{"id":686285,"date":"2026-04-30T00:51:20","date_gmt":"2026-04-30T00:51:20","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/mlb\/686285\/"},"modified":"2026-04-30T00:51:20","modified_gmt":"2026-04-30T00:51:20","slug":"jays-springer-honoured-to-catch-ceremonial-pitch-from-make-a-wish-foundation-member","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/mlb\/686285\/","title":{"rendered":"Jays\u2019 Springer honoured to catch ceremonial pitch from Make-A-Wish foundation member"},"content":{"rendered":"

Open this photo in gallery:<\/a><\/p>\n

Thirteen-year-old Blake Savage throws the first pitch as part of the Make-A-Wish Foundation before the Toronto Blue Jays took on the Boston Red Sox on Wednesday at Rogers Centre.Chris Young\/The Canadian Press<\/p>\n

Blake Savage rubbed the baseball between his hands as he approached the Rogers Centre mound, preparing for a moment he\u2019d been dreaming about for months.<\/p>\n

The 13-year-old from Moncton, N.B. was invited to throw the ceremonial first pitch ahead of Wednesday\u2019s Toronto Blue Jays\u2019<\/a> 8-1 win over the Boston Red Sox as part of a wish made possible through Make-A-Wish Canada, the charity that helps children facing critical illnesses fulfill wishes.<\/p>\n

From in front of the mound, Savage, a right-hander, fired an on-target throw to a crouching George Springer, an ambassador for the charity. After, Springer congratulated Savage on a good pitch before autographing the ball and a baseball card that Savage brought from home.<\/p>\n

Savage lives with a rare genetic heart condition called catecholaminergic polymorphic ventricular tachycardia or CPVT, which causes an abnormal heart rhythm. It can lead the heart to beat too quickly when exercising or under stress. He was diagnosed in 2024 after he survived a sudden cardiac arrest while playing hockey.<\/p>\n

According to his mom, Tabatha, he can no longer play hockey because of the physical exertion required by the sport, but he was cleared to play baseball since it naturally allows for rest periods.<\/p>\n

What the Blue Jays’ pregame ritual can teach us about gratitude<\/a><\/p>\n

In Moncton, Savage is a second baseman and pitcher. He\u2019s been playing for about four years, but he\u2019s been a Blue Jays fan for much longer. \u201cI\u2019ve probably been a Blue Jays fan for like my whole life,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n

Sometimes, he said, he\u2019s even allowed to stay up late to watch their games. Savage especially enjoyed watching Toronto\u2019s run to the World Series last season, and it was at the end of 2025 that he came up with the idea to throw the first pitch at a Blue Jays game.<\/p>\n

After months of waiting, when the day finally came, it was full of incredible moments for Savage, who was visiting Toronto for the first time and had 14 members from his extended family in attendance supporting him.<\/p>\n

He received a VIP tour of the Rogers Centre and had a special pre-first-pitch meeting with Trey Yesavage, who also signed the back of Savage\u2019s custom No. 17 jersey \u2013 the number he always wears \u2013 gifted to him by the Blue Jays.<\/p>\n

Open this photo in gallery:<\/a><\/p>\n

Blake Savage also got to meet Jays’ pitcher Trey Yesavage.Nick Turchiaro\/Reuters<\/p>\n

Savage said he likes watching Yesavage because \u201che\u2019s just a good pitcher.\u201d During their one-on-one chat, the rookie starter didn\u2019t pass on any advice to Savage but did ask him, \u201cAre you going to pitch it like me?\u201d<\/p>\n

Savage confirmed that, yes, he did indeed throw a Yesavage-inspired splitter to Springer.<\/p>\n

Afterward, what was going through his mind after meeting two of his Blue Jays heroes?<\/p>\n

\u201cI was shocked,\u201d he said. \u201cOn TV, they look so much smaller. In real life, they\u2019re way taller.\u201d<\/p>\n

The size of the field was also jarring: \u201cIt\u2019s a lot bigger than I thought it would be,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n

Cathal Kelly: Whatever the Blue Jays are, at least they’re not the Mets<\/a><\/p>\n

Springer can relate to how Savage felt. As a kid, he, too, had a meaningful brush with a big-leaguer.<\/p>\n

When Springer was 8, Torii Hunter, the five-time all-star former outfielder, was playing for the Minnesota Twins\u2019 Double-A affiliate in New Britain, Conn., Springer\u2019s hometown. Before a game, Hunter played catch with Springer while he was in the stands.<\/p>\n

Today, Springer remembers the moment lasting \u201cthree seconds,\u201d but it stayed with him.<\/p>\n

\u201cThat impacted my life to the point where I said, \u2018I want to be like him,\u2019\u201d Springer said, standing on the field about an hour before he was activated from the injured list after recovering from a fractured left big toe. <\/p>\n

Open this photo in gallery:<\/a><\/p>\n

A father of two boys, George Springer said his involvement with Make-A-Wish Canada brought him joy, while his heart went out to the families that he’s met and helped.Chris Young\/The Canadian Press<\/p>\n

\u201cAnything I can do to help, I will. I do it because I want to and because I have genuine fun and get enjoyment out of trying to help anybody.\u201d<\/p>\n

Make-A-Wish Canada reports that more than 3,500 wishes for children battling critical illnesses across the country are waiting to be fulfilled. Springer, a father of two boys, has partnered with the charity because he deeply appreciates the work being done.<\/p>\n

\u201cAs a guy who has kids, stuff like that means the world to me, and it hurts my heart to hear stories, to see stories, but to see their strength means a lot to me,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n

Currently, a portion of all kids\u2019 menu orders at Jack Astor\u2019s restaurants goes toward raising money for Make-A-Wish Canada. To generate even more funds, a new T-shirt featuring Springer will be available for purchase online. The limited-edition T-shirt was designed by Toronto artist Kit Weyman, best known for his Vladimir Guerrero Jr. \u201cborn ready\u201d T-shirts released during last year\u2019s World Series run.<\/p>\n

Along with Savage, the Blue Jays hosted other Make-A-Wish families on Wednesday in recognition of World Wish Day, celebrated annually on April 29 to mark the anniversary of the first wish that inspired the organization\u2019s mission in 1980.<\/p>\n

As for his own wish, Savage said his favourite moment of his day was throwing the first pitch. How would he rate the experience overall?<\/p>\n

\u201cA 10,\u201d he said, enthusiastically.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Open this photo in gallery: Thirteen-year-old Blake Savage throws the first pitch as part of the Make-A-Wish Foundation…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":686286,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[2378],"tags":[7508,7493,5,7509,377,2554,5965,5961,7510,1465,7488,7499,7500,7495,7489,7487,6589,7506,7504,7498,7492,7521,7490,7491,7497,7494,5826,1358,7511,4,5755,7516,7517,7519,7514,7518,7512,7515,5719,7502,7503,1239,7501,7513,317,7505,282,70,2553,7507,7496,4750,6984,7520],"class_list":["post-686285","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-toronto-blue-jays","tag-alberta","tag-arts-news","tag-baseball","tag-bc","tag-blue-jays","tag-bluejays","tag-breaking-news","tag-breaking-news-video","tag-british-columbia","tag-canada","tag-canada-news","tag-canada-sports","tag-canada-sports-news","tag-canada-trafficcanada-weather","tag-canadian-breaking-news","tag-canadian-news","tag-economy","tag-education","tag-environment","tag-federal-government","tag-foreign-news","tag-globe-and-mail","tag-globe-and-mail-breaking-news","tag-globe-and-mail-canada-news","tag-government","tag-life-news","tag-lifestyle","tag-local-news","tag-manitoba","tag-mlb","tag-national-news","tag-new-brunswick","tag-newfoundland-and-labrador","tag-northwest-territories","tag-nova-scotia","tag-nunavut","tag-ontario","tag-pei","tag-photos","tag-political-news","tag-political-opinion","tag-politics","tag-politics-news","tag-quebec","tag-sports-news","tag-technology","tag-toronto","tag-toronto-blue-jays","tag-torontobluejays","tag-travel","tag-trudeau","tag-us-news","tag-world-news","tag-yukon"],"share_on_mastodon":{"url":"","error":"Validation failed: Text character limit of 500 exceeded"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/mlb\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/686285","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/mlb\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/mlb\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/mlb\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/mlb\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=686285"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/mlb\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/686285\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/mlb\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/686286"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/mlb\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=686285"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/mlb\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=686285"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/mlb\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=686285"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}