<p>On June 7th,<a href="https://bluejaysnation.com/news/canadian-baseball-hall-of-fame-announces-class-of-2025-headlined-by-jose-bautista-and-erik-bedard"> six new members</a> will be inducted into the Canadian Baseball Hall of Fame in St. Marys, Ontario, bringing the total number of inductees to 167.</p>
<div class="bam-inline-promotion" data-property-id="330" data-promotion-id="18983" data-context="“web-content-promocard&quot;"></div>
<p>Canadian citizenship is not required for induction <a href="https://bluejaysnation.com/news/canadian-baseball-hall-of-fame-2025-inductees-jose-bautista">into the hall,</a> as the list of inductees includes men and women who have made an impact on baseball in or for this country, from various aspects, including playing, coaching, volunteering, umpiring, writing, and everything in between. To be inducted, one must be nominated and then receive a sufficient number of votes from the selection committee.</p>
<p>&nbsp;</p>
<h3>Gerry Snyder &#8211; Montreal, Quebec</h3>
<p>The Canadian Baseball Hall of Fame honours Gerry Snyder, a Montreal politician who had a significant impact on baseball in Canada until he died in 2007. He was instrumental in bringing Major League Baseball to Montreal in 1969 and used his position to help the sport grow in other ways over the next few decades as well.</p>
<p>Snyder worked tirelessly to grow the sport of baseball in Canada, doing most of the legwork that led to the city being granted the expansion Expos. He obtained the backing of former Dodgers owner Walter O&#8217;Malley, who could vouch for Montreal&#8217;s baseball market based on the city&#8217;s place as a Dodgers triple-A affiliate up until 1960. He also recruited eventual owner Charles Bronfman, along with John McHale, who would become Expos president. It&#8217;s fair to say that nobody had more of an impact on the arrival of the Expos than Snyder.</p>
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-width="550" data-dnt="true">
<p lang="en" dir="ltr">May 27, 1968: A day to remember for Gerry Snyder.<br />The Montreal city councillor&#39;s long-time efforts in promoting Montreal as a great baseball city were realized when it was granted a National League franchise at Chicago&#39;s Excelsior Hotel. <a href="https://t.co/de54Xdowub">pic.twitter.com/de54Xdowub</a></p>
<p>&mdash; Danny Gallagher (@dannogallagher7) <a href="https://twitter.com/dannogallagher7/status/1927305921241227746?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">May 27, 2025</a></p></blockquote>
<p><script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script></p>
<p>Snyder&#8217;s sporting efforts continued in the 1970s, as he helped bring the Olympic Games to Montreal. The city&#8217;s bid failed in 1972, but they were successful for the 1976 games. Another important sporting event that can be attributed to the efforts of Snyder was the Grand Prix race coming to Montreal in 1978.</p>
<p>Nicknamed &#8216;Montreal&#8217;s ambassador of sports&#8217;, Snyder also has a Toronto connection that persists to this day. When the Blue Jays broke into the Major Leagues in 1977, following the Expos, he worked directly with general manager Peter Bavasi in establishing a spring training home for the club. Snyder was the one who suggested that the team play out of Dunedin, Florida, a spot where they continue to play spring training games today. The Blue Jays&#8217; player development complex and single-A affiliate continue to thrive in Dunedin.</p>
<hr />
<div class="bam-inline-promotion" data-property-id="324" data-promotion-id="18983" data-context="web-content-promocard"></div>


On June 7th,<a href="https://bluejaysnation.com/news/canadian-baseball-hall-of-fame-announces-class-of-2025-headlined-by-jose-bautista-and-erik-bedard"> six new members</a> will be inducted into the Canadian Baseball Hall of Fame in St. Marys, Ontario, bringing the total number of inductees to 167.
<div class="bam-inline-promotion" data-property-id="330" data-promotion-id="18983" data-context="“web-content-promocard&quot;"></div>
Canadian citizenship is not required for induction <a href="https://bluejaysnation.com/news/canadian-baseball-hall-of-fame-2025-inductees-jose-bautista">into the hall,</a> as the list of inductees includes men and women who have made an impact on baseball in or for this country, from various aspects, including playing, coaching, volunteering, umpiring, writing, and everything in between. To be inducted, one must be nominated and then receive a sufficient number of votes from the selection committee.

&nbsp;
<h3>Gerry Snyder - Montreal, Quebec</h3>
The Canadian Baseball Hall of Fame honours Gerry Snyder, a Montreal politician who had a significant impact on baseball in Canada until he died in 2007. He was instrumental in bringing Major League Baseball to Montreal in 1969 and used his position to help the sport grow in other ways over the next few decades as well.

Snyder worked tirelessly to grow the sport of baseball in Canada, doing most of the legwork that led to the city being granted the expansion Expos. He obtained the backing of former Dodgers owner Walter O'Malley, who could vouch for Montreal's baseball market based on the city's place as a Dodgers triple-A affiliate up until 1960. He also recruited eventual owner Charles Bronfman, along with John McHale, who would become Expos president. It's fair to say that nobody had more of an impact on the arrival of the Expos than Snyder.

https://twitter.com/dannogallagher7/status/1927305921241227746

Snyder's sporting efforts continued in the 1970s, as he helped bring the Olympic Games to Montreal. The city's bid failed in 1972, but they were successful for the 1976 games. Another important sporting event that can be attributed to the efforts of Snyder was the Grand Prix race coming to Montreal in 1978.

Nicknamed 'Montreal's ambassador of sports', Snyder also has a Toronto connection that persists to this day. When the Blue Jays broke into the Major Leagues in 1977, following the Expos, he worked directly with general manager Peter Bavasi in establishing a spring training home for the club. Snyder was the one who suggested that the team play out of Dunedin, Florida, a spot where they continue to play spring training games today. The Blue Jays' player development complex and single-A affiliate continue to thrive in Dunedin.

<hr />

<div class="bam-inline-promotion" data-property-id="324" data-promotion-id="18983" data-context="web-content-promocard"></div>

Canadian Baseball Hall of Fame 2025 Inductees: Gerry Snyder

Throwback Thursday: Looking at Blue Jays trades with Guardians since the start of the Ross Aktins era

Instant Reaction: Kevin Guasman pitched eight scoreless innings in Blue Jays’ 6-0 victory over Guardians

Report: Blue Jays promoting prospect Johnny King to single-A

Blue Jays GDB – 80.0: Toronto looks to win the series in Cleveland following last night’s walk-off loss

Toronto Blue Jays first baseman Vladimir Guerrero Jr. (27) celebrates his solo home run in the fourth inning against the Cleveland Guardians at Progressive Field.

Recent articles from Chris Georges

Breaking News