Corunna’s Rob Thomson followed up his appearance in the 2022 World Series with a win in the All-Star game.
The National League rallied for a 3-2 win over the American League with Thomson as the NL skipper. It was the senior circuit’s first win at the mid-season classic since 2012.
Thomson, born in Sarnia and raised in Corunna, is the first Canadian to manage in an all-star contest.
According to the Canadian Baseball Hall of Fame, Thomson was standout player for the Intercounty League’s Stratford Hillers in the early ’80s and was recruited by Dick Groch, later a famous New York Yankees scout, to play for St. Clair Community College. He suited up there for one year before transferring to the University of Kansas.
In 1984, Thomson was part of the Canadian squad that competed in the 1984 Summer Olympics in Los Angeles when baseball was a demonstration sport. The following year, he was selected by the Detroit Tigers in the 32nd round of MLB draft.
The catcher/third baseman would advance as high as the class-A level before shifting his focus to coaching in 1988.
Thomson served as a minor league coach in the Tigers system for two seasons before joining the New York Yankees in 1990. Over the next 28 seasons, the hard-working Canadian evolved into one of the most respected coaches in the professional ranks, coaching with the New York Yankees before moving to the Phillies.
