From Fergie Jenkins to Joey Votto, throughout its history, MLB has had some incredible Canadian-born players. Some of these players have had the opportunity to play in their home country with the Blue Jays, so I’ve created a list of who I think the five best to ever do so are. I’ll be considering both peak and longevity when ranking these players, and the only criteria for being on this list is that you were born in Canada.
Jordan Romano
Originally a 10th round pick in the 2014 draft by the Blue Jays, the Markham, Ontario native took an unorthodox path to the majors, at one point even getting selected by the White Sox in the Rule 5 Draft and traded to the Texas Rangers before being sent back to Toronto.
Over the past two seasons though, Romano has become a shut-down reliever for the Jays and took over as the closer during this past season. In 2020 and 2021, Romano has just a 1.97 ERA over 77.2 innings pitched, and proven to be one of baseball’s top relievers, finishing second in MLB in win probability added in 2021 (per Stathead). Although he’s represented Italy in the World Baseball Classic, he’s still a Canadian citizen.
Provided by Stathead.com: View Stathead Tool Used