Before the Blue Jays: Professional Baseball in Toronto Prior to 1977

by Harvey Sahker

Step up to the plate and discover the fascinating history of professional baseball in Toronto.

Did you know that Babe Ruth, who hit his only minor league home run at Hanlan’s Point in 1914, homered several times in Toronto as a member of the New York Yankees? Or that in the same year, the city was home to not one but two professional baseball teams ― the Maple Leafs and the Beavers? How about that Toronto hosted a regular season big-league game in 1932 or that in 1943, the city’s own All-American Girls Professional Baseball League player, Gladys Davis, made history as the league’s first batting champion?

In this captivating journey through Toronto’s rich baseball past, you’ll dive into these and other events, learning about the city’s professional baseball scene and trailblazers before its major league team launched in 1977.

Genres: Baseball, History

312 pages, Paperback

Published February 24, 2026

Reviews

[Paul Sutter]

Contrary to popular belief for some, there was baseball in Canada before the Toronto Blue Jays took the field that snowy day back in 1977, at the old Exhibition Stadium. It might not have been the best of weather, but they evolved into the best of teams, winning the World Series twice and almost again in 2025.
You could say many throughout history paved the way for that day, and in the book BEFORE THE BLUE JAYS, noted baseball writer Harvey Sahker, gives readers a most fascinating journey into the evolution of baseball in Canada. It is a true treat for fans of the sport, and anyone reading it will come away with a massive amount of baseball knowledge.
He tells us that professional baseball teams first played in Canada during the 1870’s, and Toronto even got its first what could be considered a professional team in 1885. There was various stadiums used for baseball, some not truly the best of locations, but they served their purpose for its time. One of the most interesting was known as the Motordome. It was called that because it was mainly used for motorcycle and bicycle racing. It was Greenwood Avenue north of Queen Street East. It became the home stadium of a team called the Toronto Beavers who played in the Class B Canadian League. Some of the games eventually had to be played elsewhere, because of the condition of the track.
Island Stadium became the place the Beavers played as the home team. Babe Ruth was in town in 1914, and when in the minor leagues hit a home run at the Island Stadium. There was also the rumor that in that year, he hit a homer so far it went out of the ballpark and into Lake Ontario. Fact or not, it makes for fascinating Canadian baseball lore. He hit another in 1921, playing with the New York Yankees who were victors over the Toronto Maple Leafs baseball team. It was just exhibition, but another big time star Ty Cobb, hit a homer for Detroit in a 1924 game.
Sahker also tells the story of other important moments in baseball history, including African American players, and teams from the Negro Leagues playing regular games at Maple Leaf Stadium. It brought thousands of fans to see baseball on such a higher level. There is so much more in the book including the All Ugly Club, a team where bad looks counted as much as talent. There isn’t a page in the book that does not present an important aspect of baseball in Canada, all of this eventually leading to the arrival of the Blue Jays into the American League. This book definitely hits a home run every step of the way.

[The Master · Rating 5 out of 5]

When it comes to the history of baseball in Toronto prior to the arrival of the Blue Jays, there is a dearth of published material. This book fills in some gaps.

Before the Blue Jays is an exhaustively researched book. Over one hundred and forty years of baseball history are presented in a kaleidoscopic format. The chapters are organized thematically, not chronologically, so every page could surprise you. The book contains great info on the lost ballparks of Toronto, legends of the game who passed through the city, and anecdotes from people affiliated with the minor league Toronto Maple Leafs.

A large portion of the book is dedicated to mini biographical sketches of players who either came from or played in Toronto over the years. These are people whose no hitters, championships and amusing exploits have been rescued from the mists of time by Sahker.

[Michael · Rating 2 out of 5]

There is an interesting book buried in here, and the author has clearly spent a substantial time researching, but it's unfortunately mostly lost due to almost a complete lack of writing voice and any kind of coherent framing. It is separated into eight sections, some of which go on interminably, some seemingly short, and one in particular just filled with interviews with people that are almost all quotes with little connective tissue. When there's just a bunch of names and stats and little tying them all together, it adds up to a book that unfortunately doesn't stick in the mind much at all. If anything, I would have loved to see more of the last section, which had stories about some less savoury Torontonian baseball people. That was the kind of colour that was missed everywhere else.

[Jessa · Rating 2 out of 5]

I was so excited to read this book. And you can tell so much time and research was put into this but omg there was no narrative voice reading this was like a monotone annoying man just listing facts at me. How it was broken up was confusing. There was no narrative direction or like story woven through. I kept getting confused what year we were talking about because we jumped around so much