DUNEDIN, Fla. – Back when Freddie Freeman was a teenager, around the age of 13 or so, his father Fred took him to watch the Angels play the visiting Toronto Blue Jays, and the youngster made a mistake he remembers vividly to this day.
"I didn’t stand up for the Canadian national anthem – my dad took me right on out of the stadium," he recalls of a punishment that was immediate and harsh, with no second chances. "Makes me who I am today."
The Atlanta Braves slugger relayed the story after an O Canada that was memorable for far happier reasons, one played before he collected an RBI fielder’s choice in Canada’s 7-1 exhibition win over the Toronto Blue Jays on Tuesday.
Standing beside Justin Morneau pre-game as Katie Ducharme performed the anthem, the California-born Freeman "sang every word, so (Morneau) gave me a pat on the back." The moment carried an even deeper significance for Freeman, representing Canada at the World Baseball Classic in memory of his late mother Rosemary, who died from melanoma in 2000 when he was just 10.
"Right after it finished I looked up to the sky," he said. "I know she’s watching, I know she has a front-row seat in a lounge chair watching every game. I don’t know what my emotions will be on Thursday (when the tournament opens), I really don’t. My dad is going to be in the stands … I’ve always wanted to honour my mom, and every day I live it’s for her, so it’s going to be a special, special day."
Freeman expects to be nervous ahead of the opener against the defending-champion Dominican Republic, and he says he can’t remember the last time he was nervous for a big-league contest, even a post-season affair.
The stern lesson from his dad during that Angels game instilled in Freeman the importance of his parents’ Canadian heritage – Fred is from Windsor, Ont., while Rosemary was born in Toronto – and he’s embraced all aspects of playing for the national team.
"I’m starting to feel more Canadian but the guys are letting me know that I’m not," he said with a grin. "I’m playing for Canada and I’m all about Canada at this tournament. It’s going to be special and I’m going to sing the words loud and proud."
A challenge for Freeman will be fighting the urge to overdo things in an effort to put up big numbers out of a desire "to make her proud." When he and his two brothers were young, she’d throw the ball around with the boys, catching it with a glove on her left hand before removing it to toss it back.
"She was lefty all the way," Freeman said.
It was thanks to her, in part, that he hits left-handed, too. Before he started playing T-ball, Freeman’s father instructed Rosemary to make sure the coach didn’t try to change Freddie from a left-handed hitter to a right-handed hitter.
During his first game, "the coach tried to turn me around, my mom came right out on the field and goes, ‘My husband told me to take him off the field if you tried to turn him around,’ so she grabbed me by my shirt and we walked right off," he said laughing.
"I like telling you guys these stories because telling the memories I have of her makes her live on," he added later. "It’s nice being able to talk about her."
The longer Canada lasts at the World Baseball Classic, the more opportunities Freeman will get.
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GAGNE SHOWS WELL:
Eric Gagne impressed in his stiffest test to date, allowing a hit and a walk in a scoreless third for Canada. The former Cy Young Award winner from Mascouche, Que., sat 92-93 with his fastball, threw a few solid change-ups, dropped a slider at 87 and a pretty curveball for a strike at 70.
Not bad for a guy who was "really nervous," comparable to how he felt during his "first time in the big-leagues."
"I just didn’t want to embarrass myself," he said. "I knew I’ve worked really, really hard, I knew I’m ready physically and mentally, but going out there is a different story."
Gagne is hoping to showcase himself at the Classic and Blue Jays evaluators were among the teams keeping a close watch on his performance.
Asked if he was pleased with his velocity, he quipped: "Whatever I can throw a strike with."
"For me, anything above 90, if I keep the ball down with good angle, I think I’m fine because I’ve got that change-up that usually works pretty good," he said. "It’s good to see how your pitches are going to be when you’ve got the adrenaline going and everything else, but it felt really good."
Canada pitcher Eric Gagne catches the ball after a warm up pitch. (John Raoux/AP)
The primary quibble with his outing was a 3-2 change-up that missed to Jake Elmore for a walk – a pitch Gagne himself described as selfish in search of a strikeout. Kevin Pillar then cue-balled a single to right field.
"I was very impressed with the way the ball was coming out of his hand, 92, 93, and had a real good breaking ball," said manager Ernie Whitt. "There was one pitch selection I didn’t like, 3-2 off-speed to the No. 9 hitter. That just makes me cringe at times, but they’ve got to get their work in, too. That’s what these exhibition games are for."
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SCRATCHING ONE OUT:
Though Canada’s offence was highlighted by two-run singles from Morneau and Jonathan Malo, it was the way they manufactured a run in the first that players pointed to as a good sign.
Dalton Pompey reached on an error, took second on a ball in the dirt, advanced to third on a grounder to the right side by Morneau and scored on a Freddie Freeman chopper.
"It means everyone is on the same page, we know what we have to do," said Ernie Whitt. "Like we tell everyone – we check our egos at the door, do whatever it takes to score a run. It’s a simple philosophy for me: We score one, that means the other team has to score two. I’m very positive that with the arms we have, we can hold them down."
Pompey finished 2-for-3 with a walk and a run, along with a strong diving catch.
"That’s my job. Try to get on base any way I can," he said. "I was lucky enough to get on with an error. If I can get a walk, bunt hit, squeak one out – anything – I’m going to try to do it. We’ve got to try to get on teams early because we don’t want to fall behind and put the pressure on ourselves."
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QUOTABLE:
"I might have to switch teams, for crying out loud." – Blue Jays manager John Gibbons after the loss to Canada.
