This past Saturday, The Sun’s Gary Kingston pitched (haw) a good reason to go to the Vancouver Board of Trade lunch at the Fairmont Hotel this Friday that celebrates the start of the C’s season (in just two weeks!) - a collection of signed baseballs that will be up for auction:

The baseballs were collected from 10 B.C.-born players and coaches who were active in the major leagues in 2006. They include Minnesota Twins slugger Justin Morneau, who was the American League MVP that season, 1997 NL MVP Larry Walker, and Pittsburgh outfielder Jason Bay, the 2005 NL rookie of the year.

Baseballs were also signed by pitchers Ryan Dempster (Chicago Cubs), Jeff Francis (Colorado), Rich Harden (Oakland), Adam Loewen (Baltimore) and Scott Mathieson (Philadelphia), outfielder Aaron Guiel (New York Yankees) and coach Dave McKay (St. Louis).

"This is a unique set that would be prized by any serious baseball fan, and we’re hoping for some generous offers on the bidding sheet," said Grace McCarthy, chairman of the board of the CH.I.L.D Foundation, which will benefit from the auction.

The foundation raises funds for medical research into Crohn’s Disease, ulcerative colitis and liver disorders in children.

Of course, you might want to check eBay before you bid. An Aaron Guiel autographed baseball will cost you $9.99, mailed direct to your door. Dave McKay comes even cheaper - $6 with a certificate of authenticity. 

Then again, cheaping out won’t exactly help sick children, will it? 

Oddly enough, Kingston’s Sun colleague, Greg Douglas, also mentioned the baseball auction in Saturday’s paper, dropping in a bit of a spoiler about the C’s new mascot, which is rumoured to be making an appearance at the lunch.

I think it’s uncool to spoil such things before the team gets to make a splash with it, so I won’t repeat Douglas’ spoiler, but if you’re the kind of person who reads the last page of a novel before he begins the rest of the book, you can find it here. 

Lastly, here’s Bob Mackin in the Vancouver Courier on the new C’s uniforms:

As Jerry Seinfeld said, it’s all just laundry. As I say, some laundry is gaudier than others.

That’s not a word that can be used to describe the Vancouver Canadians’ new uniforms. They’re clean, crisp and conservative. Uncluttered. Not a pinstripe to be seen. They’ll sell a bunch when the single-A Northwest League season starts June 17.