HIGH ACHIEVERS: Sam McKay commits to Canisius College baseball, Charlie Firth eyes athletic scholarship on diamond

By Martin Cleary

The end goal is straightforward enough – earn an athletic scholarship to play NCAA Division 1 baseball and study at a quality post-secondary institute.

But the journey that precedes it is long, filled with challenges and comes with no guarantees.

Sam McKay, who graduated from Colonel By Secondary School last June as an honours student, hit the finish line in November, while experiencing his gap year between academic seasons. He recently signed a letter of intent to attend Canisius College in Buffalo, N.Y., and will join the pitching staff of the successful Golden Griffins baseball program in 2025-26. He plans to study physical education.

Charlie Firth continues to build his resume and is planning to graduate from St. Martin Catholic Secondary School in Mississauga in June. Between now and the end of his 2025-26 gap year, the Ottawa pitcher is aiming to commit to an NCAA Division 1 university, which includes Ivy League schools.

The 18-year-old McKay, who has played with six different teams in his youth baseball career, has met the criteria for athletic and academic scholarships to enrol at Canisius.

“This is what I wanted. It means so much to me,” McKay said in a phone interview Thursday about earning the opportunity to extend his baseball career at an NCAA Division 1 school.

“I’m going to a good university. It’s definitely a great honour. I’m happy I fulfilled (that goal).”

Canisius has had 16 consecutive seasons in the Mid-Atlantic Athletic Conference with a Division 1 regular-season record above .500. The Golden Griffins won their fourth conference title in 2022 under Matt Mazurek, who has been with the program 18 years, including the last seven as head coach.

The Canisius scouting team watched McKay at three showcase opportunities since 2021 and were fully aware of the pitching potential the of six-foot, three-inch, 195-pound athlete, who plays for the Toronto Mets in the Canadian Premier Baseball League.

After doing research about Canisius, McKay reached out to Mazurek in August. Mets vice-president Rich Leitch followed with a phone call of support and recommendation. McKay visited Canisius on Nov. 14 and was offered a scholarship the next day, which he accepted.

McKay entered the baseball world at age six, when he had a game of catch with his father John on the front lawn of their Manor Park home.

“My dad liked baseball, but he wasn’t a diehard,” McKay said. “He wanted to show me the game. He said ‘oh, you have a good arm.’ But I think every dad says that.”

John McKay’s comment was an honest and accurate one as Sam took to pitching once he entered the game in the Glebe Little League.

“I was nervous to play because baseball is harder to learn,” said McKay, who spent two years in the minor division (ages nine and 10) and two years in the major division (11-12) with Glebe, developing his baseball foundation.

When he joined the Bytown Dodgers 13U team, it was his first experience with a competitive baseball team, where players needed to earn their time to get into the game.

“It was definitely a year of transition for me to go from being one of the kids on the bench to looking for time to play,” he said. “It was my realization year. I look back at it as one of the most important years of my development.”

In 2020, he joined the Kanata Cubs 14U squad and dealt with the first of two growth spurts. His fastball velocity had its biggest jump to 75 miles an hour. The five-foot, seven-inch McKay also saw more playing time as a regular closer and occasional starter and the Cubs won the city championship.

On the suggestion of his mother Amanda Cahoon, McKay attended the Ottawa Nepean Canadians 15U tryouts and shocked himself by being asked to join its full-year training and competitive program. Pitching coach Evan Grills, who had one season with Ottawa Titans in the Frontier League, used his minor pro experience to help McKay understand the deeper levels of pitching.

After failing to make the Watson Elite 14U and 15U teams in the past, he tried once again and was named to the 16U team in 2022. Tanner Watson, who was drafted by the Seattle Mariners in 2000 and played nine minor league seasons, refined McKay’s pitching even more and helped bring his fastball to 87 miles an hour. McKay made the CPBL’s all-star team and the Toronto Blue Jays Canadian Futures Showcase. A Canisius scout posted a message on Twitter (now X) about his clean one-inning effort at the league all-star game.

McKay carried high expectations into his second year with Watson Elite as he tried to bring his fastball to the 90-mile-per-hour level. But when he suffered a shoulder injury (latissimus dorsi), he played through it because of his determination. As his 2023 season progressed, his velocity decreased.

In the off season, he rebuilt himself with a training program at Titan Performance Centre, losing 25 pounds and adding muscle.

In 2024, he joined the Toronto Mets of the CPBL and made a big step in his recovery as a pitcher and compiled a 3.10 ERA. He helped the Mets reach the CPBL final and win the CABA Wood Bat World Series in July in Cincinnati.

Firth played his minor baseball with the Ottawa West Twins Little League, won the 2019 Ontario major title and reached the semifinals of the Canadian championship. He followed that with two years in the Ottawa Knights program.

But at age 14, he decided to move to Toronto, centralize with the Ontario Blue Jays team and live with a host family. He currently is a Grade 12 student at St. Martin Catholic Secondary School in Mississauga and will take a gap year in 2025-26.

“[Moving] was definitely a big decision and took a lot of thought,” Firth said in a phone interview this week.

That decision was made after Firth was selected to the Ontario Blue Jays’ inaugural 14U team. His father Derek contacted the Ontario Blue Jays requesting a tryout for his son and Charlie was given a one-hour audition, which proved successful.

Last year, he decided to focus on pitching and leave the infield work to his teammates.

“I saw I had more of a future on the mound. I was dominant at 14U and 15U and the coaches also saw my future on the mound,” Firth added. “Overall, it’s my compete level. I bring intensity to the mound.”

Like McKay, Firth is an excellent student with a 3.86 grade-point average out of 4.0. Strong academics along with his baseball skills will help him find the right university.

The 2024 season was busy for Firth as he travelled throughout North America with the Ontario Blue Jays and Team Ontario.

Playing for Ontario, he called the Baseball Canada Cup in Fort McMurray, AB, “the best week of my life.” Ontario finished sixth at 3-4.

“It felt different playing with the guys I compete against (in the CPBL),” Firth explained. “The nine days with them was a bonding experience wearing the Ontario uniform.”

In his only assignment, Firth pitched the opening playoff game. He tossed a complete, six-inning game and was happy with his performance, despite a 2-0 loss to Quebec. Ottawa’s Logan Forgie, a left-handed pitcher, also was on the Ontario roster.

Firth also had back-to-back showcase experiences in Georgia along with Forgie. In his two showings against American competition, Firth recorded a combined seven innings, two hits, no runs and one strikeout. Forgie notched four strikeouts in two innings at the Junior National Showcase.

During the Perfect Game’s World Wood Bat Association Underclass tournament in Fort Myers, Florida, in October, Firth played for the CPBL team, which won all four of its games. The tournament ended early because of inclement weather.

He pitched two innings and didn’t allow any hits or runs in his pool game. In a game against Australia, he had four strikeouts.

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