Stubby Clapp says 'ultimate goal' for Canada is defending its gold medal in baseball

Stubby Clapp's been here before, but it doesn't mean it's any less exciting wearing a Team Canada jersey at the Pan Am Games this time around.

"You always get the chills whenever you put that name across your chest," Clapp told CBC Radio's Windsor Morning during an interview on Wednesday.

In 1999, he played for Team Canada when the team won a bronze medal at the Pan Am Games in Winnipeg. Clapp, who grew up in Windsor, had a key hit that allowed Canada to claim a victory over the U.S. in that tournament.

This time around, he's part of the coaching staff on a team that is now 4-0 through Tuesday's games.

"It's been a lot of fun — good team, good camaraderie," said Clapp, who is also a hitting instructor in the Toronto Blue Jays' minor-league system. "Obviously, a little different being on the coaching staff, but it's just as important."

Looking ahead to what Team Canada may be able to accomplish in Toronto, Clapp said the hope is for the country to defend its gold medal from the last Pan Am Games, which were held in Guadalajara, Mexico.

"That's the ultimate goal, obviously getting to do it in front of your own country, I mean that's going to be huge," he said.

"To be able to be keep putting Baseball Canada's name on the map and keep earning the respect of everybody else in the world."