  Justin Morneau joined the Edmonton Trappers for their playoff run in September of 2002. (Edmonton Sun File/Darryl Dyck) |
In Canada, it's a cause for celebration.
In Edmonton, in a way, it's also a bit of a bummer.
Our nation is on a natural high today toasting Justin Morneau's selection as American League MVP - creating a triumvirate of Canadian MVPs with Steve Nash in the NBA and Joe Thornton in the NHL.
But in Edmonton it's also a reminder of what we lost. Morneau was a former Edmonton Trapper.
The Trappers are no more. We've caught our last rising star.
George Morneau, the father of the MVP, spent the better part of a year working in Edmonton at Bosco Homes when the Edmonton Eskimos committed the unforgivable crime of selling the team that had given this city exceptional Triple A Pacific Coast League baseball for 24 years with more than a fair share of titles and future stars.
"I was there. I saw that ball park. I know,'' said George Morneau of the place his son came to late in the 2002 season to help lead the Trappers to a fourth PCL title when I talked to him yesterday.
At the front end of that same 2002 season, Johan Santana was a Trapper pitcher.
Santana just became one of only 14 pitchers ever to win a Cy Young more than once. He was only one of four to win it unanimously twice with all 28 votes with Roger Clemens, Pedro Martinez and Greg Maddux being the others.
With the Trappers gone, there's almost no mention of the connections anymore, not like in the days when the team first came to town and it was huge news when Ron Kittle won the Minor League Player of the Year honours and then became American League Rookie of the Year the following season.
Tim Salmon won it in 1993 and Ben Grieve in 1998.
Scott Brosius was a World Series MVP with the New York Yankees in 1998.
Morneau is the third former Trapper to win American League MVP. Jason Giambi won it with the Yankees in 2000 and Miguel Tejada with Oakland in 2002.
That is what Edmonton lost when the Eskimos, as a result of pressure from the league due to the loss of the other two Canadian franchises, because of 9-11 and because of the difficulty getting both the teams and their equipment here on the smaller planes flying many of the routes - not to mention a massive pile of money - decided to sell out the city's baseball fans.
Edmonton fans were left with a Northern League team which produces no players for the major leagues and U.S. owners who wore out their welcome within weeks of bringing the team to town.
Maybe Cracker Cats' GM Al Coates can get something going with the 100th anniversary of pro baseball in Edmonton coming up next season (Deacon White started the Edmonton Legislators way back then).
Maybe the owners will sell the team to local ownership which will go back to the Trappers name like Edmonton is going back to Oil Kings with the return of junior hockey to town.
In the meantime, there are the box scores and following the last run of Trapper talent to go through here and the ultimate celebration of all with a Canadian player winning MVP honours.
This is a special time in Canadian sport with both the NBA and American League MVP to go with an NHL MVP. Think of the kids in Canada who are going to be inspired to believe it can happen to them - in any sports - by this happening.
Then again, speaking of this being a bit of a bummer in a way, think of the ones who would have been inspired if the Minnesota Twins had let Morneau away to play in the Athens Olympics for Canada and they'd won a medal instead of finishing fourth.
There's that, too.
