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TORONTO -- Michael Saunders was born in Victoria, British Columbia -- about as close to Seattle as you can get without being in the United States.Yet when it came to his baseball allegiance growing up, nationality mattered at least as much as geography.Proximity-wise, I guess everyone felt like Seattle would be my hometown team, but it was really the Jays, Saunders said. My whole family was Jays fans growing up.Now an outfielder for those Toronto Blue Jays, Saunders is uniquely qualified to explain how Canadas lone major league team has cultivated a following among baseball fans all across the country. When the Blue Jays try to avoid elimination Tuesday in Game 4 of the AL Championship Series against Cleveland, theyll have support in provinces near and far.Just ask the Mariners how much Canadians love their Blue Jays. Seattle is three time zones from Toronto, but since its close to Canada, Blue Jays fans show up in droves when the Mariners host Toronto. They also make their presence felt in Detroit, which is just across the river from southern Ontario.It is a very unique situation when you have a whole country as opposed to 29 teams that are localized to a state, Blue Jays reliever Jason Grilli said. The United States is where baseball thrives, of course, but there is one team in Canada that everyone here supports. Its truly incredible. People dont know what its like until they experience a game here and see the support.A winning team always helps, of course, and Toronto is in the postseason for a second consecutive year after a dry spell that stretched back to the teams most recent World Series title in 1993. Sportsnet reported that Game 3 of this months AL Division Series between the Blue Jays and Texas Rangers drew an average audience of 4.73 million, making it Sportsnets most-watched program of the year to that point.Canadas obsession, of course, is with hockey, but thats largely divided among the countrys NHL teams. Toronto has been Canadas only big league team since the Montreal Expos left after the 2004 season, and the support the Blue Jays receive from far-flung Canadian areas wouldnt necessarily be there for, say, the more polarizing Toronto Maple Leafs.It would be the exact opposite, actually, said 31-year-old Stephen Safinuk, a Blue Jays fan from Saskatchewan. Theyd be wishing them a quick exit from the playoffs, if they ever make it.Safinuk was in Toronto for the ALCS, and he was visiting the Hockey Hall of Fame on Monday -- while wearing a shirt with Blue Jays slugger Josh Donaldsons name on the back. He said hes seen the Blue Jays play on the road against the Los Angeles Angels, and hed like to be among the throngs of Toronto fans in Seattle sometime soon.Seattle next year is my goal, he said. Its a must-do trip, absolutely.Saunders spent his first six seasons with the Mariners before playing these past two for the Blue Jays.Were not just representing Toronto, were representing all of Canada, he said. Its a really neat experience to see that kind of fan support, and you really see it when you go to Seattle and play the Mariners. I spent my entire career with the Mariners, so I saw kind of the other end of the spectrum. It was a different experience for me to be wearing a Jays uniform this time around.A couple offseasons ago, the Blue Jays made stops in Alberta (Calgary and Banff) and Vancouver, British Columbia, on their winter tour itinerary, the equivalent of the Reds trying to reach out to fans in, say, San Diego. As long as the Blue Jays are Canadas only team, theyll continue to have substantial territory to claim as their own.Itll never overtake hockey here, but the passion is very similar, Safinuk said. You dont see this kind of singular team support for anything other than -- you see it for the Raptors, too, when they were doing good the last couple years, but thats because in Canada, we only have the Raptors and the Blue Jays in NBA and MLB. You dont get that anywhere else.---Follow Noah Trister at www.Twitter.com/noahtrister Qadree Ollison Jersey . After Martin Skrtel put the Reds in front from close range at Stamford Bridge after only four minutes, Hazard hit back in the 17th with a superb strike. Etoo gave Jose Mourinhos team a decisive lead from Oscars back pass in the 34th. Julio Jones Youth Jersey . The Swede became the first golfer to win the PGA Tours FedEx Cup and European Tours Race to Dubai in the same season. 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After Gasquet beat fifth-seeded Ivan Dodig of Croatia 7-5, 6-3, Tsonga followed up with a 6-7 (3), 6-2, 6-2 win against sixth-seeded Edouard Roger-Vasselin in an all-French match.Barcelona will return to the National Football Centre at St Georges Park for a training camp this summer. Barca, who are chasing a domestic double of a La Liga title and Copa del Rey win in the coming weeks, will be based at the Staffordshire complex between July 25-30. The Spanish giants already used the £105m facility in 2014, ahead of coach Luis Enriques first season in the Nou Camp hotseat.St Georges Park general manager Holly Murdoch said: I am absolutely thrilled that we have once again been able to attract Barcelona to come and train at St Georges Park.Weve been lucky enough to have already welcomed over 150 clubs to our facilities since we opened in 2012, and I truly believe that the return of Barcelona is proof of our growing reputation as an inspirational sports facility both at home and abroad. Englands goalkeepers train at St Georges Park After five days at St Georges Park - home to Englands 24 national teams - Barca will travel directly to Dublin for their opening pre-season friendly against Celtic in the International Champions Cup on July 30.ddddddddddddThe reigning Spanish, European and Club World Cup champions have also confirmed pre-season matches against new Premier League champions Leicester and Europa League finalists Liverpool. Also See: Get Sky Sports Barcelona video Barcelona fixtures Barcelona stats Get a ￡10 free bet! ' ' '