The first Toronto Blue Jays player to ever hit a home run, the late Doug Ault discusses the fickleness of Toronto fans and the pitfalls of having a loaner car to drive around the city:
Doug Ault was the Jays’ rookie first-baseman and his two home runs helped to propel the Blue Jays to a 9-5 victory in their inaugural home game at Exhibition Stadium. Ault went on to hit 15 more home runs in his Major League career before playing in Japan, and finally the Mexican League. At the conclusion of his playing career, Ault managed the Blue Jays’ AAA affiliate Syracuse Chiefs, winning the International League’s manager of the year award in 1985. It was his first time managing a baseball team at any level.
The full story on the first Toronto Blue Jays home-opener can be found at 1:29 in the video below:
Images courtesy of the Toronto Public Library archives
