The 25 best Canadian MLB players

There are some baseball historians who believe O'Neill is the Babe Ruth of Canadian baseball — though perhaps without the massive power. During a 10-year career spent mostly with the St. Louis Browns, Springfield, Ontario's O'Neill was a two-time batting champion, and won the Triple Crown in 1887 when he hit. .485 with 14 homers and 123 RBI. According to STATS Perform, O'Neill's .334 career batting average is the best among all Canadians. He also recorded 757 RBI. The Tip O'Neill Award is presented annually to the best Canadian player throughout the game of baseball.

From Brandon, Manitoba, Ford ranks fifth among all Canadian major-league pitchers with 99 wins — in just seven seasons of service. Meanwhile, his .582 winning percentage (99-71) is the best among all Canadians. The right-hander pitched for the New York Yankees, including a portion when they were known as the New York Highlanders, and won a combined 48 games in 1910 and 1911. He then was a member of the Federal League's Buffalo Buffeds/Blues. Notoriously, Ford is often cited as the first pitcher to scuff the baseball with an emery board. 

Selkirk's place in Major League Baseball history is quite intriguing. While playing his entire nine-year career with the New York Yankees, Huntsville, Ontario's Selkirk is the guy who followed Babe Ruth as the team's right fielder and even wore the No. 3. On the field, though, Selkirk was pretty good. A two-time All-Star and five-time World Series champion with the Yankees, Selkirk ranks in the top 10 among Canadian MLB players for batting average (.290), on-base percentage (.400), slugging (.483), home runs (108), RBI (576), and walks (486).

Heath was born in Ontario, but attended high school in Seattle. He played 14 years in the majors, 10 of which came with the Cleveland Indians. A two-time All-Star (1941, '43), Heath finished his career as one of the most successful Canadian big leaguers of the all time. He currently resides in the top five among those players in hits (1,447), doubles (279), triples (102), RBI (887) and batting average (.293). Heath also clubbed 194 home runs, including 20 or more in four seasons, and with three different teams.

A 15-year major-league veteran, Toronto's Hiller entered the 2024 season ranked third all-time among Canadian pitchers with 125 big-league saves, highlighted by a career-best 38 — an MLB record at the time — in 1973. The left-hander, who spent his entire career with the Detroit Tigers and returned to action after suffering a heart attack in early 1971, also ranks fourth among Canadian major leaguers with 1,036 strikeouts and sixth for his 87 career wins. Hiller won at least 10 games three times, was a member of the Tigers' 1968 World Series champion team and named an All-Star in 1974, when he recorded 17 of those victories. His 545 appearances are also a Tigers record.

Born in Swift Current, Saskatchewan, and raised in Alberta, Cleveland, who was discovered for his baseball talents by a carnival worker, posted 105 wins — fourth-most among Canadian major-league pitchers — during a solid 13-year big-league career that featured stops in St. Louis, Boston, Texas and Milwaukee. The right-hander won at least 10 games in seven consecutive seasons from 1971-77. Cleveland, who went 13-9 for the AL pennant-winning Red Sox in 1975, also recorded 930 career strikeouts, which rank within the top 10 among Canadian hurlers, as do his 203 all-time starts.

There's no doubt Jenkins is the greatest Canadian to ever pitch in the majors, and the argument can be made that he is the country's best to ever play the game. Hailing from Chatham, Ontario, Jenkins began his career with the Philadelphia Phillies, but most of his big-league success came with the Chicago Cubs, with whom he played parts of 10 seasons (1966-73, 1982-83). He won at least 20 games in six straight seasons from 1967-73, was a three-time All-Star and became the first Canadian and Cub to win the Cy Young Award — going 24-13 with 263 strikeouts and a 2.77 ERA in 1971. Among Canadian major-league pitchers, Jenkins sits first in wins (284), starts (594), complete games (267), innings (4,500 2/3), ERA (3.34) and strikeouts (3,192). The right-hander was the first Canadian to be inducted into the National Baseball Hall of Fame.

A standout athlete growing up in Saskatchewan, Puhl made his major-league bones as a member of the Houston Astros, for who he spent all but one of his 15 seasons. Though Puhl was a career .280 hitter with more than 1,300 hits and totaled 435 RBIs, he was best known for his stellar defensive play while patrolling the outfield. Puhl, an All-Star in 1978, committed just 18 errors while playing 1,300 games in the outfield. His .933 fielding percentage as an outfielder ranks among the top 15 in major-league history for all players, regardless of citizenship.

A two-sport professional standout, McCaskill, who played in the American Hockey League during the early 1980s, ranks third among Canadian pitchers with 106 big-league victories. A starter for most of his steady 12-year career, spent between the California Angels and Chicago White Sox, the right-hander from Kapuskasing, Ontario, posted 17 wins in 1986 and 15 in 1989. He also ranks among the Canadian top 10 in strikeouts (1,003) and innings pitched (1,729) for a major leaguer.

Walker joins Fergie Jenkins as the only Canadian players elected to the National Baseball Hall of Fame for their MLB accomplishments. That's because Maple Ridge, British Columbia's Walker is among the game's all-time greats, not just among Canadian players. He was a career .313 hitter while playing 17 seasons with Montreal, Colorado and St. Louis. The NL MVP in 1997, Walker was a seven-time Gold Glove Award winner, five-time All-Star and NL batting champ three times. He leads all Canadian major-leaguers in runs (1,355), hits (2,160), doubles (471), homers (383), RBI (1,311) and slugging (.565).

Highly serviceable and definitely dependable, Quantrill enjoyed a solid major-league career that spanned 14 seasons and featured stops with seven different teams — notably the Toronto Blue Jays and Los Angeles Dodgers. As of 2024, Quantrill's 841 appearances are the most by any Canadian major-league pitcher. Used primarily as a reliever, the right-hander from London, Ontario, went 68-78 with a respectable 3.83 ERA for his big-league career. Five times, Quantrill made at least 80 appearances and also recorded 21 saves. Following his playing days, Quantrill was a coach for the Canadian national team at the World Baseball Classic (2009, '13, '17).

A farm boy from Anola, Manitoba, Koskie never seemed to fulfill his massive potential at the big-league level. Mostly because he was plagued by various injuries and health issues during a major-league career that spanned parts of nine seasons — all but two coming with the Minnesota Twins. A .275 career hitter, Koskie posted 936 hits, 124 homers and 506 RBIs. His best season came in 2001, when the Twins third baseman set career highs with 26 home runs, 103 RBI and 27 steals.

Along the lines of the aforementioned Paul Quantrill, Cormier never set the majors on fire with his talent, but he was good enough to spend 16 seasons in the big leagues. Pitching for five different teams, Cormier, from Moncton, New Brunswick, ranks in the top 10 among Canadian major-league pitchers with 683 appearances. The left-hander, who started 108 games during his career, went 71-64 with a 4.03 ERA and recorded 760 strikeouts while pitching for St. Louis, Boston, Montreal, Philadelphia and Cincinnati.

Without a doubt, Montreal's Gagné is the greatest Canadian closer ever to pitch in the majors with 187 saves on 204 chances. The burly right-hander began his career as a starter with the Los Angeles Dodgers, then was moved to into the closer role in 2002. That's when he began a dominant three-season stretch where he converted 152-of-158 save chances (including 84 straight), posted a 1.79 ERA, made three All-Star teams and won the 2003 NL Cy Young Award for going 55-of-55 in closing games. After injuries plagued Gagné in the mid-2000s, he bounced back to save 16 games with Texas in 2007 before being traded to Boston, where he won a World Series that same season.

The everyman's major leaguer, Stairs played a whopping 19 seasons in the majors and owns the record for most franchises (12) played for by a position player. The New Brunswick native also holds the major-league record with 23 career pinch-hit home runs. Meanwhile, his 105 hits as a pinch-hitter also rank among the all-time top 10 in MLB history. Stairs' 1,366 hits rank eighth all time by a Canadian major-leaguer and his 265 homers are third-most within that category. In 2008, Stairs played a key role in helping the Philadelphia Phillies win the 2008 World Series.

One of British Columbia's favorite baseball sons, Dempster earned success as both a starter and reliever during an interesting 16-year major-league career. He won 29 games in 67 starts between 2000 and '01 for the Marlins, then converted 85-of-99 save chances for the Chicago Cubs from 2005-07. The right-hander then returned to a starting role for the Cubs, winning a career-high 17 games in 2008 and 15 more in 2010. A two-time All-Star, Dempster ranks second among Canadian major-league pitchers for wins (132), innings (2,387), strikeouts (2,075); fourth in appearances (579) and fifth in saves (87). 

Another British Columbia baseball standout, Bay was the NL Rookie of the Year in 2004, when he clubbed 26 home runs, had 82 RBI and batted .282 for the Pittsburgh Pirates. He then recorded 67 homers and 210 RBI the next two seasons. Bay had two more 30-plus homer seasons split between Pittsburgh and Boston. He then signed a hefty four-year, $66 million deal with the New York Mets prior to the 2010 season, but failed to live up to the contract. In the end, the three-time All-Star played 11 big-league seasons and ranks in the top 10 among Canadian players in hits (1,200), doubles (240), home runs (222), RBI (754), walks (636) and OBP (.360).

Likely not a household name to casual baseball fans when it comes to Canadian major leaguers, Crain still enjoyed an undoubtedly successful 10-year career spent between the Minnesota Twins and Chicago White Sox. A native of Toronto, Crain never started any of the 532 games he appeared in, but went 45-30 with a nifty 3.02 ERA covering 532 innings. The right-hander won a career-high 12 of those games in 2005 for Minnesota. Crain was named to his only All-Star team in his final season of 2013, when he went 2-3 with 46 strikeouts and allowed just three earned runs over 36 2/3 innings. 

One of the great Minnesota Twins of all time, British Columbia's Morneau played parts of his first 11 seasons with the club. Though injuries hindered the second half of Morneau's career, he ranks third among Canadian major leaguers with 1,603 hits, 349 doubles, is fourth with 247 home runs and sixth with a career batting average of .281. A four-time All-Star, Morneau was named AL MVP in 2006 when he set personal bests of 34 homers and 130 RBIs. Morneau was also the first Twin since Gary Gaetti to post back-to-back 30-homer seasons (2006, '07).

The do-it-all catcher from Toronto's East York sector, Martin spent 14 seasons in the majors and is considered the most decorated Canadian at that position to play in the big leagues. Playing nearly 1,700 games, most notably for the Los Angeles Dodgers, New York Yankees and his hometown Toronto Blue Jays, Martin ranks No. 1 among all Canadian catchers in hits (1,416), doubles (255), home runs (191), RBI (771), walks (792). A four-time All-Star with three different teams, Martin also won a Gold Glove as a member of the Dodgers in 2007.

It might be surprising for baseball fans to learn that Axford pitched parts of 11 seasons in the majors. From the Brantford area of Ontario, the right-hander pitched for eight different teams but earned his greatest success right out of the gate with Milwaukee. From 2010-12, the 6-foot-5 Axford converted 105-of-119 saves, while also striking out 255 batters and posting a 3.04 ERA for the Brewers. Then after bouncing around between four teams the next two seasons, Axford recorded 25 saves for Colorado in 2015. As of May 2024, Axford's 144 saves rank second all-time for a Canadian major leaguer.

Votto will always be one of the most beloved players in Cincinnati Reds history, and arguably the most loyal. A long-time baseball icon for Canadian major leaguers, Votto spent all 17 of his big-league seasons with the Reds. He was a six-time All-Star, won the NL MVP in 2010, a Gold Glove in 2011 and is the only Canadian to play in at least 2,000 major league games. Votto ranks second among Canadian MLB players to Larry Walker in hits (2,135), doubles (459), home runs (356) and RBIs (1,144). Votto also batted .294 for his career, and tops all Canadian players in OBP (.409) and walks (1,365).

When healthy, Paxton has been one of the majors' top pitchers since breaking in with the Seattle Mariners in 2013. A native of nearby British Columbia, Paxton took some time to find his form, but went 23-11 with a 3.40 ERA in 52 starts for the Mariners between 2017 and '18. On May 8, 2018, against Toronto, the left-hander became the second Canadian to throw a no-hitter in the majors. In 2019, Paxton went 15-6 with a 3.82 ERA during his first season with the New York Yankees. However, knee, back, forearm and elbow issues, among other ailments, followed. In 2023, Paxton resurfaced to go 7-5 with a 4.50 ERA in 19 starts for Boston. Now with the Los Angeles Dodgers, Paxton went 5-0 with a 2.58 ERA in his first seven 2024 starts.

The son of former MLB great Vladimir Guerrero, Vlad Jr. was born in Montreal on March 16, 1999, while his dad was starring for the Montreal Expos. However, the younger Guerrero spent his formative years between the Dominican Republic and U.S. He eventually returned to Canada for his major-league debut with the Toronto Blue Jays in April 2019. Since then, Guerrero has been among the greats of the game. His career batting average hovers around .280 and he already ranks in the top 10 among Canadian MLB players with more than 130 home runs. Guerrero Jr. is a three-time All-Star, Gold Glove Award recipient and was MVP of the 2021 All-Star Game.

Another suburban Toronto product, Romano broke into the majors with his hometown Blue Jays in 2019 and has blossomed into one of the game's best closers at the moment. From 2021-23, the right-hander converted 95 of 106 save opportunities while posting a 2.37 ERA. The two-time All-Star also made good on his first six save chances of the 2024 season. Romano has already cracked the top four among all-time Canadian saves leaders with more than 100.