Bottom of the ninth. Philadelphia closer Mitch Williams stood on the mound, trying to save a one-run lead with two runners on base. Cleanup hitter Joe Carter was at the plate for Toronto with two balls and two strikes. It was game six of the 1993 World Series, and Carter, held hitless in his first four at bats, made contact, sending the ball 379 feet and over the left field wall for a series-ending home run. The Toronto Blue Jays were back-to-back World Series champions.
It remains one of the most famous moments in franchise and baseball history, and Matthew Shuber can still remember hearing radio announcer Tom Cheek celebrate on air: “Touch ’em all, Joe! You’ll never hit a bigger home run in your life!”
Back then, Shuber was a university student. Today, the Toronto native is vice president of business affairs and legal counsel for the Blue Jays. He recalls falling in love with the team in 1985, when the young franchise won a team-best 99 games to capture its first division title. However, after realizing that a career on the baseball diamond might not be in his future, Shuber nurtured his growing interest in law, attended law school, and was called to the bar in 1999. A few years later, he became Canada’s only corporate lawyer in Major League Baseball.