Max much more than mere player

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This article was published 14/06/2011 (5465 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

Max Poulin was never a big leaguer but he felt like one every day he spent in Winnipeg.

Tonight he’ll get that feeling one more time.

The Winnipeg Goldeyes will retire Poulin’s jersey in a ceremony at Shaw Park that for some will harken back to some of the finest moments in club history.

Poulin had a nose for the ball and a heavy arm from deep in the hole at short, making impossible plays a reality on many nights. I’ve heard some big roars following home runs or wins, but the loudest I can remember at the park came at signature Poulin moments.

A hot shot up the middle would force Poulin to his left and with a quick dip for the ball and a spin to first he’d zip a perfect throw to get the runner.

The adopted son of St. Boniface would then jog back to the dugout in his peculiar, stiff-legged gait, facing the third-base bleachers as the fans stood up in unison and roared his name.

Poulin was loved by that side of the stadium and the other too. Quite simply, over his eight-year career in Winnipeg, Poulin was the most beloved Goldeyes player of them all.

“I miss those moments most of all,” said Poulin, 34. “The people of Winnipeg treated me like a big leaguer every day I was here. When I got a chance to do something to help the team, they would go nuts and cheer for me. It was incredible. Playing pro baseball — there are different levels — but for me in Winnipeg it was like the major leagues.”

Poulin, according to longtime Goldeyes manager Hal Lanier, had a big league glove.

“To hear that from Hal, who was very good at second base during his major league career, that meant a lot to me,” said Poulin. “Parts of my game were close to big league. Other parts weren’t so close.”

Poulin’s story has been well told. He sat at home one day in Quebec and turned on his computer looking for tryout camps. He found the Goldeyes website and it changed his life.

“I think about that day when I went on the computer. If I had missed Winnipeg or not gone on until the next day… well, I can’t imagine my life without Winnipeg,” said Poulin, now retired from playing and earning a living here running his baseball academy and a home renovation business.

“I spent the next day packing my car and the next day driving to Winnipeg. Three days after I saw the website I was standing on the field here at shortstop.”

Goldeyes broadcaster Paul Edmonds says it was love at first sight for Poulin and his fans.

“Sometimes the most defining moments can come early in a career. In his eight years here Max was by far the fan favourite and he made his name here very early on,” said Edmonds. “I believe it was his first game and his first at-bat, he came off the bench and hit a single up the middle for the win. And the same week, he was playing third base and he went into the dugout to make a catch and then came storming up the dugout steps throwing to try and double up a guy at second base. It didn’t hurt that he was Canadian and that he made Winnipeg his home after a few years. Combined with how hard he played the game, the fans loved Max like no other.”

Poulin was blessed with a love for the game that made him a tireless worker when it came to preparation. He took more ground balls than anyone else and he had athletic ability that showed on his more acrobatic plays.

But Poulin was more about consistency and determination than flash. For the baseball fans of Winnipeg, their favourite infielder had a little bit of the hockey player mixed into his baseball psyche and they loved it.

When someone slid into second a little too hard Poulin would give them a little shove or an angry glare. Poulin wasn’t a hot-head but he’d willed his way into pro baseball and wasn’t about to be pushed out of the game by anyone.

The end was a little ragged for Poulin, as manager Rick Forney determined it was time to call it a day, while the shortstop wanted to keep swinging.

Both men took a little heat from fans and Poulin had some misadventures in Edmonton before setting his glove down for good.

Thankfully all has been forgiven and this moment has arrived, where Poulin can say goodbye to his fans.

They deserve it.

And so does Max.

gary.lawless@freepress.mb.ca