Baseball Canada | Canadians in the Playoffs

October 02, 2007

Canadians in the Playoffs

The Major League Baseball regular season has come to a close and there are three Canadians who are continuing on for a chance to compete for a World Series title.

After winning 14 of their last 15 games, the Colorado Rockies clinched the National League Wild Card and will take on the Philadelphia Phillies in the League Division Series and Jeff Francis of Vancouver, B.C. will be on the mound for game one for the Rockies.

The left-handed pitcher who is continually establishing himself as the ace of the Rockies staff posted a 17-9 mark this season with a 4.22 ERA in 34 games. He threw 215.1 innings, striking out 165 batters to only 63 walks. This marks the first time in Francis’ Major League career that he will participate in the playoffs.

Ryan Dempster of Gibsons, B.C. will also be in the playoffs for the first time in his Major League career. The Chicago Cubs pitcher posted a 2-7 record with a 4.73 ERA and 28 saves this season. The Cubs take on the Arizona Diamondbacks in the National League Division Series.

A trade from the Texas Rangers to the Boston Red Sox helped Eric Gagné of Mascouche, Québec reach the playoffs for the second time in his Major League career, the previous time coming with the Los Angeles Dodgers in 2004. Gagné put together a 4-2 mark with a 3.81 ERA and 16 saves this season between the Rangers and Red Sox.

RBC Wealth Management

As a leader in supporting amateur sport in Canada, RBC is committed to helping athletes succeed in their chosen sport . As a partner with Baseball Canada’s National Teams program, RBC’s Sports Professionals Team of retired athletes, top advisors and specialists in key markets around the globe help our athletes and their family’s define and execute investment strategies which are both personalized and customized to the life cycle of the professional athlete. For more information on the RBC Sports Professionals Team, or to set up an appointment, visit http://www.rbcinvestments.com/private-banking/sports-professionals.html

More Partners +

What is LTAD?

Long Term Athlete Development (LTAD) is a systemic approach being developed and adopted by Baseball Canada to maximize a participant's potential and involvement in our sport. The LTAD framework aims to define optimal training, competition and recovery throughout an athlete's career to enable him / her to reach his / her full potential in baseball and as an athlete.