By Ed White WINNIPEG (Reuters) -Canadians hope baseball can bring them some joy on Friday night to counteract economic gloom as the Toronto Blue Jays take to their home field to start the World Series against the Los Angeles Dodgers,

His father, Baseball Hall of Famer Vladimir Guerrero Sr., was the 2004 AL MVP and a nine-time Major League All-Star who played 16 years in MLB with the Montreal Expos (1996-2003), Anaheim/Los Angeles Angels (2004-2009), Texas Rangers (2010) and the Baltimore Orioles (2011).

Canadians at The Athletic told us that communities nationwide are setting aside hockey rivalries and old Expos wounds to back the Jays.

Canada’s only major league team will have an entire country behind it during the World Series and has a chance of claiming the championship of America’s pastime at a time when U.S.-Canada relations remain near historic lows.

For the first time in 32 years, the Toronto Blue Jays are in the World Series. The AL East champs overcame a 2-0 series deficit against the Mariners to lock up the AL pennant. And they've captured the attention of fans across Canada. That includes plenty of celebrities.

As the Toronto Blue Jays head to the World Series for the first time in over 30 years, social media accounts are claiming US President Donald Trump has announced a tariff on games involving Canada's only team in Major League Baseball.

The Toronto Blue Jays were in the mix on superstar Shohei Ohtani before he eventually chose the Los Angeles Dodgers in free agency two offseasons ago.