Canadian Baseball Network Podcast

Matt and Jackson share their thoughts on the 2024 Toronto Blue Jays season, discuss Ross Atkins and Mark Shapiro's end of season press conferences and break down the roster needs for 2025. They also have a conversation about what World Series contention looks like in modern MLB, and how far Toronto is (or isn't) from it. Music Credit: Karl Casey @ White Bat Audio

The 10th annual Canadian Futures Showcase took place from September 17-21 2024 at Rogers Centre. Matt Betts shares his notes and observations, and we hear from a number of people who Matt spoke with at the event. Audio Credit: Karl Casey @ White Bat Audio

Kevin Hussey is the director of operations and communications at The Baseball Zone. He spent some time chatting with Matt Betts about player development, coaching, college recruitment, and high school baseball from the Canadian perspective. Up and coming baseball talents, coaches and parents alike will want to give this a listen. Music Credit: Karl Casey @ White Bat Audio

Cherrie-Marie Chiu joins Matt and Jackson to talk about ALS Double Play, which raises awareness about ALS and supports ALS research. She recaps the K ALS event that was held at The Baseball Zone on September 7, shares her motivation for creating ALS Double Play, and delivers a powerful message. Visit https://www.alsdoubleplay.com/ to learn more and to find ways to support the initiative. Audio Credit: Karl Casey @ White Bat Audio

Matt and Jackson return to catch up on a busy few weeks in Canadian baseball. They discuss Joey Votto's retirement and his legacy, dish their opinions on the current Blue Jays roster, look to 2025 and break down what a contract extension for Vladimir Guerrero Jr would look like. Audio Credit: Karl Casey @ White Bat Audio

Matt and Jackson discuss the 2024 Toronto Blue Jays season so far, try to predict which direction the franchise will head in, and take a closer look at the future of some high profile players on the roster. Music Credit: Karl Casey @ White Bat Audio

Danny Gallagher joins Matt to discuss his new book, Explosion, which shares stories and fascinating details about the Montréal Expos. Danny talks about the making of the book, shares stories and memories from his time covering the Expos, the strike in 1994 and recalls the process which led to the Expos leaving Montréal.Music Credit: Karl Casey @ White Bat Audio

Mike Wilner of the Toronto Star joins the CBN Podcast to discuss the Blue Jays season so far, Ross Atkins' recent media availability, and reflects on his career in broadcasting. Music Credit: Karl Casey @ White Bat Audio Audio Credit: Sportsnet/YouTube

Sportsnet's Ben Nicholson-Smith joins Matt and Jackson to talk about the 2024 Blue Jays season in the early going. They break down some areas where the Blue Jays have struggled, theorize about potential trade deadline moves and Ben provides insight into his role as a reporter. Music Credit: Karl Casey @ White Bat Audio

Mike Steed, pitching coach for the Atlanta Braves High-A affiliate Rome Emperors joins Matt Betts for a wide-ranging conversation. They discuss player development in Canada, specifically regarding pitching, and ways it could improve. Mike also shares insight about being a pitching coach and discusses the up and coming pitching prospects in the Braves system. Music Credit: Karl Casey @ White Bat Audio

Matt and Jackson tee up the 2024 season for the Toronto Blue Jays. They go over the pitching staff and some of the early injuries, the depth arms and how they could be utilized. The lineup, a big point of interest in the offseason, is discussed at length. Is it enough? What are the x-factors? They wrap up the chat with a Joey Votto discussion and some predictions. Music Credit: Karl Casey @ White Bat Audio

Joey Hawkins, Associate Head Coach and Recruiting Coordinator at Missouri State University joins Matt Betts for a wide ranging conversation about player recruitment, development, what recruiters are seeking at the next level, and much more. Music Credit: Karl Casey @ White Bat Audio

Keegan Matheson of MLB.com returns to the CBN Podcast to talk about early themes and stories from Blue Jays Spring Training, the team's outlook for 2024, the slow offseason, where the Jays rank within the division, and much more. Music Credit: Karl Casey @ White Bat Audio

Chicago Cubs prospect and MLB.com's 47th ranked prospect, Owen Caissie chats with Matt Betts about his career so far, including his time representing Canada at the WBC, his offseason regimen, hitting philosophy and his outlook on the 2024 season. Music credit: Karl Casey @ White Bat Audio

Matt Betts is joined by freelance Blue Jays reporters Mitch Bannon and Ethan Diamandas for a roundtable discussion. They try to make sense of Toronto's offseason transactions, focus on a few players coming off disappointing seasons, and make some predictions for the upcoming 2024 season. Music credit: Karl Casey @ White Bat Audio

Jim Callis, senior writer for MLB Pipeline, chats with Matt Betts about the MLB Top 100 prospects list for 2024. This year's Top 100 includes Canadians Tyler Black and Owen Caissie as well as Blue Jays prospects Ricky Tiedemann and Orelvis Martinez, whom they discuss. Music Credit: Karl Casey @ White Bat AudioAudio Credit: The Hub for Baseball Highlights/YouTube

Matt Betts and Jackson Farough break down the Shohei Ohtani sweepstakes from start to finish. They discuss the first mentions of Toronto being in the mix, Ohtani's visit to Dunedin, the infamous plane tracking day and media coverage. Where do the Jays go from here? Music credit: Karl Casey @ White Bat Audio

MLB.com's #18 ranked Blue Jays prospect, Damiano Palmegiani joins Matt and Jackson to reflect on an eventful 2023 season, his experience representing Canada at the WBC, his plate approach, offseason plans and much more. Music Credit: Karl Casey @ White Bat Audio

MLB.com Blue Jays reporter Keegan Matheson returns to discuss the fallout from Toronto's ALWC elimination and how to chart a path forward in the offseason. They break down the season ending press conferences, the holes that Toronto has and their options in free agency, and the biggest stories heading into Spring Training 2024. Music Credit: Karl Casey @ White Bat Audio

Matt and Jackson break down the AL Wild Card Series loss for the Blue Jays at the hands of the Minnesota Twins. They discuss Toronto's lack of hitting, the decision to pull Berrios for Kikuchi in game 2, Vladimir Guerrero Jr. getting picked off at a critical moment, and where the franchise goes from here. Music Credit: Karl Casey @ White Bat Audio

Matt Betts and Jackson Farough tee up a massive AL Wild Card Series between the Toronto Blue Jays and Minnesota Twins. They discuss pitching matchups, compare the two lineups, analyze expectations for both teams, and also consider the fallout if it all ends quickly for Toronto. Music credit: Karl Casey @ White Bat Audio

Tyler Black, a 2021 1st round pick (33rd) of the Brewers and their 4th ranked prospect (via MLB.com) returns to the CBN Podcast! He discusses life in the minors, staying healthy, his perspective on development as a minor leaguer, and how it feels as he ascends towards the big leagues. Music credit: Karl Casey @ White Bat Audio

Jackson Farough heads to The Baseball Zone to document their first annual Baseball Carnival, K ALS in collaboration with ALS Double Play. Weren't able to make it out to TBZ for K ALS? Want to learn about ALS Double Play, and how you can support them? Check out this special edition of the CBN Podcast as Jackson shares the sounds from the day and interviews the people who made this event possible. Music credit: Karl Casey @ White Bat Audio

MLB.com Blue Jays reporter Keegan Matheson joins Matt and Jackson for a wide-ranging conversation about the Blue Jays as the calendar flips to September. They talk about life on the road before getting into the current state of the team, the importance of the next stretch of games, John Schneider, prospects, and much more. Music credit: Karl Casey @ White Bat Audio

Former Blue Jays manager John Gibbons joins Matt and Jackson to reminisce on his time in Toronto with the Blue Jays, discuss José Bautista's Level of Excellence ceremony and much more. Music Credit: Karl Casey @ White Bat Audio

Matt Betts and Jackson Farough break down the trades that the Blue Jays made leading up to the deadline, discuss Toronto's roster and look ahead to the postseason. Music credit: Karl Casey @ White Bat Audio

Matt Betts and Jackson Farough take a look at the 9 Canadians taken in the 2023 MLB Draft, headlined by Myles Naylor (Mississauga, ON). Music Credit: Karl Casey @ White Bat Audio

Matt Betts and Jackson Farough are back with another episode, this time taking a tour around the big leagues to chat about Canadians currently playing in Major League Baseball. Familiar and new faces alike, Matt and Jackson analyze and discuss Baseball Canada's present and future talent on display. Music Credit: Karl Casey @ White Bat Audio

Matt Betts and Jackson Farough are back with another episode of the CBN Podcast! This time, they take a look at the 2023 Blue Jays so far, and what to look for in the weeks ahead as the trade deadline approaches. They discuss the starting rotation and Alek Manoah's disappointing season so far, the bullpen and the surprises that have emerged from it, and the lineup's inconsistencies at the plate thus far. Music credit: Karl Casey @ White Bat Audio

Matt Betts is joined by Kevin Glew, the recipient of the 2022 Bob Elliott Media Recognition Award. Kevin recalls when he first fell in love with the game of baseball, how he got started in his career, and of course discusses plenty of Canadian baseball history. Music Credit: Karl Casey @ White Bat Audio

Matt Betts and Jackson Farough break down Canada's 18-8 win over Great Britain in their first game of the 2023 World Baseball Classic. Music credit: Karl Casey @ White Bat Audio

As Team Canada prepares to kick off the 2023 World Baseball Classic, their manager, Ernie Whitt joins Matt Betts for a wide-ranging discussion on the tournament. They discuss participation at the tournament, projected starters, strategy and blending youth and experience. Music credit: Karl Casey @ White Bat Audio

Matt Betts and Jackson Farough discuss Team Canada's roster at the 2023 World Baseball Classic, previewing the tournament and analyzing Canada's outlook. Music credit: Karl Casey @ White Bat Audio

Matt Betts and Jackson Farough break down the past offseason for the Toronto Blue Jays, providing insight and analysis on all of the big moves that took place. They start with the Teoscar Hernandez trade (6:21), then move on to the Kevin Kiermaier signing (14:31). They have a broader discussion about team culture and clubhouse vibes while discussing the addition of Don Mattingly to the coaching staff (19:20) before analyzing the pitching staff with the addition of Chris Bassitt (26:04). They then break down the catcher logjam and subsequent Varsho trade (31:50) before wrapping things up with the Brandon Belt acquisition (41:00). Music credit: Karl Casey @ White Bat Audio

Matt Betts is joined by Ontario Terriers catcher Hugh Pinkney, a member of the Canadian Junior National team fall selection camp and a Rutgers commit. Hugh discusses his experience within the Terriers organization, the feeling of joining the Canadian Junior National team fall selection camp, and why Rutgers is the right fit for him.

RHP Matt Brash (Kingston, ON) joins Matt Betts to discuss his call-up to MLB (1:50), the experience of being in the Mariners bullpen (7:18), the importance of hard work (11:55) and much more.

Host Matt Betts has a wide-ranging conversation with Walt Burrows, an area scout in Canada for the Minnesota Twins and the former supervisor of the MLB Scouting Bureau in Canada (1:32). This fascinating discussion includes Walt's story of scouting NBA Hall of Famer Steve Nash as a baseball player, the first time Walt saw Josh Naylor in person, and much more. Players, parents, and coaches alike are sure to enjoy Walt's valuable insight on scouting the next generation of baseball talent.

In the return of the CBN Podcast, host Matt Betts sits down with Tyler Black, who was selected in the 1st round, 33rd overall in the 2021 MLB Draft by the Milwaukee Brewers (1:47). They discuss his upbringing, his passion for the game of baseball, and the journey that baseball has taken him on so far. Then, Matt sits down with Tyler's former coach with the Toronto Mets, Rich Leitch (19:47). They talk about what makes Tyler such a great ballplayer and person, and Rich gives some insight as to how Tyler went to Wright State University and then eventually got drafted.