“Before every one of his starts, you will see Reece Hemmerling grab a pendant around his neck, look up at the sky and say four words.
“I love you, Dad.”
It’s a new pre-game ritual for the Beaumont, Alberta product, after his father passed away in November.
The pendant matches a tattoo that Hemmerling had etched on his arm, featuring an anchor that represents how his dad, Troy, was the anchor of the family, and a grey ribbon representing Glioblastoma Cancer awareness.”
Read More“She filled up two passport pages in 2023, and if Zoe Hicks has anything to say about it, she wouldn’t mind doing it all again in 2024.
Representing both Softball Canada and Baseball Canada during the year, she often found herself flying from one event to the next with little rest in between.
Hicks wouldn’t have it any other way though, as her passion and energy around the diamond is evident when we sit down for a Zoom chat in December.
She had just received the news that she was named the Baseball Canada Women’s National Team Most Valuable Player in just her second season with the team.”
Read More“Baseball’s offseason always feels far too long for Amy Johnson, but it’s felt even longer heading into the 2024 season.
The Saskatoon product has been champing at the bit to get back onto the field and get ready for the possibility of representing Canada at the Women’s Baseball World Cup in Thunder Bay, Ontario.
Even though the 21-year-old has been on Baseball Canada’s Women’s National Team roster for the last two seasons, Johnson isn’t assuming anything yet.
“Playing in the World Cup would be a dream come true,” she told Saskatchewan Dugout Stories. “It’s the highest level in the sport I love and it would be such a great opportunity that I would remember forever.”
Read More“Looking back on his baseball journey, Jason Serafinchon believes he wouldn’t be where he is now had it not been for the decision to lose weight – a lot of weight.
A self-admitted “little fat kid” growing up, the Spruce Grove product remembers hitting whiffle balls off his mom and watching his dad play slo-pitch.
But it wasn’t until he decided to go to AHP Academy in nearby St. Albert to help his pursuit of collegiate baseball that he knew something would have to change.
Serafinchon dedicated all of his spare time to the gym and eating right, getting stronger and losing 80 pounds in the process.”
Read More“Justin Breen isn’t taking a moment on the baseball field for granted.
It would have been easy for the Fort McMurray native to pack it all in after a trio of knee surgeries before he turned 18.
Instead, he used it as motivation to take his game to the next level with collegiate stops at Bossier Parish Community College and Arkansas Tech University before landing at Southwestern Oklahoma State University for the 2023-2024 season.”
Read MoreOutfielder Nolan Sparks recently made some Western Canadian Baseball League history when he became the first player to sign with his hometown Saskatoon Berries. Joe McFarland, of Saskatchewan Dugout Stories, recently spoke with Sparks.
Read MoreFormer Calgary Cannons infielder Pat Casey became a College World Series-winning coach with Oregon State University. He was inducted into the College Baseball Hall of Fame on February 15. Ian Wilson, of Alberta Dugout Stories, recently spoke with Casey.
Read More“Matt Coutney remembers the exact moment when he realized that professional baseball was going to be a grind.
In his final two seasons at Old Dominion University (2021-2022), the Wetaskiwin product played a total of 117 games.
On his way to playing 121 games in 2023 in the Los Angeles Angels’ farm system, it was a roadtrip to California when he started to understand what many others had told him about life in the pros.
“It was game 32 and I was thinking to myself, ‘I have 100 games left – there’s no way I’m going to be able to make it through this,’” Coutney told Alberta Dugout Stories: The Podcast. “As the year goes on, you hit certain benchmarks – you make it another week, you make it another month – and the next think you know, the season is over.”
Read More“Everyone had their reasons for smiling on a cold Saturday just outside Calgary.
On the indoor field at Webber Academy, young baseball players were enjoying the drills and mini-games being played at the Blue Jays Academy Youth Instructional Clinic.
Perched above, parents of those athletes were revelling at the sight of Blue Jays heroes like Ernie Whitt, Buck Martinez, Pat Borders and Devon White coaching their kids alongside Women’s National Team legend Ashley Stephenson.”
Read More“The 2026 World Baseball Classic can’t come fast enough for Ernie Whitt.
The Baseball Canada manager believes his team is on the cusp of getting into the championship bracket of the tournament if all of the stars align – literally.”
Read MoreAlberta Dugout Stories has unveiled their 2023 All-College Team.
Read More“If you would have told Matt Lloyd about the trials and tribulations he would see in 2023, he might not have believed you.
Coming off an injury-shortened 2022 season with the Double-A Chattanooga Lookouts, the Dawgs Academy grad was hoping to continue to climb up the Cincinnati Reds’ depth chart.
However, he was released during Spring Training and ended up finding a home with the Sioux City Explorers of the independent American Association.
Instead of getting down on himself, Lloyd put together a great season with the Explorers and was a key member of Canada’s roster at the Pan Am Qualifier in Argentina.”
Read More“Sitting in the stands of a hockey rink as a scout, Josh Burgmann says he’s really happy with how life has turned out.
It’s a far cry from his days as a baseball player, rising through the ranks of the Vauxhall Academy of Baseball to the University of Washington before being drafted by the Chicago Cubs in 2019 and embarking on his professional career.”
Read More“An appearance at the 2023 Canadian Futures Showcase isn’t the end goal for Okotoks Dawgs Academy right-hander William Labonte, but it’s a significant checkpoint for the young pitcher.
The hard-throwing 16-year-old took the Rogers Centre mound on September 22 for Team Navy, and while he admitted he didn’t have his best stuff, Labonte grinded his way through three innings, allowing just one earned run and striking out two.”
Read MoreThe Western Canadian Baseball League was well represented at the Canadian Futures Showcase held last week at the Rogers Centre.
Read More“He might not have realized it when the plans were first put in place, but Brett Getz will be bringing a Little League World Series vibe to the Blue Jays Academy Canadian Futures Showcase.
The Vauxhall Academy of Baseball product stayed in touch with several of his tournament teammates from across Canada when they played in Ottawa last year.
Instead of trading pins like they do in Williamsport, Getz says they will all come bearing gifts for each other in the form of swag from their hometowns when they arrive in Toronto for the Sept. 19-23 showcase at Rogers Centre.”
Read MoreAttendance in the Western Canadian Baseball League reached record-breaking levels this summer.
Read MoreEdmonton Riverhawks right-hander Halen Knoll (Edmonton, Alta.) has been named the West Coast League Pitcher of the Year. It was an honour that caught the young righty by surprise. Joe McFarland, of Alberta Dugout Stories, recently spoke with Knoll.
Read MoreWilliam Gardner, the Okotoks Dawgs’ vice president, director and pre-game ceremony host, called Dawgs fans “the greatest in all of baseball.” And those fans played a big role in the Dawgs’ home field, Seaman Stadium, being recently named top summer collegiate stadium by Ballpark Digest. Joe McFarland, of Alberta Dugout Stories, recently spoke with Gardner about the honour.
Read MoreThe Western Canadian Baseball League All-Star Game, hosted at Seaman Stadium, home of the Okotoks Dawgs, was a huge success again this year. Joe McFarland, of Alberta Dugout Stories, takes a look at what might be next for the WCBL’s Midsummer Classic.
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