Fans of the Toronto Blue Jays are finding plenty to be excited about on Tuesday morning as they continue to look for clues that the hottest free agent in baseball history might be taking his talents north of the border.
According to The Athletic’s Ken Rosenthal, Shohei Ohtani and his camp are believed to have met with the Blue Jays for a tour of the team’s spring training complex in Dunedin, Florida on Monday.
“All day Monday, there were signs something was happening between the Jays and Ohtani,” wrote Rosenthal. “While a timetable for Ohtani’s free-agent decision is not known, the meeting would indicate that the negotiations with the Jays and other clubs are entering the final stages.”
Blue Jays General Manager Ross Atkins turned his scheduled in-person press gathering at MLB’s winter meetings in Nashville into a zoom meeting on Monday. When asked by reporters, Atkins would not shed any light on where he was, further fuelling speculation surrounding Toronto and baseball’s biggest free agent prize.
Blue Jays GM Ross Atkins met the media via Zoom and said very little. It’s never been more important to speak carefully. But what can we learn from reading between the lines on some of Atkins’ comments? @bnicholsonsmith has a look ⤵️ https://t.co/7HblI8I8n6
“In the eyes of some of the baseball people that I’ve spoken to here in Nashville, that suggests a pursuit of Shohei Ohtani is ongoing,” says Sportsnet’s Ben Nicholson-Smith, on Atkins absence in Nashville.
Reports have suggested Ohtani and his camp are putting a high value on privacy during their ongoing discussions with his suitors.
Nearly the entire baseball industry attends the annual winter meetings. Sportsnet’s Shi Davidi says he can only surmise that the Blue Jays GM not being there is tied to the teams’ pursuit of Ohtani.
“You have got to be careful because I think you can very easily try to read tea leaves, and interpret what you want to interpret,” he says. “(But) the Blue Jays are very clearly making this a tough choice for him.”
Clearly Ross Atkins was not in Nashville, meaning his absence had to be connected to the courtship process for Shohei Ohtani.
One logical guess is that he was still in Los Angeles. Another possibility is that he was back in Toronto. (@ShiDavidi) https://t.co/Pf9ttdiqaz
The Los Angeles Dodgers have long been considered the favourites to land the Japanese superstar, with the Chicago Cubs, San Francisco Giants, and the Los Angeles Angels (where Ohtani has spent his six MLB seasons) still considered by many to be in the running.
Pundits suggest his new contract will cost somewhere in the $500 million range and above.
A left-handed batter and a right-handed pitcher, Ohtani has been dubbed a “unicorn” of the sport due to his ability as both a hitter and a pitcher, something not seen since Babe Ruth more than 100 years ago.
Ohtani led the AL with 44 homers and hit .304 with 96 RBIs, eight triples and 20 stolen bases in a season at the plate that ended Sept. 3 because of an oblique injury.
He was 10-5 with a 3.14 ERA in 23 starts on the mound, striking out 167 and walking 55 in 132 innings before tearing the ulnar collateral ligament in his right elbow on Aug. 23.
VANCOUVER – The Vancouver Canucks announced Tuesday that defenceman Alex Edler will sign a one-day contract in order to officially retire as a member of the NHL team.
The signing will be part of a celebration of Edler’s career held Oct. 11 when the Canucks host the Philadelphia Flyers.
The Canucks selected Edler, from Ostersund, Sweden, in the third round (91st overall) of the 2004 NHL draft.
He played in 925 career games for the Canucks between the 2006-07 and 2020-21 seasons, ranking fourth in franchise history and first among defencemen.
The 38-year-old leads all Vancouver defencemen with 99 goals, 310 assists and 177 power-play points with the team.
Edler also appeared in 82 career post-season contests with Vancouver and was an integral part of the Canucks’ run to the 2011 Stanley Cup final, putting up 11 points (2-9-11) across 25 games.
“I am humbled and honoured to officially end my career and retire as a member of the Vancouver Canucks,” Edler said in a release. “I consider myself lucky to have started my career with such an outstanding organization, in this amazing city, with the best fans in the NHL. Finishing my NHL career where it all began is something very special for myself and my family.”
Edler played two seasons for Los Angeles in 2021-22 and 2022-23. He did not play in the NHL last season.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 17, 2024.
The sixth-ranked Canadian women will face World Cup champion Spain in an international friendly next month.
Third-ranked Spain will host Canada on Oct. 25 at Estadio Francisco de la Hera in Almendralejo.
The game will be the first for the Canadian women since the Paris Olympics, where they lost to Germany in a quarterfinal penalty shootout after coach Bev Priestman was sent home and later suspended for a year by FIFA over her part in Canada’s drone-spying scandal.
In announcing the Spain friendly, Canada Soccer said more information on the interim women’s coaching staff for the October window will come later. Assistant coach Andy Spence took charge of the team in Priestman’s absence at the Olympics.
Spain finished fourth in Paris, beaten 1-0 by Germany in the bronze-medal match.
Canada is winless in three previous meetings (0-2-1) with Spain, most recently losing 1-0 at the Arnold Clark Cup in England in February 2022.
The teams played to a scoreless draw in May 2019 in Logroñés, Spain in a warm-up for the 2019 World Cup. Spain won 1-0 in March 2019 at the Algarve Cup in São João da Venda, Portugal.
Spain is a powerhouse in the women’s game these days.
It won the FIFA U-20 World Cup in 2022 and was runner-up in 2018. And it ousted Canada 2-1 in the round of 16 of the current U-20 tournament earlier this month in Colombia before falling 1-0 to Japan after extra time in the quarterfinal.
Spain won the FIFA U-17 World Cup in 2018 and 2022 and has finished on the podium on three other occasions.
FC Barcelona’s Aitana Bonmati (2023) and Alexia Putellas (2021 and ’22) have combined to win the last three Women’s Ballon d’Or awards.
And Barcelona has won three of the last four UEFA Women’s Champions League titles.
“We continue to strive to diversify our opponent pool while maintaining a high level of competition.” Daniel Michelucci, Canada Soccer’s director of national team operations, said in a statement. “We anticipate a thrilling encounter, showcasing two of the world’s top-ranked teams.”
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This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 17, 2024
TORONTO – The Toronto Maple Leafs have announced cookie brand Oreo as the team’s helmet sponsor for the upcoming NHL season.
The new helmet will debut Sunday when Toronto opens its 2024-25 pre-season against the Ottawa Senators at Scotiabank Arena.
The Oreo logo replaces Canadian restaurant chain Pizza Pizza, which was the Leafs’ helmet sponsor last season.
Previously, social media platform TikTok sponsored Toronto starting in the 2021-22 regular season when the league began allowing teams to sell advertising space on helmets.
The Oreo cookie consists of two chocolate biscuits around a white icing filling and is often dipped in milk.
Fittingly, the Leafs wear the Dairy Farmers of Ontario’s “Milk” logo on their jerseys.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 17, 2024.
