2026 ARTICLES
Let’s Go to The Ex!
Written by Hugo Fu
Toronto, ON (September 5, 2026) – The Ex, also known as the CNE, is in town! From carnival games to awesome music to great eats, there’s something for everyone!
CNE provided media credentials to us (thank you CNE and Mac!). We had a blast!
The Kids World Park near Dufferin Street is awesome! There is so much to do in Kids World! Enchanted Forest Immersive Experience, Kids World Stage, Birds of Prey, Junkestra, and Music Garden by Rockstar Music were some of the highlights!
In the Better Living Centre at Exhibition Place, we met real life egg farmers! They explained to us how many farms they have, how many chickens they have, and even what the difference between brown and white eggs are! We learned so much from them!
We also stopped by the Toronto Public Library exhibit! Betty was super nice to us, and she was very welcoming! Betty let us play the Prize Board at the stand next to the exhibit! It was amazing! Check out your local branch for great reads!
Of course, once we saw the Kiddie Midway, we had to do some rides and play some games! We love hair-raising, suspense giving, and exhilarating rides, so we tried a kiddie roller coaster and the Tilt-a-Whirl ride! They were so cool – more funny than scary which is a good thing because no-one wants to cry! The Kite Flyer is always a fun ride, whirling around above the ground. There are so many other kiddie rides to try!
We had to fuel up a few times during the day and the CNE Food Building has something for everyone! There was so much choice in one place! We ultimately decided to try tenders and ribs.Delicious! Don’t forget that you can save a few dollars by checking out the Food Building Specials – https://www.theex.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/08/2026-CNE-LUNCH-VENDOR-PROMOTION-TICKET.pdf!
There’s also big kid and adult rides that we saw! We also saw lots of people playing the carnival games. We also saw lots of shopping options so there’s something to buy for everyone.
We finished our day checking out the Bell SOUNDSTAGE at the Bandshell. Make sure not to miss the great music and the super cool venue! There’s also lots of other performances such as the SuperDogs, Trolls Dance Party, Beat Drop Trampoline Show, Wrestling and more! No-one has an excuse to be bored at the CNE!
The CNE is open until Monday September 7, 2026. Buy admission and ride tickets at https://www.theex.com/tickets/ or in person. Only three more days until the CNE and summer unofficially ends and it’s back to school for everyone (although some students have already returned to school!)! So, let’s go to the Ex and make some wonderful memories! @LetsGoToTheEX
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Historic AFC Win at BMO Field! And We Were There!
Written by Hugo Fu
Toronto, ON (September 2, 2026) – In an exciting match, AFC Toronto (9-5-4) won at BMO field for the first time. Winning the game 2-1 against a competitive Ottawa Rapids FC squad, this marked a well-deserved victory for the home team.
Kaylee Hunter scored the first goal of the match at the 73rd minute mark on a free kick near the Ottawa goal, after AFC Toronto’s Captain, Nikki Small, was fouled. AFC Midfielder Sarah Stratigakis scored the winning goal of the match at the 86th minute mark on a rush the goal. Ottawa Rapids FC Forward Florence Belzile scored a goal in the 89th minute of the match to make it exciting, including during time, but ultimately was unable to score an equalizer.
Speaking to HMKiddies1 after the match, AFC Toronto Captain Small commended her team’s performance in the win. When Hugo asked what her mindset was when pushing the ball up the field with authority, Small said, “I was just thinking we need to get a goal by any means possible. So no matter what I could do, I was able to draw the foul for Kaylee’s free kick. So I was really happy about that.”
Sunday marked Stratigakis’ fourth goal of the season. When Meredith asked what was the feeling of the whole crowd cheering for Stratigakis for scoring the goal, Stratigakis replied, “It was such a great feeling, especially at home in front of our fans here at BMO (Field) – it meant everything!”
Hugo congratulated Head Coach Marko Milanović on his team’s victory and asked him what were the key points on winning the game. “I thought in the second half we played with a lot more urgency. There was a lot more tempo in our attack. We played a little bit quicker. Sometimes you’re going to lose the ball more but you’re also going to create more opportunities when you attack that way. And obviously, individual moments. You saw Kaylee Hunter…scores that beautiful goal and we went from there,” said Milanović.
Assistant Coach Sylvia Forbes provided some additional thoughts on the keys on winning the game. “Sticking to the game plan, working together and remembering who we are for the whole 90 plus minutes.”
Small, Stratigakis, Milanović and Forbes also provided amazing advice for youth soccer players. Small’s tips for leaders are to: “Be yourself, leaders come in all different shapes and forms”. “I’m a quiet leader sometimes, I’m a vocal leader, I’m a lead by example leader. You can be whatever leader you want to be. Just be yourself and do what you gotta do,” guides Small. Here are the links to the inspiring Small, Stratigakas, Milanović and Forbes interviews.
AFC Toronto’s next home match is September 6 at 2pm at BMO Field. Get your tickets at AFC Toronto’s website. Super fun and affordable for the entire family!
Thank you to AFC Toronto for the hospitality!
Special thanks to Desjardins for this experience after we won a contest with Desjardins! It was a wonderful evening!
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2025 ARTICLES
O’ Canada! What just happened! Jays take Game 1 Definitively!
October 24, 2025
Written by Hugo Fu
The Toronto Blue Jays couldn’t have asked for a better start to the World Series. Backed by Addison Barger’s clutch hitting and a strong outing by Trey Yesavage, the Jays took Game 1 by a score of 11- 4 over the Los Angeles Dodgers on a roaring night in Rogers Centre.
The Dodgers struck first. In the top of the 2nd inning, Teoscar Hernandez beat out a double play. Max Muncy then singled, moving Teoscar to 2nd. That set up an at-bat for Enrique Hernandez, who hit an RBI single to give the Dodgers the lead in the top of the 2nd. The Dodgers added on to their lead with a RBI double by Will Smith to drive in Mookie Betts in the top of the 3rd.
Toronto was not to be denied. Daulton Varsho tied the ballgame with a 2-run homer in the bottom of the 4th.
The score stayed tied until the bottom of the 6th inning. Ominously for the Dodgers, Blake Snell allowed the first three batters on base without recording an out. Blue Jays players Bo Bichette, Alejandro Kirk, and Varsho all reached base. Manager Dave Roberts then called on relief pitcher Emmet Sheehan to try and halt the damage. Unfortunately for the Dodgers, Sheehan was not able to do so. The Jays end up scoring three runs before Roberts called to relief pitcher Anthony Banda.
Blue Jays slugger Barger, on a 2-1 count, with bases loaded, got ready for the pitch. With a mind blowing swing, he hit a grand slam to blow the ballgame open 9-2. Blue Jays MVP Vladimir Guerrero Jr. then hit a single and Kirk followed that up with a no-doubter 2-run homer to make the ballgame 11-2.
Shohei Ohtani hit a 2-run homer in the top of the 7th to make it 11-4 but that was all the Dodgers could muster, as Toronto went on to win the ballgame 11-4.
Game 2 of the World Series is scheduled to start at 8pm on Saturday, October 25, 2025 in the Rogers Centre.
The key for the Dodgers will be to have their starter, Yoshinobu Yamamoto go deep.
The key for the Jays will be to try and take Yamamoto out early in the game to get to the Dodgers bullpen.
The stage is set – all eyes will be on Toronto & the Dodgers again for Game 2 of the World Series.
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ITFDB – Dodgers Fight Back, Tie the Series and Reassure Dodgers Fans
October 25, 2025
Written by Hugo Fu
After a thumping from Game 1, the Los Angeles Dodgers bounce right back in Game 2.
With two outs in the top of the 1st, Freddie Freeman lined a double to right field. Will Smith then hits a single to bring Freeman in for run number 1. The Toronto Blue Jays then had runners on 1st and 3rd with no outs. However, the Jays were not able to score and went down 1,2,3, stranding the runners on 1st and 3rd.
The Jays would not accept that. They then responded with a sac fly to centre field, which George Springer tagged up and scored to make the ballgame 1-1. The ballgame stayed tied until the top of the 7th when Will Smith hit a solo shot on a 3-2 count to make the score 2-1. An out later, Max Muncy hit another solo shot to make the ballgame 3-1.
Manager John Schneider made a pitching change to Louis Varland, hoping to keep the score close. However, he is not able to do so, as he leaves the bases loaded. Schneider made the change to Jeff Hoffman. That would not work. On a wild pitch, the Dodgers score their 4th run of the game.
This leads to a ground ball by Smith. Smith beats out the throw at first, which makes the run count. The ballgame is now 5-1. The Dodgers keep the score like that and win the ballgame 5-1.
The Dodgers keep their dream to repeat a World Series title on track. The series now moves to Dodger Stadium in Los Angeles for Game 3, Game 4 and Game 5.
The key for the Dodgers will be to keep a cool head, not get overconfident and to have their starters go deep, including Tyler Glasnow for Game 3 and Shohei Ohtani for Game 4.
The key for the Blue Jays will be to have quality at bats, aka QABs, and to have their starting pitchers continue to go deep and turn it over to their strong bullpen.
The stage is set – all eyes will be on Toronto and Los Angeles at 8pm on Monday October 27, 2025.
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Dodger Stadium from My Eyes in August!
October 26, 2025
Written By Meredith Fu
With the Dodgers facing against the Blue Jays in Game 3, here is a recap about when I went there.
On our trip, it was hot and I was sweating buckets! It was boiling hot there!
Next we will talk about the Dodgers Youth Camp. It was at Dodger Stadium in Los Angeles. The same field where the Blue Jays and Dodgers will play on tomorrow night! We can’t believe that we were playing on the same grass as the outfielders will be catching the ball tomorrow!
At Dodgers Youth Camp, we did fielding, hitting, catching and Hugo also did pitching. My favourite was hitting because I hit all of the balls. It was so much fun. We also played a few games against the other age groups.
Next, we went to two games at Dodgers Stadium. The Dodgers were facing the St. Louis Cardinals. It was fun, hot and Dodger Stadium is very big! I almost got lost!
We were so happy to see Cardinals Super Slugger Iván Herrera. Iván is the best! We chatted with Iván and many other cool St. Louis Cardinals players and coaches! Check out our Instagram and YouTube pages for our chats with them. We’ll be uploading more of these chats in the offseason!
We met again our good friend José Mota, super-broadcaster for Spectrum SportsNet LA who also played in the MLB! Stay tuned for our chat with José.
We saw Iván hit an awesome home run (thank you Iván!). We also saw Dodgers MVP Shohei Ohtani pitch. It was so much fun.
Watching the baseball game made me happy and excited. Dodger Stadium is a fun place to be. There are two playgrounds for kids in the stadium that even had a spider web. I almost didn’t want to go back home! It was an awesome place to be in and I hope to go there again!
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Jays Deal With A Loss In Game 3, Come Back In Game 4 & 5
Written By Hugo Fu
Game 3
With an amazing outing by Tyler Glasnow, the Dodgers take Game 3 against the Blue Jays.
It all started with a solo shot to left field by Dodgers super-slugger Teoscar Hernández in the bottom of the 2nd that gave the Dodgers the lead to make it 1-0. In the bottom of the 3rd inning, Dodgers MVP Shohei Ohtani hit another solo shot to make the lead 2-0.
In the top of the 4th, Jays MVP catcher Alejandro Kirk hits yet another homer, a 3 run homer to make the score 3-2.The Jays further boost their lead with a sac fly from Andrés Giménez in the same inning to score Addison Barger, with Ernie Clement safe at second to make the score 4-2.
The Dodgers would not lose to that. With an RBI double by Ohtani and an RBI single by Freddie Freeman in the bottom of the 5th, the Dodgers tie the ballgame at 4.
The score stays tied until a RBI single by Bo Bichette gives the Jays the lead 5-4, with Vladimir Guerrero Jr. scoring.
Ohtani then hit a solo shot to tie the game up at 5. It all stayed tied until a walk-off solo shot by Freddie Freeman to win the ballgame in the 18th inning.
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Game 4
The Jays couldn’t have asked for a better Game 4
The Dodgers strike first with a sac fly by Dodgers slugger Enrique Hernandez in the bottom of the 2nd.
The Jays then reply with a 2-run homer by none other than Vladimir Guerrero Jr. to boost them into the lead. Manager John Schnider makes a pitching change to Mason Fluharty in the bottom of the 6th. Andrés Giménes then hits a single to
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Final 3 Games of 2025!
Congratulations to the Dodgers for winning their back-to-back World Series victories!
The final 3 games of 2025 were epic. It was a back and forth between the two finalists, the Toronto Blue Jays and the Los Angeles Dodgers.
Ultimately, the Dodgers take home the W in Game 7 and the World Series!
We can’t wait for Spring Training 2026, the 2026 Season and the 2026 Postseason! We’ll have lots of fun.
Be well and God Bless. Baseball will be back before we know it!