Michael Crouse
Michael R. Crouse (born November 22, 1990) is a Canadian professional baseball outfielder for the Chicago Dogs of the American Association of Professional Baseball. He has also been a member of the Toronto Blue Jays organization, and has competed for the Canadian national baseball team. Career. Amateur career. Crouse attended Centennial Secondary School in Coquitlam, British Columbia. Crouse played baseball and basketball in high school, eventually choosing to focus on baseball. Toronto Blue Jays. Out of high school, Crouse was drafted by the Toronto Blue Jays in the 16th round (489th overall) of the 2008 MLB draft. Crouse  chose to sign with the Blue Jays instead of attending college. He made his professional debut in 2008, appearing in seven games with the Gulf Coast Blue Jays of the Rookie-level Gulf Coast League. He returned to the Gulf Coast Blue Jays in 2009. He was promoted to the Lansing Lugnuts of the Class-A Midwest League in 2010. With the Lugnuts, Crouse established himself as the team's starting right fielder, finishing the season with a .261 batting average, 14 home runs and 55 runs batted in. He led the Lugnuts with 38 stolen bases. Crouse joined the  Dunedin Blue Jays in the Class-A Advanced Florida State League in 2012. He remained with the Blue Jays organization through the 2014 season, playing for the Double-A New Hampshire Fisher Cats, and was released in the offseason. Lancaster Barnstormers. Crouse signed with the Lancaster Barnstormers of the Atlantic League of Professional Baseball, an independent league, for the 2015 season. He missed the entire campaign due to injury. He re-signed with the team on January 26, 2016. New Britain Bees. Lancaster traded Crouse to the New Britain Bees on May 21, 2016, and finished the 2016 Atlantic League  season with a league leading 61 stolen bases. Pericos de Puebla. Crouse signed with the Pericos de Puebla of the Mexican League for the 2018 season. Algodoneros de Unión. He signed with Algodoneros de Unión Laguna in early 2019, but was released on May 21, 2019. Somerset Patriots. On May 28, 2019, Crouse signed with the Somerset Patriots of the Atlantic League of Professional Baseball. Chicago Dogs. On March 16, 2020, Crouse signed with the Chicago Dogs of the American Association of Independent Professional Baseball. International career. Crouse has played for the Canadian national baseball team. He played in the  2008 World Junior Baseball Championship, being named to the tournament's All-Star team. He also participated in the 2011 Baseball World Cup, winning the bronze medal, and the 2011 Pan American Games, winning the gold medal. He was the youngest player on the team. Scouting profile. Crouse, listed at , is considered to be a five-tool player. Drafted as a centre fielder, Crouse is expected to remain in right field. Personal. Crouse's father, Ray Crouse, a football running back, played in the National Football League and Canadian Football League.