behind the plate, earning Wilson Defensive Player of the Year honours. He followed that up with one of his finest offensive seasons in 2014, batting .290 and posting a career-best .402 OBP, while also earning his second consecutive Wilson Defensive Player of the Year honour.

Following the 2014 campaign, Martin signed a five-year contract with the Blue Jays. In his first season with Toronto, he belted a career-best 23 homers to earn his fourth All-Star selection and help the club to their first postseason appearance in 22 years. He clubbed 20 more homers in 2016 to propel the Blue Jays to the playoffs for a second consecutive year. In total, in parts of four seasons with the Blue Jays, he hit 66 home runs in 447 games.

Martin played his final major league season with the Dodgers in 2019. That year, he reached the postseason for the 10th time in 14 major league campaigns.

Martin ranks in the top 10 among Canadians in most major league statistical categories, including first in dWAR (16.5), third in WAR (38.8), fourth in games (1,693), fifth in runs (803), sixth in hits (1,416), doubles (255) and total bases (2,262) and seventh in home runs (191). He also holds Canadian major league postseason records in games (58), hits (38) and runs (24).

On the international stage, Martin suited up for the Junior National Team in 2000 and for Canada at the World Baseball Classic in 2009. He also coached for Canada at the 2017 and 2023 World Baseball Classics.

“My first thought when I heard the news was man, I must be getting old," said Martin when informed of his induction. "My next thought was what an honour to be inducted into the Canadian Baseball Hall of Fame alongside other greats. I’ve never played the game for awards and accolades, but this is pretty darn special.”

Jimmy Key. Photo: Toronto Blue Jays/Canadian Baseball Hall of Fame

Jimmy Key

Born in 1961 in Huntsville, Ala., Jimmy Key was selected in the third round of the 1982 MLB draft by the Toronto Blue Jays. After posting a 2.30 ERA in five starts for the Rookie ball Medicine Hat Blue Jays during his first professional season, the crafty left-hander rose through the team’s ranks to make his big league debut on April 6, 1984. He would make 63 relief appearances for the Blue Jays that season and set a franchise rookie record with 10 saves before becoming a key member of their rotation the ensuing campaign.

In 1985, the Blue Jays’ first division-winning season, the steady southpaw posted a 14-6 record and a 3.00 ERA in 212-2/3 innings in 35 appearances to earn his first All-Star selection. Over the next seven seasons, Key continued to be a top-end starter for the Blue Jays, registering at least 12 wins in each campaign.

His finest season with the Blue Jays was in 1987, when he went 17-8 and topped American League pitchers with a 2.76 ERA while tossing a team-leading 261 innings. For his efforts, he was named the American League Pitcher of the Year by The Sporting News and finished second in the American League Cy Young voting.

Four years later, he almost equaled his 1987 campaign, when he registered 16 wins and a 3.05 ERA and was named to his second All-Star team. In 1992, he notched 13 regular season victories and added two more in the World Series against the Atlanta Braves to help the Blue Jays capture their first championship.

In his nine seasons with the Blue Jays, Key established himself as one of the greatest pitchers in franchise history. He ranks near the top in many of the club’s all-time pitching categories (minimum 1,000 innings pitched), including tied for first in ERA (3.42) and WHIP (1.20) and fourth in wins (116), games started (250), innings pitched (1,695-2/3) and shutouts (10). In 2017, Sportsnet ranked him ninth on their Greatest Blue Jays of All-Time list.

Following the 1992 season, Key signed with the New York Yankees and amassed a career-best 18 wins in 1993 and then led the AL with 17 victories in the strike-shortened 1994 campaign. He was named an All-Star in both seasons. He’d pitch for the Yankees for two more seasons, securing another World Series ring in 1996, before completing his career with the Baltimore Orioles in 1997 and 1998. In total, in his 15-year major league career, he registered 186 wins and finished with a 49.0 WAR.

“I would like to thank the Canadian Baseball Hall of Fame and their Executive Committee for this great honour," said Key. "This recognition caps off nine great years that I played in Toronto for the Blue Jay organization. To be a part of the first professional baseball World Championship team in Canada is the highlight of my career.”

Ashley Stephenson

Born in Mississauga, Ont., in 1982, Ashley Stephenson is widely regarded as the best player in Women’s National Team history. A member of the first Women’s National Team in 2004, she excelled for the squad for 15 seasons and competed in eight World Cups.

She helped lead the national squad to seven medals, including silvers at the WBSC Women’s World Cups in 2008 and 2016 and at the Pan Am Games in 2015. She was also a force on four bronze medal-winning teams at the World Cup (2004, 2006, 2012, 2018). In her final World Cup appearance in 2018, she batted .455 with eight RBIs.

Along the way, Stephenson was named Women’s National Team MVP twice (2005, 2008) and an All-Tournament All-Star at the 2008 World Cup.

In 2011 and 2016, she was the recipient of Baseball Canada’s Jimmy Rattlesnake Award, an honour handed out annually to recognize a national team member who demonstrated “outstanding ability and sportsmanship.” In a testament to how highly Stevenson is regarded, this award was renamed after her in 2018.

After concluding her playing career, Stephenson became a coach and was part of the Women’s National Team staff that led Canada to a bronze medal at the COPABE Women’s Pan-American Championships in 2019.

Three years later, she became the first woman to manage the Women’s National Team when she was the dugout boss for their five-game series against the United States in Thunder Bay, Ont. In that same year, Stephenson coached Ontario teams at Baseball Canada’s Women’s Invitational Championships and the 16U Girls Championship prior to becoming the first woman to coach at the Blue Jays Academy Canadian Futures Showcase.

In August 2022, she was invited to the Blue Jays’ Player Development Complex in Dunedin, Fla., where she served as a guest coach with their Florida Complex League club. Stephenson would make history again that November when she became the first woman to capture Baseball Canada’s Lionel Ruhr Elite Coach of the Year Award.

In 2023, Stephenson was hired as a position coach by the Blue Jays’ High-A Vancouver Canadians. She will return to this role this season.

A highly respected ambassador for baseball nationally and internationally, Stephenson also served as a member of the WBSC Athletes Commission from 2018 to 2022. Last year, she was named a finalist for SABR’s prestigious Dorothy Seymour Mills Lifetime Achievement Award, which is presented annually to a recipient who has demonstrated “sustained involvement in women’s baseball.”

“Wow! Thank you so much. This was one of the best surprise calls I’ve ever received," said Stephenson after being informed of her upcoming induction. "I played baseball because I love the game. Never in my wildest dreams did I think I’d play for my country and have some of the experiences and opportunities I’ve had. I hope girls and women see this as an example of what you can do through hard work, dedication and perseverance. The Hall of Fame is forever. I’m so incredibly honoured to be a part of it!”

Rod Heisler

Born in 1957 in Moose Jaw, Sask., Rod Heisler pitched in a record 14 international competitions for the men’s National Team. After honing his skills in his hometown, the Canadian left-hander attended Bemidji State University where he pitched for the baseball team and earned All-Conference honours in 1978 and 1979 and was also named All-District in 1979.

His first national team assignment came in 1978 at the Amateur World Series. He posted a 2.63 ERA in that tournament and would pitch for Canada at the same competition in 1980 and 1982. In 1982, he went 3-0 with a 2.35 ERA and was named the left-handed pitcher on the tournament All-Star team.

Two years later, Heisler started Canada’s first game at the 1984 Olympics and allowed just two runs in 10-1/3 innings in a 4-3, 12-inning loss to Nicaragua. He pitched for Canada again at the 1988 Olympics.

On top of his strong performances at the Amateur World Series and Olympics, Heisler toed the rubber for Canada at three Pan Am Games (1979, 1983, 1987), three Intercontinental Cups (1981, 1983, 1985), in the Pacific Cup in 1986 and in the World Cup in 1988. For his efforts, he was recognized with Government of Saskatchewan Merit Awards in four consecutive years (1982 to 1985) and a Government of Canada Merit Award in 1988.

Following his playing career, Heisler became a teacher and coached baseball at the Notre Dame College in Wilcox, Sask., and Little League Baseball in Moose Jaw. In 2000, he was honoured with the Kinsmen Sports Lifetime Achievement Award.

Six years later, he was inducted into the Bemidji University Hall of Fame. In 2017, he was inducted into the Moose Jaw and District Sports Hall of Fame.

“When you first told me that I was being inducted I was so thrilled," said Heisler. "I assumed that it was our [1984] Olympic team nominated and the guys were getting called about the news. Then when you said it was me, that took me by total surprise. Not in my craziest dreams would I have put myself in any consideration for such an honour.”

Paul Godfrey

Born in Toronto in 1939, Paul Godfrey played a crucial role in bringing Major League Baseball to Toronto. As a young North York alderman in 1968, he watched Montreal land a big league franchise and wanted the same for his home city.

So, in 1969, the ambitious 30-year-old politician paid his own way to Major League Baseball’s Winter Meetings at the Americana Hotel in Bal Harbor, Fla. He waited for commissioner Bowie Kuhn at the bottom of a set of stairs in the hotel and boldly approached the commissioner telling him he wanted to secure a big league team for Toronto. Kuhn told Godfrey that he would have to have a baseball stadium in Toronto before they would even consider it.

Armed with that feedback, Godfrey returned to Toronto with his sights set on creating a stadium. In 1973, Godfrey was elected chairman of Metropolitan Toronto, and on his first day in his new position, he promised he would land a big league team for the city and see that a dome stadium was built.

In the short term, however, he needed a budget-friendly alternative, so he came up with the idea to retrofit Exhibition Stadium into a dual baseball/football stadium. In November 1973, he convinced Ontario premier Bill Davis to chip in half the estimated $15-million cost to renovate the stadium. The resulting retrofit of Exhibition Stadium, as well Godfrey’s strong negotiation skills, helped lay the groundwork for the ownership group of Labatt Breweries, CIBC and Howard Webster to secure a major league team in 1976.

After 11 years as the chairman of Metropolitan Toronto, Godfrey became the publisher and CEO of the Toronto Sun in 1984. In that same year, he was appointed to the Crown Corporation that was in charge of the design, construction and selecting a location for a domed stadium in Toronto, a project that would become known as SkyDome that would open in 1989.

Godfrey continued as a top executive with the Toronto Sun Publishing Corporation until 2000 before being hired as president and CEO of the Toronto Blue Jays. Godfrey remained with the Blue Jays though the 2008 season.

Since leaving the Blue Jays, Godfrey has served in several prominent executive positions, including as chair of the Ontario Lottery and Gaming Corporation and president and CEO of Postmedia Network.

For his leadership efforts, Godfrey received the Civic Award of Merit from his home city in 1990. He was also named a member of the Order of Canada in 1999 and to the Order of Ontario in 2010.

"I was very surprised and thrilled with the news of being inducted in the Canadian Baseball Hall of Fame," said Godfrey. "It even brought tears of happiness to my eyes. Being inducted into this wonderful institution is one of the great honours of my life. I love baseball and joining this Hall of Fame is a thrill beyond belief."

Howard Birnie

Born in Toronto in 1937, Howard Birnie has been involved in baseball in his home city for more than 70 years as a player, coach and umpire.

During his tenure as a baseball coach in Toronto from 1958 to 1988, he guided teams to seven city championships, one provincial championship and one national championship with the Toronto Leaside All-Stars in 1964.

Over the years, Birnie has assumed countless leadership roles, including serving as president of the Toronto Baseball Association from 1978 to 1985 and the president of the Ontario Baseball Association in 1991 and 1992. He has also been president of the Leaside Baseball Association since 1973.

Birnie, however, may best known as one of the country’s most respected and longest serving umpires. During his 34 years of calling balls and strikes, Birnie worked six national championships between 1979 and 1989, three international championships (1985, 1987, 1990) and two World Junior Championships (1986-87). He was also selected to umpire Pearson Cup games – an annual exhibition contest between the Toronto Blue Jays and Montreal Expos – in 1982, 1984 and 1986.

Birnie has been recognized with numerous awards for his service in baseball, including being named the OBA’s Volunteer and Executive of the Year in 1994 and being the recipient of the OBA President’s Award in 2007.

Birnie received the Queen’s Diamond Jubilee Award in 2012 in recognition of his 50 years of volunteering in amateur baseball and the following year he was elected to the Leaside Sports Hall of Fame.

In 2017, he was inducted into the Ontario Baseball Hall of Fame and two years later, he was elected to the Toronto Sport Hall of Honour. He continues to serve as an appointed director of the OBA.

“I was incredibly surprised to begin with then very much humbled and grateful to be recognized for simply doing something I have loved most of my life," said Birnie. "With my past connections to the Hall, I know that the list of inductees is composed of a stellar number of people who have been involved in our game in different ways. My inclusion is beyond my dreams.”

Martin, Key, Stephenson, Heisler, Godfrey, Birnie to be inducted into Canadian ball hall