Field set for 2025 WCBL All-Star Game Home Run Derby

Photo: WCBL

*This article was originally published on Alberta Dugout Stories on July 16. You can read it here.

July 17, 2025

By Ian Wilson

Alberta Dugout Stories

The field has been set for the Western Canadian Baseball League’s 2025 Home Run Derby.

The event – part of the All-Star Game festivities taking place on Saturday, July 19 at Seaman Stadium in Okotoks – gets underway at 5 p.m. and it will feature a dozen long-ball launchers, one from each WCBL team.

Several competitors have taken part in the derby before, while others are new to the event.

Here’s a closer look at the 12 participants:

WEST DIVISION

WYATT ORMONDE

Ormonde is a first-year WCBL player who will represent the Brooks Bombers. The 6-foot-1 product of Long Beach, California has four homers, six doubles and 21 RBIs through 33 games with the Bomb Squad. The infielder – a big fan of Philadelphia Phillies first baseman Bryce Harper – smacked 13 round trippers and 13 doubles in 44 games as a member of the Cerritos College Falcons during the 2024-25 season.

MATT RHOADES

Rhoades is a towering first baseman with the Fort McMurray Giants. The lefty slugger from Monument, Colorado has registered four home runs, seven doubles and 24 RBIs in his first 31 WCBL contests. The marketing major punched 19 balls out of the park with Concordia University Nebraska this year, while also delivering 12 doubles and 75 RBIs in 54 games as a sophomore.

JACK KALISKY

Kalisky will compete in his second straight WCBL Home Run Derby. The two-way star with the Lethbridge Bulls recorded seven long balls in the 2024 competition and fell just short of advancing to the final round. The 6-foot-5 Texan is in his third season with the Bulls. Over 123 WCBL games, Kalisky has 33 doubles, 18 homers and 95 RBIs. He has eight round trippers this year, putting him among the league leaders.

NASH CROWELL

Crowell is the derby veteran of the West Division and a fan favourite for the Okotoks Dawgs boosters in attendance. The Nova Scotian will take part in his third consecutive homer competition at Seaman Stadium. The designated hitter and first baseman has suited up in 98 games with the Dawgs, recording 24 home runs, 18 doubles and 97 RBIs along the way. Crowell holds the record for most round trippers in program history with the Reinhardt University Eagles.

AYDEN MAKARUS

Seaman Stadium is familiar territory for Makarus, who trained at Dawgs Academy and played briefly with the summer collegiate Dawgs in 2018 and 2019. Now a member of the rival Sylvan Lake Gulls, the outfielder will look to impress the Okotoks crowd with his power-packed swing. The righty slugger has appeared in 28 games for the Gulls and produced five home runs and 21 RBIs. In his 43 contests with the Bellevue University Bruins this year, Makarus went yard 17 times.

TIMO ARACENA

A consistent, well-rounded player for the Edmonton Prospects last summer and the Energy City Cactus Rats this year, Aracena will look to show off his muscle in the derby. The native of Vero Beach, Florida led the Prospects in 2024 in most offensive categories, including home runs (12), and he’s pacing the run production again this season. The switch hitter has four long balls, 14 doubles and 32 RBIs through 39 games with the Cactus Rats.

EAST DIVISION

TYLER VANNESTE

Vanneste finally gets his chance to represent the Medicine Hat Mavericks after being a late scratch for the 2024 Home Run Derby. The infielder from Warman, Saskatchewan is in his third season with the Mavs. This year, the lefty batter has six homers and 24 RBIs in 32 WCBL games with Medicine Hat.

AUSTIN GURNEY

The East Division derby veteran will take part in this event for a third straight year on behalf of the Moose Jaw Miller Express. The corner infielder from Campbell River, British Columbia has suited up in 215 games with the Millers over four seasons, including 21 playoff contests. Gurney has 27 home runs, 45 doubles and 197 RBIs in those WCBL games.

BRADY BYE

Brady will look to say “bye bye” to as many baseballs as possible on July 19. The backstop with the Regina Red Sox can draw inspiration from Cal Raleigh, the Seattle Mariner who this year became the first catcher in history to win the Major League Baseball (MLB) Home Run Derby. Bye is in his third season with his hometown Red Sox. This summer the righty batter has five round trippers and 22 RBIs in 26 games.

ETHAN MENARD

With nine homers this season and a share of the WCBL lead in long balls, Menard may not need any advice for the derby. But if he does, he’s got some accomplished teammates to consult. The Saskatoon Berries first baseman from Louisiana was tasked with making sure Carter Beck was well-hydrated during the 2024 Home Run Derby. Beck smashed 16 homers on that day but lost out to in the final round. Meanwhile, Ethan Murdoch – now a member of the Berries – represented the Swift Current 57’s at the 2023 event and was the runner up to derby champ Hank Dodson, a catcher with the Sylvan Lake Gulls. Menard’s nine home runs in 23 games this summer are already more than the seven he launched in 50 regular-season contests with the Berries in 2024.

WILMER HENRIQUEZ

The New Jersey native is in his first WCBL season and has shown off his power with the Swift Current 57’s by pumping out eight home runs in 28 games. That pace for the infielder is well ahead of his 2025 production at Cameron University, where Henriquez posted four homers, seven doubles, 27 RBIs and a .367 batting average with the Aggies over 37 games this year.

IAN HECK

This is the second WCBL long-ball competition for Heck, who represented the Weyburn Beavers in last year’s event before taking the mound as the East Division’s starting pitcher. The Californian – who is top five in the league in strikeouts as a pitcher this season – will look to improve on the six homers he recorded in the 2024 Home Run Derby. So far this summer, Heck has four bombs, six doubles and 33 RBIs for the Beavers in 36 games.

HOME RUN DERBY RULES

The action gets underway at 5 p.m., with player introductions followed by plenty of dingers.

Seaman Stadium measures 330 feet to the left field line, 400 feet to centre and 325 feet to the right foul pole.

According to the WCBL, each regulation round will consist of a two-minute time block per player that will allow for one 30-second timeout. Homers hit during that time will count during that round, but long ball totals will not carry over to other rounds.

The tie-breaker for the first round will be determined by the earliest home run that was recorded.

The top two home run hitters from each division will advance to the second and final round, which will feature the best duo of homer producers from the East vs. the most prolific pair of long ball launchers from the West.

If a tie-breaker is required in the final round, an additional two-minute time block will be added for each player. If that does not result in a champion, another one-minute block of overtime will be added for both contestants. No time outs will be available during these overtime sessions.

In the unlikely event that a tie remains, a sudden-death hack off will take place. Each slugger will get one swing until one of the two players does not hit a homer.

COACHING STAFFS

The representatives for the East Division and West Division coaching staffs have also been named.

The defending champions from each division will handle head coaching duties for each side.

The West will be led by Lou Pote and Mitch Schmidt of the Okotoks Dawgs.

“It’s an honour to be named coach for the West squad, mainly because it means that we had a championship season the previous year and it’s a tribute to our players for putting us in this position,” said Pote.

“Our goal with this year’s group of All Stars is to get everyone in the game so they can experience the game, because they have all earned spots because of their play throughout the first half of the season. This is their night and we want to do everything as coaches to make sure they have a memorable experience.”

Joining Pote and Schmidt on the West Division staff are Wyatt McKnight (Sylvan Lake Gulls); Ryan MacDonald (Lethbridge Bulls); Tanner Hess (Fort McMurray Giants); Dylan DeBrouwer (Brooks Bombers); and Jordan Blundell (Energy City Cactus Rats).

The East Division roster will be headed up by Eric Marriott and Michael Gonzalez of the Moose Jaw Miller Express.

The Regina Red Sox will have two coaches in attendance – Rye Pothakos and Brody Boyenko – and the Saskatoon Berries will send assistant coach Ariben Gutierrez to the midsummer classic. Rounding out the coaching staff are Cam Williams (Weyburn Beavers); Ruddy Estrella (Swift Current 57’s); and Jonathan Thornhill (Medicine Hat Mavericks).

*Featured image of 2024 WCBL Home Run Derby participants is by Ian Wilson, Alberta Dugout Stories