THE SERIES AHEAD Oh Canada! Jays face 2008 World Series participants in back-to-back series.

Transcription

1 TORONTO BLUE JAYS MEDIA NEWSLETTER VOLUME 2009, ISSUE 7 READ ABOUT. BLUE JAYS BEAT THE SERIES AHEAD ALUMNI ANNOUNCEMENT COMMUNITY CORNER FOUNDATION FEATURES ROGERS CENTRE ROUNDUP BLUE JAYS BEAT Interleague Play was first introduced by MLB in As of the conclusion of the 2008 season, AL teams have a cumulative record against their NL foes. For the Blue Jays, Interleague Play has not been a welcome reprieve from the grinds of the toughest division in baseball. Prior to the start of the 2009 season, the Jays had a.479 winning percentage with a record. Swept by both Atlanta and Florida in the early part of the 2009 Interleague schedule, the Club reversed their fortunes by sweeping the reigning World Series Champion Philadelphia Phillies and posting a 4-2 record in their last two road series. Toronto s three-game sweep of the Philadelphia Phillies was just the second road sweep of at least three games recorded by Toronto in Interleague Play. The team also swept the Atlanta Braves in Interleague Play continues at Rogers Centre as the Cincinnati Reds, without Toronto native Joey Votto, and the Philadelphia Phillies come to town. The series against the Phillies will mark the return of Fredericton, NB native and one time Blue Jay Matt Stairs. THE SERIES AHEAD Oh Canada! Jays face 2008 World Series participants in back-to-back series. Tuesday, June 23 Messin with Recession Blue Jays vs. Cincinatti Reds (7:07 pm, SNet) Media Note: Toronto Star High School Baseball All-Star Recognition onfield pregame Wednesday, June 24 Wednesday s Wishes & Blue Jays Dreams Blue Jays vs. Cincinatti Reds (7:07 pm, TSN) Media Note: Pathways to Education recognition night on JCF Home Run Scholars Night (Executive Lounge) Paula Brancati, Degrassi, the Next Generation sings National Anthem Thursday, June 25 Ladies Night Out Blue Jays vs. Cincinatti Reds (7:07 pm, TSN) Media Note: 25 th Annual Lady Jays Food Drive kicks-off with Food Sort at Daily Bread Food Bank (11:00 a.m.)

2 Friday, June 26 Saturday, June 27 Sunday, June 28 Monday, June 29 Tuesday, June 30 Wednesday, July 1 Flashback Friday presented by THE FAN 590 and The Toronto Star Special Guest: Cliff Johnson ( ) Blue Jays vs. Philadelphia Phillies (7:07 pm, SNET) Media Note: Jays Care Foundation Live Broadcast Auction (in game) Jr. Jays Saturday Blue Jays vs. Philadelphia Phillies (1:07 pm, SNET) Italian Heritage Day Blue Jays vs. Philadelphia Phillies (1:07 pm, SNET) Giveaway: Active Green + Ross Blue Jays Cap (first 10,000 fans in attendance) Scottish Heritage Night Blue Jays vs. Tampa Bay Rays (7:07 pm, TSN) Blue Jays vs. Tampa Bay Rays (7:07 pm, TSN) Happy Birthday Canada! Blue Jays vs. Tampa Bay Rays (1:07 pm, SNET) Media Note: Hall of Fame pitcher Fergie Jenkins to throw out first pitch. Post-game fireworks and video performance On Call: Mal Romanin will be with the team on the final road trip before the 80 th All-Star Break. He can be reached via cell and at or mal.romanin@bluejays.com. >>>>Blue Jays 2009 July Schedule >>>>Blue Jays 2009 Giveaway Schedule ALUMNI ANNOUNCEMENT 15-year vet played in both Leagues Before the Toronto Blue Jays franchise took flight in 1977, Cliff Johnson was making a name for himself in the National League as a member of the Houston Astros ( ). Though it would be 11 seasons before he flew north of the border to join the Blue Jays as a designated hitter in 1983, he made the most of his time at the plate in four seasons in Toronto. An overall.258 batter, Johnson boasted a.273 batting average as a member of the Blue Jays collecting 202 RBI and 54 home runs on 321 hits. All figures represent career highs in those categories with any one team. Overall, Johnson played for seven teams and is a two-time World Series Champion with the New York Yankees in 1977 and He also holds the ML record for pinch hit home runs with 20. The record breaking 19 th home run was hit while a member of the Blue Jays on August 5, 1984 versus Baltimore s Tippy Martinez. He recorded his 20 th pinch hit home run on June 13, 1986 while facing Willie Hernandez and the Detroit Tigers as a member of the Blue Jays. Johnson will be at Rogers Centre on Friday, June 26 and will be signing autographs at section 117 from 5:45 p.m. 6:15 p.m. >>>Additional details (

3 COMMUNITY CORNER Lady Jays Celebrate Milestone of Giving Though happy to play a supporting role to their husband s Major League dreams, wives and partners of professional athletes are equally giving and committed to the communities they call home for half the calendar year. The Lady Jays are no exception. Involved in many philanthropic activities including the Hospital for Sick Children s Reading Program, the Ronald McDonald House Home for Dinner Program and Camp Erin, offered for the first time in 2009 in Toronto through the Jamie Moyer Foundation, the Lady Jays are committed to helping wherever possible. In 2009 they celebrate the 25 th Annual Lady Jays Food Drive in partnership with the Daily Bread Food Bank. An annual event hosted over the course of a weekend series at Rogers Centre, the Lady Jays collect non-perishable food items, as well as monetary donations, that benefit the Daily Bread Food Bank and the families that rely on this service. To kick off the 25 th anniversary, the Lady Jays will participate in a food sort on Thursday, June 25 at the Daily Bread Food Bank (191 New Toronto St) starting at approximately 11:00 a.m. In 2008, the annual Food Drive raised more than $23,000 and 3,400 lbs of food setting a new standard they hope to eclipse this season. This year s food drive will run July as the Jays resume play after the All-Star break taking on the Boston Red Sox. Media Note: media are able to attend the event and speak to Daily Bread Food Bank and Lady Jays spokespeople. Media are asked to contact the Blue Jays Communications Office at to arrange schedule and access. FOUNDATION FEATURES Communities, and youth in need, are a reality of most large multicultural cities. Toronto is no exception. Working hard to provide access to programs that foster positive choices in children, Jays Care Foundation (JCF) continues to partner with deserving organizations and programs for the betterment of these populations. Pathways to Education Canada, like JCF, are committed to bettering the lives of at-risk youth. Created to help reduce the high school dropout rate and increase access to post-secondary education among disadvantaged youth in Canada, Pathways began modestly in 2001 in Toronto s Regent Park Community. Since that time, they have made great strides in positively affecting the lives of students. In the Regent Park community, the drop-out rate has been reduced to 10% from 56% and postsecondary education enrolment has increased from 20% to 80%. Many of the 80% of students going on to post-secondary school educational programs are the first in their family to do so and thanks to a sense of accomplishment and support nurtured through Pathways, many are returning to their communities as productive adults and role models for other members of their families. The results are really driven because these kids now see an opportunity, they see a chance, commented Samuel Duboc, Pathways Board Chairman. That is why the partnership with the Jays Care Foundation is so important to us, because this gives us another avenue to show kids what is really possible.

4 In 2008, Pathways partnered with JCF to create the Home Run Scholars program which will see a total of $400,000 provided to Pathways students over the next four years, ensuring success stories will continue for years to come. Encouraged by the success and achievements experienced in the Regent Park Community, Pathways is also turning around the lives of at-risk youth in the Rexdale and Lawrence Heights communities. The four-year funding commitment ensures that students are given every opportunity to graduate from high school and have funds available for post-secondary education. On Wednesday, June 24, Jays Care Foundation is hosting a Home Run Scholars Night recognizing organizers and graduates from the Pathways to Education Program in the Executive Lounge. The participants, many of whom have never been to a live Blue Jays game, will have the chance to see their heroes in person as they take on the Cincinnati Reds at 7:07 p.m. Media Note: media are able to attend the event and speak to Jays Care Foundation and Pathways spokespeople and program graduates. Media are asked to contact the Blue Jays Communications Office at to arrange credentials and access. Jays Care Foundation takes over the airwaves After a successful Curve Ball gala on June 4, Jays Care Foundation is turning to the airwaves and all Blue Jays fans to continue their fundraising initiatives this year. For the first time in team history, the Foundation, with the support of Rogers Sportsnet, will host a live Broadcast Auction on Friday, June 26. Fans watching the game at home will have an opportunity to bid on six unique baseball themed packages ranging from a private practice experience with Blue Jays second baseman Aaron Hill to exclusive travel opportunities. >>>>Additional details ( ROGERS CENTRE ROUND-UP Famed Canadian artist Michael Snow still smiles when he approaches Rogers Centre and sees the cast of gold exuberant fans greet him with each step he takes. Imagined and created over 20 years ago, The Audience is a set of two original sculptural art installations placed on the northeast and northwest corners of the venue designed to extend the fan experience from inside the venue to outside. Three or four different locations were originally suggested for places that art could go, commented Snow recently during a visit to the ballpark. Those corners, as far as the plans went, were intended to be flat surfaces. I created the completely original idea of placing bleachers and fans in those locations to evaluate oncoming guests. Imagined originally as a one-dimensional art piece for the exterior of the venue, Snow saw great potential in making the design element more robust and bringing the spectator into contact with it from the moment they approached the venue. It is important, no matter the piece I am creating, to think about the location physically as a building as well as what goes on around it and inside it, said Snow.

5 After completing a sculptural piece for the National Gallery, Snow became interested in the idea of involving spectators, in a certain sense, into the art installation for Rogers Centre (then SkyDome). He came up with the idea of The Audience that would judge the oncoming guests as the guests would ultimately be judging the players on the field. The Audience uses a repertoire of many fan signs as they appraise the guests just as they will appraise the players themselves, shared Snow. Each member of The Audience is involved in a directed action toward the oncoming spectator. Depending on how one approaches the building, you may be caught in a fan s photograph, be waved at by a young child or even be sneered at if you are a fan of the opposing team. As a result of the animated nature of the characters that make up The Audience, Snow hopes that guests take the time to walk around and inspect the art pieces. As a three-dimensional creation, The Audience cannot be treated like a picture. Stand beside it. Stand underneath it. Stand in front of it. Stand far away from it. Depending on where you are standing the overall experience will be different. With other works such as the iconic geese, Flight Stop, at the Eaton Centre and his Walking Women sculpture which graced the 1967 Expo in Montreal, Snow is one of the most significant contemporary artists over the past 50 year.