Yasiel Puig crushes 2 home runs in Canadian Baseball League debut weeks before possible prison sentence
Turns out Yasiel Puig can still smash a baseball.
The former MLB All-Star made his debut for the Toronto Maple Leafs of the Canadian Baseball League (CBL) on Sunday. He looked a lot like the electric version of Puig that baseball fans remember from his Dodgers days.
Playing against the Kitchener Panthers at Christie Pits Park in Toronto, Puig went 2-for-2 with 2 home runs, 4 RBIs and 2 walks in the Maple Leafs’ 8-6 victory.
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Yasiel Puig catches the ball in his first at-bat in his Canadian Major League Baseball debut for the Toronto Maple Leafs on May 10, 2026 in Toronto. He hit two home runs and recorded four RBIs in his first game with Toronto. (Mike Campbell/NurPhoto)
Not bad for a guy who might be going to prison in a few weeks.
Puig’s return to baseball is unfolding under a pretty big legal cloud. He was convicted earlier this year of obstruction of justice and making false statements to federal investigators in connection with an illegal sports gambling operation.
The charges stem from a federal investigation into an illegal gambling ring in Southern California. According to reports, Puig allegedly placed hundreds of sports bets and incurred approximately $1 million in gambling losses that were never refunded.
He is currently awaiting sentencing on May 26 and could face up to 15 years in prison; however, many believe the actual sentence would likely be much less severe.
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Still, this is a pretty big blow to his comeback tour.
Yasiel Puig of the Los Angeles Dodgers celebrates running to first base after hitting a three-run home run in the sixth inning of Game Four of the 2018 World Series at Los Angeles Dodger Stadium on October 27, 2018. (Sean M. Haffey/Getty Images)
Signing Puig was a big deal for the CBL. Reports suggest that this Biggest contract in league historyand the former Dodgers star suddenly became the biggest name in the league.
Of course, there’s a reason why Puig still commands attention after all these years.
At his peak, he was one of the most exciting players in baseball. He burst onto the scene with the Los Angeles Dodgers in 2013 and instantly looked like a future superstar. Puig won All-Star honors in 2014 but quickly fell flat.
Puig spent seven seasons in MLB with the Dodgers, Cincinnati Reds and Cleveland Guardians. His last MLB appearance occurred in 2019, but he continued to play professionally abroad in Mexico and South Korea.
Yasiel Puig receives a handshake from his third base coach after hitting a three-run home run in his second at-bat in his Canadian Major League Baseball debut against the Toronto Maple Leafs Baseball Club in Toronto on May 10, 2026. Puig hit two home runs and recorded four RBIs in his first game with Toronto. (Mike Campbell/NurPhoto)
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Puig, now 35, is trying to write another baseball episode.
And for at least one night in Toronto, it all looked like old Yasiel Puig again.
