Etobicoke, Ont. resident Dan Begley was supposed to be at the Rogers Centre on Thursday afternoon watching the Jays home opener with two of his buddies.
Instead, the longtime fan said he was “escorted out of the stadium by two big security guards” just moments after the game began due to his choice of headwear.
For today’s game, Begley, who is 70, wore a Blue Jays hoodie and a red ballcap with the slogan, “Canada is not for sale.”
This is the same type of hat that Ontario Premier Doug Ford donned during a first ministers meeting earlier this year not long after U.S. President Donald Trump started threatening to impose new tariffs on Canadian goods. Ford said he wore the cap as reminder to all Canadians about the importance of “standing up for our country.”
Begley, who got the hat about two weeks ago, said he felt that the message resonated with him and decided to wear it to today’s game.
“I like the saying and I feel like more people should stand up for Canada and be more aware,” he told CP24 Thursday evening.
“All it says is Canada is not for sale and it has a Canadian flag on it.”
Begley, who said he never expected that he’d have any issues with the hat, said he was actually inside the stadium for about an hour and half, adding that the bartender who served him a beer even complimented him on it.
A short time later, however, he said he was approached by an usher who politely told him that the hat he was wearing is in contravention of their “rule against political statements.”
He said he was told that he had to either turn it around or remove it entirely.
“I have a suspicion they didn’t want that on TV or maybe on the Jumbotron,” Begley said, adding that he felt what was being asked of him was “wrong” and refused to cooperate.
Two security guards then approached him along with a supervisor and brought him into a hall before leading him out of the building.
“I was yelling on the way out. I let people know that I was being kicked out because I was wearing this hat. … They kept repeating that they were just following the rules,” Begley said of the “pretty embarrassing situation.”
“I felt like a criminal for supporting my country. This [incident] ruined the whole activity.”
Begley said he then headed home on the GO Train.
He said he decided to contact the media because he feels that others should be aware of this so-called controversial logo policy.
“I want an apology, otherwise all of my Jays stuff is going to go in a garbage bag,” he said, adding that it’s not about the money, but the policy, which he’d like to see reversed.
“I’d like to be able to just sit there and support my country and not be worried about being kicked out.”
CP24.com reached out The Toronto Blue Jays late Thursday afternoon for comment on the incident.
“We have spoken with the fan to apologize,” spokesperson Andrea Goldstein wrote in an email.
“Our staff made a mistake, and we have addressed the issue to ensure it does not happen again.”
Goldstein said they’ve invited Begley back to the ballpark, “and he has accepted our apology and is looking forward to returning.”
Begley, in a follow-up interview, confirmed that he spoke with a representative from the Jays who apologized for what happened and offered him free tickets to another game.
He said they also told him that it was OK to wear his “Canada is not for sale” hat to the stadium.
“It’s too bad it happened. Somebody really lost their judgement there. It just wasn’t right,” Begley said.
“I said to my wife, ‘These Blue Jays games are hard on the nerves,’ but it wasn’t supposed to be this way.”
