OTTAWA-Baseball Canada will host some of its most distinguished alumni, corporate partners and friends at the Northern Lights Ballroom inside the Renaissance Toronto Downtown Hotel this Saturday, January 9th for the 14th edition of the National Teams Awards Banquet and Fundraiser.
The evening, that serves as a very important fundraising source for Baseball Canada's Junior (18U) and Senior National Teams, will be emceed by Mike Wilner - host of The Blue Jays Talk on Sportsnet 590 THE FAN.
The National Teams Awards Banquet and Fundraiser will honour the accomplishments of alumni throughout the evening including Jeff Francis who will become the eighth inductee onto Baseball Canada's Wall of Excellence, presented by RBC Wealth Management.
Baseball Canada will present awards to 2015 National Team players Pete Orr (Senior National Team MVP), Rene Tosoni (Stubby Clapp Award), Tyler O’Neill (Special Recognition Award), Josh Naylor (Junior National Team MVP) and Andrew Yerzy (Canadian Futures Award), while National Team alumni Adam Loewen (Special Achievement Award) and Dalton Pompey (Alumni Award) will also be recognized.
A host of Canadian Major League Baseball players will be on-hand for the banquet including 2010 National League MVP Joey Votto along with 2015 All-Star Russell Martin and Michael Saunders from the reigning American League East winners, the Toronto Blue Jays. Other current and former pros attending include Paul Quantrill, Stubby Clapp, John Axford, Phillippe Aumont, Denis Boucher, Andrew Albers, Adam Stern, Jamie Romak and Chris Robinson.
Longtime National Team Manager and former Blue Jay Ernie Whitt will be in attendance along with former National Team Coach and current Blue Jays First Base Coach Tim Leiper.
Baseball Hall of Famer Roberto Alomar leads a contingent of former Blue Jays attending that includes Duane Ward, Devon White, Candy Maldonado, Rance Mulliniks and Buck Martinez.
In addition to the awards presentation, cocktail hour and formal dinner, the evening will feature many interactive opportunities with the stars and an extensive auction of sports memorabilia and sport event packages.
There will be a pre-banquet press conference covered by Sportsnet and TSN beginning at 3:30pm ET, Saturday, January 9th, in the Aurora Room of the Renaissance Toronto Hotel at Rogers Centre (Aurora Room is adjacent to the Northern Lights Ballroom).
For media interested in covering the press conference, please contact Adam Morissette, Coordinator of Media & Public Relations, via e-mail at media@baseball.ca
For more information concerning the banquet, please contact Greg Hamilton, Coach and Director of National Teams, via e-mail at ghamilton@baseball.ca
*Please note, for those attending the banquet, there is no ticket required. Please visit the registration table upon arrival at the Northern Lights Ballroom prior to the Cocktail hour (6pm) to check-in.
2016 Baseball Canada National Teams Awards Banquet and Fundraiser Program
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