*This article was originally published on Saskatchewan Dugout Stories on March 27. You can read it here.

March 30, 2025

By Ian Wilson

Saskatchewan Dugout Stories

It was an event that baseball fans in Saskatchewan had never dreamed was possible, and it went so well that they ended up experiencing it twice.

A press conference in January of 1989 was held at Regina’s Sheraton Centre to announce that the Toronto Blue Jays were coming to play an exhibition game at Taylor Field – home of the Canadian Football League’s Saskatchewan Roughriders – in May.

While it may have seemed unorthodox to host a Major League Baseball (MLB) team at a football stadium, it had been done before in Western Canada when Reggie Jackson and the California Angels faced the Edmonton Trappers at Commonwealth Stadium in 1983.

This time around, the Labatt’s Blue Jays Baseball Festival would see Toronto square off against the National Baseball Institute (NBI) Blues in a home run derby and seven-inning game, with proceeds going to the Saskatchewan Baseball Association, Baseball Canada and NBI. There was no appearance fee for the Jays and the team would cover their own expenses.

The Blue Jays had previously participated in the Pearson Cup, an exhibition matchup against the Montreal Expos, which raised funds for amateur baseball in Canada, but that ended in 1986. That event was replaced with road games involving the Blue Jays at various locations across Canada. In 1987, about 20,000 fans attended a Jays game in Winnipeg and a 1988 exhibition that was set for St. John, N.B. had to be cancelled due to poor weather.

“We like to move it around between the East and West,” said Pat Gillick, the executive vice-president of the Blue Jays, in an article by Ed Willes for the Regina Leader-Post newspaper.

“We’ve played on football fields before and there’s no problem.”

Event chairman Serge Kujawa was also comfortable that the unusual setting wouldn’t be an issue.

“The Blue Jays have done this sort of thing before. That makes it easier,” said Kujawa.

“I don’t think the Blue Jays want to play a stupid-looking ball game.”

Gillick attended the press conference along with relief pitcher Duane Ward and catcher Ernie Whitt.

Ad in the *Leader-Post* newspaper promoting the Labatt’s Blue Jays Baseball Festival.

The itinerary for the festival included a dinner with guest speaker Paul Markle, the director of marketing for the Blue Jays, on Wednesday, May 10, followed by the main event on Thursday, May 11. The gates were set to open at 3:30 p.m, with a coaches clinic, the homer hitting contest and team introductions to follow. The ceremonial first pitch was scheduled for 5 p.m., and the exhibition game would start five minutes later.

THE SHOW MUST GO ON

When the time came for the big event, it was major news in Saskatchewan’s capital city. But a 39-minute rain delay almost put an end to the exhibition game.

“I wasn’t happy with the scare that rain caused,” admitted Kujawa in the Leader-Post.

“We had thought about what would have happened if it kept raining and what a horrible thing it would have been. The rain spoiled my day a little bit. But when the weather cleared, I was happy with the day.”

Organizers had a $100,000 insurance policy in place in the event that rain led to a cancellation, and they were pleased not to implement it.

During their seven-hour stop in Regina, several players and coaches engaged with the fans and the community. Third baseman Kelly Gruber signed autographs, manager Jimy Williams conducted a coaching clinic, closer Tom Henke delivered an anti-drug presentation at Luther College, and pitchers David Wells and Dave Stieb spoke with school children. B.J. Birdy – the mascot of the Blue Jays – was even on-hand for some high fives.

“This is as close as most of these people will get to a major league game,” noted Williams.

Gillick, who pitched in the Western Canada League for Edmonton in the late 1950s, spoke of the team’s responsibility to its fan base.

“I personally enjoy it … but you have to realize for a lot of the guys this is a day off and they would like to spend it with their families,” Gillick told reporter Murray McCormick.

“But we feel we have a commitment to amateur baseball and the fans across Canada. We’ve got a lot of fans because of radio and television and it’s good to get a chance to get out with them.”

Infielder Rance Mulliniks agreed with Gillick’s assessment.

“The reason for having the game is a good one – the money goes to a good cause,” said Mulliniks.

“The people who put this together have put in a lot of time and work hours. For the people of Regina, it’s obviously a very big deal because they don’t get to see major league baseball every day. It’s a good cause, but the players would rather have the day off. It’s a long season and you don’t have that many days off.”

He added: “Once you get here, the time to play the game is no problem … it’s the travel on a day like this that’s the worst part. You don’t get to rest like you normally do. That’s not a sob story, that’s just the way it is.”

This image in the *Leader-Post* newspaper captures players hanging out in the dressing room before the game.

The pre-game home run derby featured a mix of baseball players and local celebrities.

Rob Ducey – an outfielder with the Blue Jays – led one team that included Tyler Lovering of the Saskatchewan Baseball Association (SBA), Loris Mazzocca of the National Baseball Institute (NBI) and Saskatchewan Premier Grant Devine.

They faced off against a Pat Borders-led squad that consisted of Randy Curran of the NBI, Craig Clifton of the SBA and Kujawa, the co-chair of the festival.

Ducey launched six long balls, while Mazzocca had three and Devine had one, which was enough to give their side a 10-5 triumph. Curran had four homers in a losing cause.

THE MAIN EVENT

The Blue Jays lineup included Junior Felix in right field; Gruber and Mulliniks splitting time at third base; Tony Fernandez at shortstop; George Bell as the designated hitter; Fred McGriff playing at first base; Borders behind the plate; Lloyd Moseby and Ducey in centre field; and Nelson Liriano playing second base.

The starting pitcher was Henke, which spared him the trouble of any excess closing duties for the day. He was opposed by NBI Blues starter Robin Roy, who logged two scoreless frames and struck out McGriff and Fernandez along the way.

“I didn’t expect that,” the 19-year-old righty told Leader-Post reporter Rob Vanstone after the game.

“When Fernandez came up to bat, I looked at him and his stance and thought I was dreaming. It was a nice experience. And then I struck him out.”

Henke was followed by Tony Castillo and both pitchers struck out the side in their single innings of work. The Blues struck first in front of the crowd of 25,676 onlookers, scoring two runs on three hits in the third inning against Todd Stottlemyre.

The Blue Jays took the lead in the fifth inning when they scored six runs, and they added another pair of scores in the sixth frame. Catcher Bob Brenly paced the Jays with a two-run home run and Tom Lawless added a solo blast.

Greg Elliot responded in the bottom of the sixth inning with a three-run homer that was part of a five-run rally. The dimensions at Taylor Field – which included left-field fence that was only 230 feet from home plate – helped give both teams an offensive boost.

“It wasn’t much of a shot … it was the only homer I’ve hit all year, actually. I was just thinking base hit,” confessed Elliot.

“It would have been a routine fly ball anywhere else. I like this yard.”

When the game finally came to a close, the Blue Jays prevailed with an 8-7 victory. Wells was the winning pitcher and first base coach Mike Squires got the save for his scoreless seventh inning that sealed the contest.

BACK FOR MORE

The event went so well, despite the rain scare, that the Blue Jays decided to return to the provincial capital a few years later.

Gillick made the announcement in February of 1993 and promised the team would bring their regular lineup for an exhibition match against NBI that would take place in early May, following a game against the Chicago White Sox and ahead of a matchup versus the Texas Rangers.

The game was set for Monday, May 3 and tickets ranged in price from $10 to $25. In addition to a portion of funds supporting amateur baseball, revenues were also raised to assist the Saskatchewan Roughriders.

Adding to the appeal of the return visit was the fact the Blue Jays were the reigning World Series champions, having defeated the Atlanta Braves in the 1992 Fall Classic.

NBI General Manager Wayne Norton said the game would yet again be a highlight of the season for the Blues.

“Without a doubt,” he told the Leader-Post.

“To mix and mingle with the Blue Jays, to actually play them, is important to our guys. We always look forward to it, especially this year when they’re the World Series champions.”

When the Blue Jays arrived for the festivities, the majority of the regulars showed up, with the exception of two players. Juan Guzman was the starting pitcher for Toronto’s upcoming game against the Rangers, so he went straight to Arlington, Texas, and Joe Carter had personal business to attend to.

The home run derby returned to a more conventional setup. Instead of including celebrity batters, the contest pitted Blue Jays against Blues. The Jays won 13-7 and Roberto Alomar led all sluggers with four bombs. Darrin Jackson, Turner Ward and Ed Sprague all had three homers for Toronto, while Craig Horswell led the Blues with a trio of long balls.

Cito Gaston, the manager of the Blue Jays, held his breath when John Olerud was hit in the knee by a pitch in the third inning, but the first baseman suffered no long-term damage.

“I came into the locker room quickly and put some ice on my knee … hopefully that’ll keep the swelling down,” said Olerud.

The game itself was an extension of the homer-hitting competition. Batters took advantage of the option to use aluminum bats and the short porch in left (this time 240 feet from home plate), and the result was 12 home runs, including nine for the Blue Jays.

Darnell Coles led the charge with three blasts, while Luis Sojo added a pair in front of a crowd of 26,213 fans. Leon Carter, Chris Hofer and Aaron Guiel went yard for NBI, who jumped out to an early 5-0 lead before dropping the game by a 16-6 score.

“I wouldn’t want to be a pitcher and have to pitch in a park like this. It’s so shallow, I was playing deep shortstop. Most of those balls probably wouldn’t have got to the wall in the air (at Skydome),” said Toronto left fielder Turner Ward, who also recorded a home run.

Despite the lopsided result, the Blues were thrilled to share the field with the World Series champs.

“It’s just something to be able to play them,” said Ken Torrance, who played left field for NBI.

“These are the guys you see on TV, the Devon Whites and Roberto Alomars. We’re standing next to them and playing catch with them.”

The Toronto Blue Jays exhibition games in Regina were big news, as this front page of the Leader-Post sports section indicates.

Festival organizers were thrilled with the outcome.

“It’s a great success – we generated a lot of revenue for amateur baseball and for the Roughriders,” said Al Ford, the general manager of Saskatchewan’s CFL team.

“It’s a once-in-a-lifetime occasion.”

Gillick relished the chance to celebrate the Blue Jays.

“We want to promote ourselves as much as possible,” he told the Leader-Post.

“When we get the opportunity to play ball in front of people who don’t normally get that chance, we should take it … we want to let people know we’re involved in baseball in more than Toronto and southern Ontario. We feel like we go right across the country.”

Stottlemyre also spoke to the national reach of the team.

“We don’t feel like we’re just the Toronto Blue Jays but really all of Canada’s team,” said the righthander from Washington.

“It’s different than a team playing in New York or Los Angeles where a region or a city is behind you. We feel the whole country is behind this club.”

The Blue Jays must have felt that way even more when they won their second consecutive World Series title later that fall over the Philadelphia Phillies. There were undoubtedly a number of fans in Saskatchewan who celebrated that victory.