It’s a Sunday afternoon in July at Christie Pits Park. Standing near the baseball diamond, Alan Ross leans back and casts his gaze around the field. “I want you to make a note that I’m doing this under protest,” he says with tongue in cheek, in response to a request for an interview. “I’m not an interesting person.” Baseball fans at the Pits would beg to differ. To many, “Al the Ticket Man,” is a living legend.

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An interview with Toronto Maple Leafs’ player-manager A recent ESPN column declared that “parts of baseball are disappearing before our very eyes”. Any grump would happily tell you that every play of the game is becoming dominated — ruined even! — by analytics and probabilities, guiding Major League Baseball (MLB) managers towards risk-averse decision-making. Aggression […]

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Eliminated from 2017 playoffs after stunning first round defeat By R.S. Konjek “Who are these guys anyway?” It is a question often heard on summer Sunday afternoons at Christie Pits. Those nine men on the field, the ones in the blue uniforms emblazoned with maple leaf logos, are they professional ballplayers? Amateurs? Part-timers? Compared to […]

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A Toronto baseball institution for over a century By R.S. Konjek In some quarters of Toronto, this year’s Canada Day celebrations were a time of spirited debate. People argued whether a giant rubber ducky on the lakeshore was a whimsical tourism boon or an outrageous financial boondoggle. Some wondered what a rubber duck had to […]

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Local nine look to take next step to winning championship By R.S. Konjek It’s a casual April evening at Christie Pits Park. A handful of locals play a pickup soccer game on one of the fields. An occasional runner pounds up the slopes near the baseball diamonds. Walkers amble past, many of them joined by […]

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Fans celebrate another up-and-down season By R.S. Konjek Baseball won’t be rushed. It is a pastime to be sipped and savoured. The game will outlast all manner of hindrances en route to its conclusion — be it a rainstorm, a tie score, or a lopsided blowout demanding a show of mercy. With few exceptions, the […]

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PHOTO BY R.S. KONJEK: Jon Waltenbury patrols the outfield at Christie Pits during the Toronto Maple Leafs’ game against the Brantford Red Sox on May 22. Waltenbury’s three-run homer put the Leafs ahead for good, and ensured an 8-6 victory. R. S. Konjek summarizes a month of Maple Leafs in his baseball column.

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PHOTO COURTESY OF DAN HAMILTON/VANTAGE POINT STUDIOS: Toronto Maple Leafs baseball returned to Dominico Field at Christie Pits with a bang on May 8. First baseman Jon Waltenbury blasted one of the Leafs’ four home runs on opening day, powering the club to a 13 to 2 victory over the Guelph Royals. Next game is […]

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