Canadian Crossing

Vancouver Whitecaps first MLS Canadian team to make playoffs

When the Vancouver Whitecaps went a dismal 6-18-10 in its first MLS season in 2011, the idea of making the playoffs in year 2 was beyond dreams. Well, you can pinch yourself because the Whitecaps are the first Canadian-based team to make the MLS playoffs.

Vancouver travels to the L.A. Galaxy for the Western Conference play-in game Thursday at 10:30 pm Eastern on the NBC Sports Network and TSN. U.S. viewers get a double dose of Canada on the channel since both NBC Sports Network and TSN will also carry Hamilton at Toronto. Unlike the CFL game, NBC Sports Network will bring its own crew to cover the playoff game.

The Whitecaps record isn't that much better than last year, a below .500 mark at 11-13-10, but Vancouver's 43 points were 4 points better than FC Dallas.

The winner of the play-in round gets a home-and-home with the San Jose Earthquakes. Just like the Canucks-Sharks. So this makes Canucks-Kings for tomorrow night. Okay, not really, but you got to pretend. This hockey withdrawal is driving me crazy. Look! I'm writing about soccer playoffs.

The Whitecaps only scored 10 goals on the road this season, by far the worst of the playoff teams. If the Whitecaps make it past the Galaxy, they will get a home game at B.C. Place Stadium. Vancouver usually blocks off the top deck at B.C. Place, but it would be nice to see the Whitecaps draw enough fans to open up the whole stadium and show that off on U.S. television.

The fact that Canadian teams have been shut out of the playoffs has hurt their impression within the league and on TV in both countries. The Vancouver squad has enough pressure without feeling like the team has to play for an entire country.

Toronto FC has been around for awhile, and hasn't done well in a while. Toronto has hosted the MLS Championship yet hasn't come close to the playoffs. The Montréal Impact finished its first season 7th in a 10-team Eastern Conference with 42 points. Toronto FC was last with 23 points.

If Vancouver survives, the Whitecaps travel to San Jose on November 4 for the first leg in the conference semifinal. That game will air on ESPN and TSN2. The MLS Cup 2012 will be December 1.

The Whitecaps shared tenant at B.C. Place, the CFL Lions, will host the Western Division final on November 18. The chances of the Whitecaps playing that late in the MLS Playoffs is slim. But at least, the Whitecaps can say they were in the playoffs.

photo credit: Les Bazso, PNG

CFL notebook: Justin Bieber, Carly Rae Jepsen headline Grey Cup halftime

Justin Bieber. Carly Rae Jepsen. The Grey Cup may be turning 100, but the combined ages of the top two headliners is only 4 years older than Montréal starting QB Anthony Calvillo.

Marianas Trench is an up and coming pop-rock band. And for the older viewers, the legendary Gordon Lightfoot (ask your parents) will also be a part of the halftime show.

Burton Cummings (Guess Who) leads off the kickoff show along with Johnny Reid.

Rush, Barenaked Ladies (with a reunion with Steven Page), Tragically Hip, Loverboy, Triumph, Anne Murray — these artists might have made more sense to honor Canada in the 100th Grey Cup. Bieber and Jepsen are very popular in a demo outside where most CFL fans live, but for attracting Canadians to watch, they are two very big names in Canadian music.

We know that TSN will show all of the kickoff show as well as the halftime show. NBC Sports Network should carry the halftime program, but hopefully Americans can also get a dose of Cummings and Reid.

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TSN has mixed up the chemistry of its announcing teams this year. Duane Forde normally works with Rod Black, worked with Chris Cuthbert during the Olympics, and has recently matched up with Gord Miller.

Black had the weekend off and so Miller and Forde did two games this past weekend. In following the Toronto-Saskatchewan game via Watch ESPN, I really enjoyed Miller's play-by-play. The two have a nice chemistry together, even cracking a few jokes.

This could also be because I miss Gord Miller on hockey telecasts so this is the only time I get to hear him. Black has his own style, but Miller is very solid and a lot warmer in the booth.

I still miss Mark Lee and Chris Walby from their days doing the CFL on CBC. Miller and Forde are the closest team TSN has to Lee and Walby, and they don't normally work together.

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Hamilton said goodbye to Ivor Wynne Stadium Saturday afternoon. Chris Cuthbert and Glen Suitor did a fine job (again via Watch ESPN) in telling the history of the long-time stadium. I'm very glad to have my own history having been at the stadium for the Labour Day Classic in 2010.

The Tiger-Cats lost a few close games with an advantage of having a racuous home crowd. Next year, Hamilton will play 9 "home" games in 2014 with no clear place to go. Playing elsewhere in Hamilton isn't an option.

Moncton, NB should see some home games. Other considerations include London (?), Rogers Centre (subject to availability), Toronto's Varsity Stadium (?), Olympic Stadium in Montréal, and U.S. destinations such as Ford Field in Detroit and Ralph Wilson Stadium in Buffalo.

How difficult is it to find an available stadium in Southern Ontario that can fill 20,000-25,000?

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Toronto can lose on Thursday and still host the East semifinal with a 8-10 record. Hamilton hopes to get in at 7-11. Edmonton could get into the playoffs with a 8-10 record or a 7-11 record.

This does not showcase the CFL in a great light, but the main problem is only having 8 teams. B.C., Montréal, and Calgary have been the class of the league. On the flip side, Hamilton and Winnipeg at 5-11 played for a chance to still make the playoffs with two games left in the season. The division semifinals should eliminate the really bad teams. If not, Montréal and B.C. might be headed back to the Grey Cup.

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As for the Watch ESPN feeds, a lot depends on the signal strength. When the signal is strong, the watching experience can come close to "normal" or at least 1980s normal (no replays, no way to pause the game). When the signal is weak, the picture looks like you are watching the CFL as a watercolor painting. Thank goodness the playoffs are simulcast on the NBC Sports Network.

CFL Canadian players shine with two 1,000 yard runners

While the CFL is all about Canadian football, very few of the stars are actually Canadian. The CFL requires a specific amount of "Canadian content" on its rosters. Usually, those players are on the offensive line or on defense. Rarely do you find CFL offensive stars who are Canadian players; the league specifically discourages the use of non-Canadian QBs.

Calgary and B.C. have their own arguments for having Canadian stars as their star running backs are both over 1,000 yards — and both Canadian.

Jon Cornish (Calgary) became the 8th Canadian in CFL history to go over 1,000 yards followed by Andrew Harris (B.C.) as the 9th Canadian. Jerome Messam (Edmonton) went over 1,000 yards in 2011. Before that, you have to go back to Sean Millington (B.C.) in 2000.

Orville Lee reached the mark for Ottawa in 1988, the only Canadian RB to reach that plateau from 1965-1999. Ron Stewart (Ottawa-1960) and Bob Swift (B.C.-1964) also did it once.

Norm Kwong (Edmonton) reached the 1,000 mark four years in a row from 1955-1958. Gerry James (Winnipeg) made the 1,000 mark in 1955 and 1957 and also played for the Toronto Maple Leafs at the same time.

Ben Cahoon was always one of the best Canadian players when he was a wide receiver for the Montréal Alouettes. Mike Vanderjagt was a kicker in both the CFL and the NFL. If there were more Canadian stars back then, you didn't hear much about them. I know Millington more from being on the CBC studio panel back when the network carried the CFL.

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Hamilton and Winnipeg at 5-11 have slim shots of making the CFL playoffs. Hamilton has a path to host the CFL East semifinal at 7-11. 5 teams enter the weekend having a shot to play in the CFL East semifinal, and there are only 8 teams. Montréal and B.C. — division winners — and Calgary are guaranteed not to play in the CFL East semifinal. Parity? Disturbing? Absolutely.

Toronto takes some of the blame, since the Argonauts are in the driver's seat at 7-9 to be the host. A Toronto win over Saskatchewan ruins the dreams of the winner of the Tiger-Cats vs. Blue Bombers game. A Toronto loss with a Hamilton win would make next week's Battle of Ontario (TSN & NBC Sports Network) the most exciting 7-10/6-11 matchup in any sport at any time.

Saskatchewan has clinched a playoff spot, though the Roughriders aren't guaranteed the West slot at Calgary. Edmonton/Saskatchewan has to have a better record than either Hamilton or Winnipeg to be the East representative; one more Esks win guarantees them a trip somewhere.

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If the Argos win either of the next two games, the West semifinal in Calgary will be the only outdoors postseason CFL game in 2012. B.C. Place and Olympic Stadium will host the division finals and the Grey Cup will be at Rogers Centre in Toronto.

Watching the snow in Calgary last week made for an exciting game, but a team might not want its season hanging in the balance based on snow and ice. Still, this is Canada and bad weather hits even in the fall.

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At a crucial moment in the CFL season, we have 0 games on U.S. TV this week. B.C. and Calgary battle on Friday Night Football in a matchup of teams realizing they will likely face each other in a few weeks. Mike Reilly will likely be at QB for the Lions, replacing the injured Travis Lulay. The injury snapped Lulay's streak of consecutive games with a TD pass.

The Winnipeg-Hamilton game is the last regular-season game ever at Ivor Wynne Stadium. The Tiger-Cats have a path to hosting the East semifinal, but that requires a Toronto loss to the Roughriders, a Hamilton win over Winnipeg, and the Tiger-Cats beating Toronto last week. Maybe it won't be the last game ever at the stadium.

The Saturday afternoon doubleheader finishes up with Toronto at Saskatchewan. Edmonton hopes to clinch a playoff spot at Montréal Sunday afternoon. The Alouettes have nothing to play for, except getting ready for the postseason.

photos credit: CFL

Boston takes back John Farrell; next Blue Jays manager has to love Toronto

John Farrell has finally been reunited with his heart in Boston, and the roller coaster ride that is the Toronto Blue Jays keeps adding new twists and turns.

Releasing a manager under contract is pretty rare, but Farrell's attachment to Boston made keeping him rather difficult. Making matters worse is the battle of the haves vs. have-nots that divide MLB.

Boston is one of the glory teams in the eyes of MLB and the media that cover the sport. Always on ESPN and MLB Network, the Red Sox became even bigger after winning a couple of World Series in the 21st century after breaking an 86-year string. Toronto is the only team that Fox wouldn't carry in its MLB coverage.

So with Boston wanting something (someone?) it felt like it should have had all along, Boston was going to get what it wanted.

Toronto did receive compensation for the loss of Farrell in the form of infielder Mike Aviles. Adding an extra insult, and because the rules now require this, Toronto gave up right-handed pitcher David Carpenter. By contrast, the Chicago White Sox received two minor-leaguers as compensation for the loss of manager Ozzie Guillen and Seattle got outfielder Randy Winn from Tampa Bay for manager Lou Pinella in 2002.

So the Blue Jays get a serviceable infielder — with the worst OBP of any AL starter in 2012, and gave up a relief pitcher and a manager. Advantage: Red Sox.

The scenario is even worse because Boston and Farrell had made love eyes at each other for the last year or so. When a team does that, they call it tampering. If nothing else, the Sox should have thrown in a decent/good minor league prospect.

The Toronto Blue Jays are better off without Farrell, but being one of the MLB have-nots means fighting harder for basic respect. The Blue Jays lost Farrell without much of a fight, and the U.S. media saw Farrell as being Boston property even while wearing a Toronto uniform.

The next Toronto manager better have his heart in Toronto. The grass is plenty green in Canada, too.

photo credit: ESPN

Canada ignored in U.S. foreign policy presidential debate

Canada is the United States largest trading partner. The economy is a major issue in the U.S. race, though this was the foreign policy debate, both President Barack Obama and Gov. Mitt Romney brought up multiple economic talking points.

Yet, Canada wasn't mentioned once.

Romney did refer to being North America energy independent, which really means getting oil from Canada. The Keystone XL pipeline did not come up. The Obama Administration has approved the southern half of the pipeline, though the northern route has to be adjusted in Nebraska due to environmental concerns.

Every major independent trusted source says the Keystone XL pipeline will go through next year, regardless of which person is the U.S. president.

Of course, the United States and Canada has plenty of pipelines already going through bringing oil to the U.S.

Mexico was ignored, unless Romney means Mexico in talking about Latin America. Europe was a forgotten continent Monday night.

While Romney referred to Canada, he couldn't say the word Canada. Obama concured, but again, couldn't say Canada.

Bob Schieffer ran a discussion on Middle East and domestic policy in a foreign policy debate. We get very little mainstream coverage in the United States about its relationship with other countries, especially one so important in the day-to-day lives of "Americans."

Canada matters to the United States, even if Bob Schieffer, Barack Obama, and Mitt Romney can't talk about that out loud. More Americans need to be aware how significant Canada is in their lives.

The Globe and Mail goes behind a paywall, reducing its impact on those curious about Canada

Those who follow the Twitter feed know that I do post a lot of links from The Globe and Mail. Besides being Canada's national newspaper, The Globe and Mail has an approach to stories that are better suited for an audience that is trying to learn more about Canada.

Well, that landscape has changed starting today as The Globe and Mail is going to a paywall starting today.

The terms are pretty harsh: you get 10 articles a month. If you choose to subscribe, you have to pay $19.99/month after getting a 1-month trial for 99¢. If you can subscribe to the weekend edition, you still have to pay $4.99/month. Only those with a 5- or 6-day subscription will get free, unlimited access.

$4.99/month would have spoken to a more viable option, especially for those who don't live in Canada.

If I lived in Toronto or elsewhere in Canada, I would be a subscriber to The Globe and Mail. But I don't and so I can't. I can understand the desire for getting more money from Canadians for its content, since Canadians could choose to subscribe. But if you live in Paris or London or New York or Stockholm, you want to read the news of Canada even if you can't subscribe.

Since the Internet responds to ISP addresses, The Globe and Mail could interact a paywall that only responds to Canadian ISPs. After all, the ads on the Web site don't realistically apply to those outside Canada.

The difficulty with other news sources is that the newspaper landscape in Canada is rather sad. The majority of newspapers in major Canadian cities are owned by Postmedia Network, an organization spun off from Canwest. The network is as weak as it is extensive, with few decisions, especially on national news, being made in those local cities.

Besides the right-wing dominant National Post, these major papers are part of the Postmedia Network: Calgary Herald, Edmonton Journal, The (Montréal) Gazette, Regina Leader-Post, Ottawa Citizen, The StarPhoenix (Saskatoon, SK), Windsor Star, and both daily Vancouver newspapers, the Vancouver Sun and The Province.

And Postmedia has launched paywalls at some of its newspapers. At least with The Globe and Mail, you get more articles you might want to pay for having.

They bring a point of view that is more about cost savings than strong journalism. If you think this is about political philosophy, The Globe and Mail is pretty conservative. For those who think The New York Times or to a lesser extent, The Washington Post, are liberal, Canada doesn't have that philosophical equivalent.

The U.S. has USA Today, plus NYT and WP, as papers that serve a broad national interest. When The New York Times put up its paywall, you could turn to The Washington Post. There is no such alternative on the Canadian newspaper landscape. The National Post is national, but certainly not straight ahead in its coverage.

As a reader, I turn to The New York Times less often as a new source as a result of the paywall, even if you can find ways to get around paywalls. This is my greatest fear for The Globe and Mail.

The newspaper does point out that "readers who find stories through social media sites such as Twitter and Facebook as well as search engines and blogs won't have those stories count against their monthly cap." For those that are savvy enough to do so, they can still tune in. For others, they may drop out.

In a follow-up article, The Globe and Mail spelled it out in a way that leads us to wonder what is covered.

"The Globe and Mail homepage and all section pages — such as Business, Life, Sports and Commentary — will not count against the meter. You can visit and view those pages as many times as you like."

Since the count is reset at the end of the month, you will get 10 days to experiment at the end of October. Hopefully, the newspaper will give you a heads-up. Still the idea of counting to 10 articles in 30 days with $20 at stake is the opposite tone you want when people are looking for news and information. We'll follow up to see how the new system will work.

The good news is that those who pick up the Twitter feed (@canadian_xing) can read those links without worry about the cap. The bad news for me is getting that info to my readers.

In the Twitter feed, we'll be adding more content from CBC News, the Toronto Star, Huffington Post Canada and other sources where we can find similar stories. In other instances, we will just draw attention to the story. Sometimes, The Globe and Mail will be the only source and we will have to proceed accordingly.

Reading about Canada from strong journalism sources is the best way to keep abreast of what is going on up north. The Globe and Mail paywall makes that a lot more difficult to do. Stick with CanadianCrossing.com and we'll make it work somehow. Our curiosity will still be vibrant, even if our choices are now more limited.

photo credit

Canada-only temptation: Pizza Hut Hot Dog Stuffed Crust Pizza

Fridays on our sister blog, BalanceofFood.com, we run a segment called Temptation of the Week. Well, this week's temptation can only be found north of the border. For a limited time until November 25, Canadians can order the Pizza Hut Hot Dog Stuffed Crust Pizza; Americans can't.

Will Americans cross the border for the sole purpose of eating this new fast food monstrosity?

Canadian customs official: What is your purpose for entering Canada?
You: To find a Pizza Hut and eat the new Pizza Hut Hot Dog Stuffed Crust Pizza.
Canadian customs official: How long do you plan to stay in Canada?
You: I don't know how long it will take me to eat this pizza. Plus you have to factor in how long it takes to cook.

Chances are low that Americans will invade Canada for hot dog stuffed crust pizza. Since this pizza is hitting Canada, coming to the United States can't be far behind. Besides, with the exchange rate, Americans wouldn't get much value unless they had to have it right now.

For more on this Canada-only fast food pizza, check out this column from our sister blog, BalanceofFood.com.

photo credits: Pizza Hut, Huffington Post Canada

Upside down Canada flag in 1992 World Series marks 20 year anniversary

We saw several long streaks go by in this year's MLB playoffs. Baltimore returned to the playoffs for the first time in 16 years. Cincinnati won its first playoff game in 17 years. Washington went to the postseason for the first time since FDR's first year in office (1933).

Canadian baseball fans know the Toronto Blue Jays now have a 19-year streak of not making the playoffs. What is even more shocking — and younger readers may not know this — the Toronto Blue Jays actually won back-to-back World Series in 1992 and 1993.

On this day in 1992, the idea of Canada being in the World Series was brand spanking new. The World Series hadn't even made it to Canadian soil when before Game 2, the U.S. Marine Corps Color Guard accidentally flew the Canadian flag upside down.

As the story goes, the U.S. Marine Corps Color Guard received the Canadian flag at the last minute, and didn't realize what had happened until it was too late.

"The Canadian flag has a leaf, and the points of the leaf go right side up. Why would the points of the leaf ever go upside down?"

That was my reaction back in 1992, and I'm not Canadian.

The reaction from the American side was conciliatory. President George H.W. Bush apologized to Canadians, assuring them that "we would do nothing to hurt the national flag of Canada."

"They have respect for our flag, and we have respect for theirs. They are a great people, and I hope they come in second in the World Series."

Vendors responded by trying to profit by producing T-shirts and upside-down American flags.

So what happened in Game 3, the first World Series game on Canadian soil?

The U.S. Marines carried the Canadian flag (right side up) and the Royal Canadian Mounted Police carried the U.S. flag. The Toronto crowd sang the U.S. national anthem louder than it was sung in Atlanta and on "land of the free," the crowd cheered even louder.

Classy, but you would expect that from Canadians. At numerous sporting events on the Canadian side of the border, you usually hear the U.S. anthem sung louder than the Canadian anthem on the U.S. side.

Baseball deputy commissioner Steve Greenberg received a fax (remember faxes) of Canada's flag with the word "TOP" across the top of the page. Since we are acknowledging mistakes, Canadian singer/guitarist Tom Cochrane inserted an incorrect version of an old lyric to O Canada at the start of Game 2. Maybe he was thrown off by the upside down flag.

Canada has been a part of MLB since 1969. For a variety of reasons, Canadian teams haven't had much success in making the playoffs. The Montréal Expos had only the ill-fated strike season of 1981. The Blue Jays made 5 appearances in a 9-year span, but none since.

The anger from the incident stems from some of the lack of playoff success, some from animosity about Canada possibly winning the World Series (like when the U.S teams started to dominate the Stanley Cup), and some about overall disrespect about Canada by the United States.

These days, Fox blows off the Canadian national anthem during All-Star Game coverage as if the country doesn't exist. We have seen Canada's invisibility in hockey coverage, too. If Montréal were still in the league and treated with decent respect (yes, we're looking at you Bud Selig and Jeffrey Loria) and both Canadian teams were doing better on the field, we might see better treatment of Canada by MLB. Then again, we wouldn't hold our breath.

What happened 20 years ago today probably was a sincere accident. But the incident revived feelings and emotions that simmer on the surface. The fact that Canada exhibited grace and the United States showed remorse is a beautiful sign of how these countries should react. The fact that these feelings existed and are still there remind us that these countries shouldn't take each other for granted.

photo credit

Dalton McGuinty resigns as Ontario premier; what's next for Ontario, McGuinty?

Canada has 10 provinces, but Ontario is the largest province and the most influential province on the United States. So when Dalton McGuinty suddenly resigns as Ontario's premier, people pay a bit more attention on both sides of the border.

Ontario shares four of the five Great Lakes, and its land stretches from as far west as Minnesota to as far east as New York state. You might remember the Ontario ads that ran during the Vancouver Winter Olympics in 2010, promoting the fact that "Ontario's combined federal/provincial corporate income tax rate is lower than the average combined federal/state rate in the U.S." I noted two other advantages for business investment: education and health care costs.

McGuinty was the longest-serving premier in Canada at 9 years. The premier also prorogued Parliament, so the legislature won't meet until a new premier is sworn into office.

While going from governor to president is relatively easy in the U.S. political system, Canada does not have that provincial-federal connection. Yes, Bob Rae is the current Liberal Party leader and served as premier of Ontario while a member of the NDP. But a premier getting to be prime minister?

If Dalton McGuinty wants someday to be the prime minister, he will have to look very far back to find a role model. The only two prime ministers who served as a provincial premier were in the late 19th century.

Charles Tupper served 69 days as prime minister from May 1 until July 8 in 1896. Tupper had served as premier of Nova Scotia from 1864 to 1867. John Thompson is one of two prime ministers to die in office. Thompson served 2 years and a week from December 5, 1892 until December 12, 1894. Thompson also was premier of of Nova Scotia in 1882.

In the last provincial election this year, McGuinty went from a majority government to a minority government. So being head of a minority government could have a been a sign for a change. Even with the new Liberal premier, looks like Ontario will get another provincial election rather soon, but not until 2013.

McGuinty is 57 years old. If he wants to pursue the federal leadership post, McGuinty will get serious consideration. But he has a long road to travel to even get to be the leader. He offers no federal experience, though being Ontario's premier is a better job toward that goal than being in charge of Nova Scotia.

Perhaps the speculation is completely off-base. Maybe McGuinty knew this was time to start the next chapter not just for him but Ontario Liberals. The only thing we know for sure is that there will be much more to come on this story, both for Ontario and McGuinty.

photo credit: Fred Chartrand/The Canadian Press

MLB notebook: Canada in 2012 MLB postseason

We skipped the MLB postseason preview for the first round of the MLB playoffs, mostly because more interesting stuff was going on. Since the MLB playoffs go on forever, we still have plenty of time left.

-- Detroit is the closest MLB franchise to Canada. The downtown stadium is a short walk to the shores of the Detroit River, right across from Windsor. This doesn't mean Detroit is a Canadian team, but if we get overhead shots of downtown Detroit in the playoffs, Canada might be on screen.

-- Rick Monday was nowhere to be found at Nationals Park for Game 5 of the NLDS. In this scenario, the Washington Nationals had a 6-0 lead before losing 9-7. No dramatic HR in the way Rick Monday helped down the Montréal Expos at Olympic Stadium in 1981.

I was sincerely torn about whether the Nats should advance. Part of me sympathized with Washington needing a team (the Florida Marlins would have made more sense to move to the U.S. capital) and hope that the Expos could find success, even if it wasn't in Montréal. Part of me wanted to show the mistake of moving the team away from La Belle Province.

Washington had baseball's best record in 2012, a la the Expos in 1994. And the Nats won as many playoff games in 2012 as the Expos did in 35 years.

-- New York Yankees catcher Russell Martin survived to the second round. First baseman Joey Votto struggled following knee surgery in the middle of the season. Votto's batting average and on-base percentage were still high, but he had lost his power stroke. Bad timing as his Cincinnati Reds choked a 2-0 lead, becoming the first NL team to do so in the NLDS format.

Ryan Dempster didn't even make it as far as the first round. His new team, the Texas Rangers, lost the play-in game in the AL playoffs after being ahead or tied for the division crown until the last day of the season. His old team, the Chicago Cubs, lost more than 100 games, finishing slightly ahead of Houston.

-- The Blue Jays did get one person into the first round of the playoffs. TV Play-by-play guy Buck Martinez did color commentary in one of the first-round series for TBS.

-- The Toronto Blue Jays had bad injuries in 2012, but even before then, the team wasn't going to make the playoffs for the 19th straight year. Edwin Encarnacion had an amazing season (career highs of 42 home runs and 110 RBI) despite Jose Bautista missing most of the second half.

Toronto and Houston, the worst team in the majors this year, completed a 10-player deal on July 20. Toronto needed some pitching help due to a rash of injuries. The Blue Jays gave up closer Francisco Cordero to the Astros. Cordero was released a short time on September 10.

-- Canadians get tremendous access to major professional sports, often better than Americans do (e.g., NFL). However, there were a few problems for Canadians in the first round of the MLB playoffs.

Unlike the OTA networks that every Canadian can get with cable and many without cable, TBS and TNT aren't available in Canada. With all four series going to Game 5, the juggling got a bit more crazy than usual up north.

Rogers Sportsnet has the rights to the MLB playoffs. Besides the regional feeds (East, Ontario, West, and Pacific), the company also has Sportsnet One. But Rogers had to give Game 5 of the Detroit-Oakland series to theScore. Rogers bought theScore back in August (the deal isn't finalized) in the latest consolidation in the Canadian media landscape. 

Rogers Sportsnet also messed up a feed for Game 2 of that series. The channel showed a game from 1979 instead of the 2012 playoff game during the first inning. Since the entire first round is on U.S. cable, Canadian viewers who can get OTA signals from the United States were out of luck.

The National League Championship Series is on Fox and simulcast on Rogers Sportsnet. The American League Championship Series is on TBS, though simulcast on Rogers Sportsnet. Without the NHL, Rogers will have much fewer conflicts.