5 former Pirates in the Canadian Baseball Hall of Fame

Justin Morneau

Morneau, the 2006 AL MVP, was brought in at the 2013 trade deadline in the Pirates’ push for their first winning season and postseason berth in 20 years. Going back to Minnesota was the once-promising outfielder Alex Presley and a player to be named later, later to be revealed as relief pitching prospect Duke Welker. That special year, Gaby Sánchez played the majority of games at first base. Sánchez was serviceable, but clearly not the answer the Pirates were looking for, which led to their acquisition of Morneau, who took over first with about a month to go in the season. 

In just 25 regular season games in black and gold, Morneau was a replacement level player and arguably a downgrade from Sánchez. He hit .260 with no home runs, and had just three RBI in 92 plate appearances. Starting each game at first for the Pirates that postseason, Morneau had six hits in 20 at-bats during the NLDS that Pittsburgh lost to St. Louis in five games.

The New Westminster, BC native had lots of playoff experience to that point. Minnesota had some great teams in the mid-to-late 2000s that never made it past the ALDS (‘04, ‘06, ‘09, ‘10). Morneau was a truly star for the Twins then, as were Mauer, a hometown hero, Torii Hunter, Johan Santana and Joe Nathan, just to name a few others.  

Morneau was hitting an unheard of .345 through the 2010 season before long-term concussion symptoms forced an early exit. 2011 was another injury riddled campaign that only saw him get into 69 games. While he was back full-time in 2012, Morneau hadn’t returned to his previous dominance as a hitter. It made perfect sense why the Pirates traded for him, hoping for a bounce back from someone who was one of the game's best not long before the deal. Morneau returned to form after signing with the Rockies following his Pirates tenure, though it’s possible the “Coors Effect” had something to do with this. That year, he won the NL batting title, hitting .319 with 17 home runs and 82 RBI, good for 3.4 bWAR.  

Colorado hadn’t been relevant in half a decade, and wouldn’t return to the postseason for another few years. Morneau wouldn’t be as fortunate in 2015, as he only played in 49 games, though he still hit .310. The injuries caught up to him, and after a brief stint with the White Sox in ‘16, that was it. For a former third-round pick, he had a remarkable career, earning numerous accolades in addition to his 2006 MVP. Morneau was inducted into the Canadian Baseball Hall of Fame in 2020.