Nova Scotia

Baseball Canada 22U Nationals Taking Place in Halifax/Dartmouth This Weekend

Value CanuckLeave a comment

Baseball Canada will be holding their national championship this weekend in Halifax/Dartmouth to determine the best 22 and Under Men’s baseball team in the country. I will be posting updates about the tournament on my Twitter account @CDNBaseball. With things getting started tonight with the Home Run Derby at Beazley Field I thought I would get my coverage started by providing a bit of an overview of the tournament.

Tournament Details

Dates:

The Baseball Canada 2022 National 22U Men’s Championship will be taking place from today, Wednesday August 3rd, until Sunday, August 7, 2022.

Locations:

All tournament games will take place at the following locations:

  1. Beazley Field – 50 Caledonia Road, Dartmouth, Nova Scotia, B2X 1K8
  2. Mainland Commons Field – 44 Thomas Raddall Drive, Halifax, Nova Scotia, B3S 1K3

Cost is $5 per game. Tournament passes are not being offered.

High Level Schedule:

  • Thursday August 4, 2022
    • 10:00 AM
      • Round Robin play begins at both fields
  • Friday August 5, 2022
    • 10:00 AM
      • Round Robin play continues at both fields
  • Saturday August 6, 2022
    • 10:00 AM
      • Final day of Round Robin games begin at both fields
    • 5:00 PM
      • Quarter Finals begin at Beazley Field
  • Sunday August 7, 2022
    • 10:00 AM
      • Semi Finals begin at Beazley Field
    • 4:00 PM
      • Medal games begin at Beazley Field

Coverage and Updates

Teams

Note – As I live in Nova Scotia, I know more about the NS teams, so I am able to provide a bit more background on them.

Host – Dartmouth One Last Rep Renegades 22U

The Dartmouth One Last Rep Renegades are hosting the 22U Nationals this year. Although Dartmouth was guaranteed a spot in the tournament as the host team, they are also the top team from Nova Scotia. At the Baseball Nova Scotia 22U AAA Elimination Tournament two weeks ago, Dartmouth finished first and were undefeated with a 5 and 0 record.

Although this is a club team, made up of mostly players from the Dartmouth Arrows association, geographic restrictions don’t apply at the 22U level in Nova Scotia so there are also players on the team who came up through the Hammonds Plains A’s and Kentville Wildcats associations, as well as some recent pickups who came up through the Halifax, Sydney, and Tri County associations.

An important thing in Dartmouth’s favour is that this team is a bit of a reunion for many players from the 2019 Nova Scotia 17U Selects team that won Gold at the 2019 Baseball Canada Cup (17U Nationals). That team unexpectedly won Nova Scotia’s only Canada Cup Gold going all the way back to the tournament’s beginnings in 1989. Since this is the first year since 2019 that Baseball Canada has been able to hold national tournaments, the players from that team are trying to win back to back national Gold. Those returning Gold medalists and their home towns are as follows:

  • Nathan Boutilier (Dartmouth)
  • Noah Boutilier (Dartmouth)
  • Layton Cuvilier (Hantsport)
  • Ryan Fitzgerald (Lucasville)
  • Parker Hanrahan (Glace Bay)
  • Duncan McLaughlin (Dartmouth)
  • Cam Rendell (Upper Tantallon)

Nova Scotia 1 – Metro Marlins 22U

The Metro Marlins are the second seeded team from Nova Scotia. At the Baseball Nova Scotia 22U AAA Elimination Tournament two weeks ago, the Marlins finished with a 3 and 2 record, placing second.

Although this is a club team, made up of mostly players from the Hammonds Plains A’s and Tri County Rangers associations, geographic restrictions don’t apply at the 22U level in Nova Scotia so there are also players on the team who came up through other associations. Another interesting point is that the Marlins are a very young team as almost all of them played at the 18U level last year.

There are also a few players from 2019 Nova Scotia 17U Selects team that won Gold at the 2019 Baseball Canada Cup (17U Nationals) on the Marlins. Those returning Gold medalists and their home towns are as follows:

  • Kyle Hunt (Hammonds Plains)
  • Timmy Mann (Dartmouth)
  • Ethan McLellan (Hants County)
  • Camilo Riesgo (Lower Sackville)
  • Kiwean Song (Bedford)

Nova Scotia 2 – Kentville Wildcats 22U

The Kentville Wildcats are the third seeded team from Nova Scotia. At the Baseball Nova Scotia 22U AAA Elimination Tournament two weeks ago, the Wildcats finished with a 3 and 2 record, placing third.

Although this is a club team, made up of mostly players from the Kentville Wildcats association, geographic restrictions don’t apply at the 22U level in Nova Scotia so there are also players on the team who came up through other associations.

There are also a few players from 2019 Nova Scotia 17U Selects team that won Gold at the 2019 Baseball Canada Cup (17U Nationals) on the Wildcats. Those returning Gold medalists and their home towns are as follows:

  • Shane Cowan (Fall River)
  • Nolan O’Brien (Hebbville)
  • Corson O’Rourke (Sydney)

New Brunswick – Fredericton Tim Hortons Altimax Junior Royals

Prince Edward Island – PEI Provincial 22U All-Stars

Ontario 1 – Kitchener Junior Panthers

Ontario 2 – Newmarket Hawks Junior (22U) Baseball Club

Manitoba – Elmwood Giants 21U AAA

Advertisement

Baseball Nova Scotia Announces Core Team for the Defending Canadian Champion 17U Selects

Value CanuckLeave a comment

Baseball Nova Scotia has announced the 2020 Core Team roster for the 17U Selects. Workouts will be held over the winter and the final 2020 17U Selects team will be announced in the spring of 2020.

The final 17U Selects team will compete at Baseball Canada Cup from August 5th to 9th in Fort McMurray, Alberta to defend Nova Scotia’s 2019 Gold Medal at the event.

The 2020 17U Selects Core team includes the following players (recent teams included):

  • Adams, Ryan – Hammonds Plains (Hammonds Plains A’s 18U AAA)
  • Avery, Ryan – Prospect (Nova Scotia 15U Selects, Kentville Wildcats 15U AAA)
  • Carroll, Cole – Bedford (Okotoks Dawgs 15U Black)
  • Cheeseman, Nolan ** – Upper Tantallon (Nova Scotia 15U Selects, Hammonds Plains A’s 15U AAA)
  • Clarke, Jeremy – Sackville (Tri-County Rangers 15U AAA)
  • Cowan, Shane – Fall River (Nova Scotia 17U Selects)
  • Croteau, Tyler – Kentville (Nova Scotia 15U Selects, Kentville Wildcats 15U AAA)
  • Doucette, Ty – Dartmouth (Nova Scotia 15U Selects, Dartmouth Arrows 15U AAA)
  • Fitzgerald, Ryan – Lucasville (Nova Scotia 17U Selects, Newbridge Academy Varsity)
  • Ford, Jacobie – Weymouth (Weymouth Firebirds 18U AA)
  • Fox, Evan – Tri County (Tri-County Rangers 18U AAA)
  • Gage, Nick – Halifax (Halifax Mets 15U AAA)
  • George, Lane – Belnan (Nova Scotia 15U Selects, Dartmouth Arrows 15U AAA)
  • Grabmann, Matt * – Dartmouth (North East Baseball 15U Pirates, Cardigan Mountain Varsity)
  • Hanrahan, Parker * – Glace Bay (Okotoks Dawgs, Nova Scotia 17U Selects, Cape Breton Ramblers)
  • Harvey, Logan – Hammonds Plains (Hammonds Plains A’s 18U AAA)
  • Hines, Sam – Dartmouth (Nova Scotia 15U Selects, Dartmouth Arrows 15U AAA)
  • Hunt, Kyle – Hammonds Plains (Nova Scotia 17U Selects)
  • Jenkins, Zack – Middle Sackville (Nova Scotia 15U Selects, Tri-County Rangers 15U AAA)
  • Johnston, Matthew – Fall River (Tri-County Rangers 15U AAA)
  • King, Kyle ** – Dartmouth (Nova Scotia 15U Selects, Dartmouth Arrows 15U AAA)
  • Laws, Jack – Bridgewater (Nova Scotia 15U Selects, Bridgewater Bulldogs 15U AA)
  • Mackenzie, Matt – Windsor (Nova Scotia 15U Selects, Kentville Wildcats 15U AAA)
  • MacLaren, Colton – Hubley (Hammonds Plains A’s 18U AAA)
  • Miller, Kole – Dartmouth (Nova Scotia 15U Selects, Dartmouth Arrows 15U AAA)
  • O’Brien, Nolan – Hebbville (Nova Scotia 17U Selects)
  • Rendell, Camden – Upper Tantallon (Nova Scotia 17U Selects, Newbridge Academy Varsity)
  • Riesgo, Camillo – Sackville (Nova Scotia 17U Selects, Newbridge Academy Varsity)
  • Sampson, Kyle – Tri County (Tri-County Rangers 18U AAA, Newbridge Academy Varsity)
  • Smith, Dylan – Hammonds Plains (Hammonds Plains A’s 18U AA)
  • Song, Kiwean – Bedford (Nova Scotia 17U Selects)
  • Trenholm, Ryan – Hammonds Plains (Hammonds Plains A’s 18U AAA)
  • Wentzell, Brandon – Bridgewater (Halifax Mets 18U AAA)

Note – Some players were not required to attend one of the recent ID Camps to be selected to the 2020 17U Selects Core Team as noted below:

  • * Denotes… players away at school/baseball academy
  • ** Denotes… players that are injured & unable to attend ID Camp

 

2019 Baseball Canada Cup – Nova Scotia Defeats Defending Champions Ontario to Win First Gold Medal in the History of the Tournament

Value CanuckLeave a comment

BNS Logo DesignOn Sunday evening (August 11), little Nova Scotia (population 967 thousand), after a win over heavy favourite Quebec (population 8.45 million) in the Semi Final, took on an even heavier favourite in the defending champions Ontario (population 14.49 million) in the Gold Medal game of the 2019 Canada Cup.

Looking back at tournament history, in the 30 previous years of Baseball Canada Cup competition, Ontario had taken home a total of 19 medals – 9 of those were Gold including the one in 2018. In that same time, Nova Scotia had won 2 medals, both Bronze – one in 1995 and one in 2018.

In addition, Ontario had 4 players on their roster who were named to the Canadian Junior National Team (JNT) the day after this game – Nova Scotia had none. This matchup was yet another David and Goliath type of battle.

Nova Scotia was the Home Team and sent Duncan McLaughlin to the mound. He got off to a bit of a rocky start by allowing a single to Justin Carinci who promptly stole 2nd on the next pitch. McLaughlin kept his cool though, inducing Owen Cassie to pop out to 2nd and striking out both JNT player Elijha Hammill and cleanup batter Joshua Niles to end the threat.

In bottom of the 1st Ontario responded with starting pitcher Turner Spoljaric, son of six-year Major Leaguer and former Toronto Blue Jay Paul Spoljaric. Nova Scotia wasted no time getting things going. Leadoff hitter Layton Cuvilier got things started with a Walk. Nick Gravel then worked a Walk of his own. Noah Boutilier then hit a line drive Single to score Cuvilier. Spoljaric then struck out the next batter, and induced back-to-back ground outs to end the inning. The score was 1 to 0 Nova Scotia after 1 complete and for the next three innings this game was a pitcher’s battle.

In the 2nd inning, McLaughlin struck out Drew Howard looking, induced a ground out from Zachary Laurie, and struck out Kieran Pook swinging. In the 3rd inning, he induced groundouts from Owen Ellis and Tyler Chong, and struck out Carinci looking. In the 4th McLaughlin continued baffling Ontario hitters, getting Cassie to line out on the first pitch, striking out JNT team member Hammill again and then striking out cleanup hitter Niles as well. The pitching magic continued into the 5th with Howard grounding out before McLaughlin struck out Laurie looking. After Pook hit a single, McLaughlin struck out Ellis swinging to end the threat.

Going back to the bottom of the 2nd, in that inning Spoljaric started to find his groove. He struck out the first batter of the inning but then gave up a Walk to Nova Scotia DH Shane Cowan. After that he was able to get another strikeout and a groundout to close out the inning. In the 3rd inning Spoljaric induced a groundout and then a popout to start the inning. He then issued another Walk to NS Cleanup hitter Cam Rendell. He worked out of that as well with a strikeout to end the inning. In the 4th, it was more of the same as Spoljaric induced a popout to kick the inning off and then hit Courson O’Rourke to put another NS runner on. True to form, Spoljaric stepped up again, striking out the next two batters to end the inning.

In the 5th inning, with the top of the order up, Nova Scotia got the offensive attack going again. Cuvilier kicked things off with a Triple past a diving Right Fielder. Gravel then Walked and stole 2nd on the first pitch. Boutilier then hit a hard line drive, his second of the game, to drive in both Cuvilier and Gravel. Despite having a rough start to the inning, Spoljaric kept his cool and did his work, striking out the next 3 batters to end the inning. The score was now 3 to 0 for Nova Scotia.

In the top of the 6th Ontario needed to respond right away with some runs of their own, and they did that. Chong kicked things off with a line drive single. An error on a ground ball put in play by Carinci put runners on 1st and 2nd and Cassie then walked to load the bases. JNT member Hammill then shook off his two previous strikeouts and came up with a Single to Right Center to score Chong. With the bases still loaded Joshua Niles then walked to to score Carinci.

With the score now 3 to 2, the bases loaded, and no outs, Nova Scotia reliever Ethan McLellan replaced McLaughlin on the mound. McLellan was throwing hard and immediately calmed things down by getting Howard to hit a ground ball back to him resulting in a fielder’s choice at Home. He then struck out both Laurie and Pook swinging to end the rally.

In the bottom of the 6th Ontario brought in University of Connecticut commit and JNT team member Calvin Ziegler in to shut down the Nova Scotia bats. He did his job, striking out the first two batters he faced swinging. The third batter Ryan Fitzgerald then hit a ball between 1st and 2nd but Ziegler failed to cover meaning 1st Baseman Niles had to make a diving tag of 1st base to get Fitzgerald out by a hair to end the inning.

In the top of the 7th, with the score 3 to 2, McLellan came out to finish the game and he was still throwing gas. He struck out Pinch Hitter Patrick Mulligan looking on 4 pitches. He then struck out Chong looking on 3 pitches. Ontario leadoff hitter Carinci then hit a ground ball Single to get things started for Ontario. With a 1 and 1 count McLellan tried a pickoff at first and it looked like he changed his mind half way through it, bouncing a soft throw past 1st Baseman Breton Sibley. That put Carinci on 2nd in scoring position with the potential game tying run. McLellan did not let that shake him though. He got back to work and struck out Caissie looking to end the game.

Nova Scotia had just done the impossible, beating two powerhouse teams in one day that they were not supposed to beat. Nova Scotia took home their first ever Canada Cup Gold in 31 years by winning their first ever Gold Medal match-up. David had defeated two Goliaths this day.

Duncan McLaughlin got the Win for Nova Scotia going 5 innings with 9 Strikeouts, 2 Walks, 4 hits, and 1 Earned Run.

Ethan McLellan earned the save facing the minimum 6 batters over 2 innings with 5 Strikeouts, No Walks, 1 Hit, and 0 Earned Runs.

Noah Boutilier led NS at the plate going 2 for 3 with all 3 Runs Batted In. For that performance Boutilier won Player of the Game.

Layton Cuvilier had the only other hit of the game for Nova Scotia and scored 2 runs.

2019 Baseball Canada Cup – Semi-Final – Nova Scotia Defeats Quebec to Move on to First Ever Gold Medal Game

Value Canuck1 Comment

BNS Logo Design

On Sunday at Noon (August 11), Team Nova Scotia, winner of Pool B at the 2019 Baseball Canada Cup, took on the powerhouse Quebec team, winner of Pool A. While most of Nova Scotia players joined the 17U Selects from club teams in the province, Quebec was represented by the 17U team from Academie Baseball Canada, an elite baseball academy established in Montreal 1990 through a joint venture by Baseball Canada, Baseball Quebec, and the Montreal Expos.

Looking back at tournament history, in the 30 previous years of Baseball Canada Cup competition Quebec had taken home a total of 20 medals, including 6 Gold. In that same time, Nova Scotia had won 2 medals, both Bronze – one in 1995 and one in 2018. This game was clearly a David and Goliath type of battle.

Quebec sent Yohan Dessurault to the mound and he was locked in. He threw three 3-up-3-down innings in a row to start the game including 4 strikeouts, striking out the side in the 3rd inning. In the 4th he got two fly outs to right in a row before Noah Boutilier walked and Camden Rendell singled to get a two out rally started. He then induced a third flyout to right to end the inning without any damage done. In the 5th inning, Dessurault kept things rolling with his 4th 3-up-3-down inning of the game.

Nova Scotia sent their ace Tyler Boudreau to the mound in this must-win game. In each of the first 4 innings Quebec was able to get a runner on – a Single in the 1st, an Error in the 2nd, and a Hit By Pitch in both the 3rd and the 4th. Despite that, Boudreau was able to work out of it every time. It was 0 to 0 in the bottom of the 5th when things got a little messy for Nova Scotia. Robin Villeneuve reached on an Error and Benjamin Sauvin-Gebhardt laid down a Sacrifice Bunt to move him to second. Robin Gervais then reached on the second Error of the inning and Villeneuve moved to 3rd on the play. Nathan Laliberte then executed a squeeze play scoring Villeneuve for the first run of the game. Boudreau still had a runner on base to deal with and got right back to work, inducing a popout and groundout to end the 5th.

Nova Scotia didn’t get down but instead got right to work to get some runs of their own. With one out Layton Cuvilier hit a line drive Single to get things started. Cuvilier then moved to 2nd on a Wild Pitch and scored on a line drive Single by Nick Gravel to tie the game at 1. Noah Boutilier then hit a grounder for a Single. At that point Dominic Teoli was brought in to replace Dessurault. Camden Rendell then came to the plate with runners on 1st and 2nd. On a 1 and 1 count Rendell ripped a hard line drive over the Center Fielder’s head for a double that scored both Gravel and Boutilier. Breton Sibley then worked a Walk and Louis-Phillipe Langevin came in to replace Teoli on the mound. Langevin struck out the next two batters to end the rally but the damage was done. Nova Scotia was in the lead 3 to 1.

In the bottom if the 6th Boudreau kept things rolling. He got Cedric DeGranpre to ground out to short, and then struck out Alexis Gravel looking. Boudreau then issued a Walk to Pinch Hitter Joshua Jones but once again worked out of it, inducing another groundout to Shortstop Nick Gravel to end the inning.

In the top of the 7th Nova Scotia managed to get one runner on base when Langevin issued a Walk to Cuvilier but that was it. In the bottom of the inning Tyler Boudreau came back to the mound to get as many outs as he could with his few remaining pitches before hitting his daily maximum. Sauvin-Gebhardt stroked a double to lead off the inning and Layton Cuvilier then took the mound to close things out for NS. Cuvilier kept the Quebec batters off balance by mixing up hits pitches. He induced a Popup by Jason Begin to Second Baseman Noah Boutilier, then a Flyout by Nathan Laliberte to Left Fielder Ryan Fitzgerald, and finally struck out Emilien Pitre swinging to end the game and send Nova Scotia to their first Gold Medal game in history of the Baseball Canada Cup, going back to 1989.

Tyler Boudreau got the Win for Nova Scotia with his second outstanding pitching performance of the tournament. He pitched 6 innings giving up 0 Earned Runs while giving up 3 hits, striking out 4 batters and walking 1. Boudreau earned his second Player of the Game award of the tournament for this fantastic outing.

Cuvilier earned the Save by sitting down all three of the batters he faced in the 7th.

The top hitter in this game was Camden Rendell with two Hits including a 2-RBI double to drive in the winning Run.

Noah Boutilier, Layton Cuvilier, and Nick Gravel each chipped in with with a Hit and a Run Scored.

 

2019 Baseball Canada Cup – Nova Scotia Drops Their First Game of the Tournament – Still Headed to Semi’s

Value CanuckLeave a comment

BNS Logo DesignSaturday night (August 10) Team Nova Scotia played their final pool game of the 2019 Baseball Canada Cup versus Team PEI. Since Nova Scotia was already guaranteed a spot in the semi-finals with a 4 and 0 record to that point, this was not a must-win game for them. Team NS decided to save most of their pitching for their two games on Sunday and lean on players who had not pitched that much for the NS Selects this year to this point to carry the load on the mound.

Nova Scotia got things off to a good start with a leadoff pop-up Double to Left Field by Duncan McLaughlin that “had eyes”. After PEI starting pitcher Jack MacKenzie struck out the next batter, Camden Rendell hit a single to drive in McLaughlin. MacKenzie worked his way out of the inning from there with another strikeout and a groundout.

Rendell (8 1/3 previous innings pitching for NS in 38 games) got the start for NS on the mound. PEI leadoff batter Chase Gaudette worked a walk to get things started in the bottom of the 1st. Nolan Ryan (yes that’s right folks but not the same guy) then reached on an error. With runners on 1st and 2nd Duncan Picketts then lined out to NS 2nd Baseman Shane Cowan and Gaudette was doubled off trying to get back to 2nd. Ryan was then caught attempting to steal 2nd to end the inning.

The top of the 2nd was a quick half inning with Mackenzie striking out two and getting Brett McMullin to line out to the Shortstop. In the bottom of the inning, Rendell struggled a bit with his control, walking the first three batters to load the bases. At that point the Nova Scotia coaches brought in Ryan Fitzgerald (3 previous innings pitching for NS in 38 games) to pitch. Fitzgerald immediately induced a grounder from Ty Arsenault that hit runner Dylan Worth for the first out of the inning. Fitzgerald then got Carter MacNeil to ground out for the second out of the inning, which allowed Ben MacDougall to score. Connor Ellsworth then popped out to Fitzgerald to end the inning with only 1 run allowed. The game was then tied at 1.

Fitzgerald had a much cleaner inning in the 3rd, giving up a Walk but also inducing three ground ball outs. The 4th inning started well for Fitzgerald with a strikeout of Tyler Taylor to kick things off. However, the next batter reached on an error on a grounder to 2nd. Fitzgerald then induced a pop out by the next batter for the second out of the inning. Carter MacNeil then hit a single and Connor Ellsworth walked to load the bases. At that point, Nova Scotia brought in Nick Gravel (0 previous innings pitching for NS in the 27 games since he joined the team in late June). Gravel then got Chase Gaudette to ground out to end the PEI rally and keep the game tied at 1.

In the 5th inning PEI got things going again on offense. Nolan Ryan walked to lead things off and was promptly sacrificed to second by Duncan Picketts. Ryan then moved to 3rd on a Wild Pitch. Ben McDougall then walked and promptly stole 2nd base. Tyler Taylor then hit a Sacrifice Fly to score Ryan. Next Dylan Worth hit a Double to score McDougall. Ty Arsenault then grounded out to end the inning but PEI was now up 3 to 1.

For Nova Scotia’s part they never really got things going at the plate after the 1st, despite getting some promising innings going. In. The top of the 2nd with 1 out, Duncan McLaughlin had his second popup hit of the game. Then Noah Boutlier hit a line single. MacKenzie was able to work out of it by inducing a flyout to Center and a groundout Fielder’s Choice. In the 4th he had a 3-up-3-down inning with two strikeouts and a groundout.

The top of the 5th was Nova Scotia’s most promising inning. Pinch Hitter Mike Short was hit by a pitch but quickly picked off at 1st by MacKenzie. Nolan O’Brien then hit a line drive Single but was also picked off by MacKenzie at 1st. With two outs McLaughlin hit another popup for a Single and Boutilier hit another line drive Single. With two men on and two outs, MacKenzie induced a groundout to end the NS rally.

In the top of the 6th MacKenzie walked Pitch Hitter Camilo Riesgo, but then shut NS down with a groundout, a strikeout, and a flyout to end the inning. In the bottom of the 6th Layton Cuvilier came on to pitch for Nova Scotia, and put together a 3-up-3-down inning with a lineout and two strikeouts. In the top of the 7th O’Brien singled again. At that point Tyler Taylor came on to relieve MacKenzie and struck out two batters to seal the win for PEI.

MacKenzie gets the Win and the Player of the Game for PEI. Gravel takes the Loss for Nova Scotia.

Duncan McLaughlin led the offensive attack for NS with a Double and two Singles. Noah Boutlier and Nolan O’Brien also chipped in with two Singles each. The only other Nova Scotia hit in this game was a Single by Cam Rendell to drive in the only run for NS in this game.

Despite this Loss to PEI, Nova Scotia was the top team in Pool B and moved on to the semi-finals on Sunday morning in a match-up against Pool A winner Quebec.

2019 Baseball Canada Cup – Nova Scotia Defeats Newfoundland in a Wild Back and Forth Contest

Value CanuckLeave a comment

BNS Logo DesignOn Friday morning (August 9th) Team Nova Scotia took on Team Newfoundland and Labrador in the fourth game of 2019 Baseball Canada Cup pool play for both teams. Team NL was 0 and 3 to that point and the “Cardiac Kids” from Nova Scotia were 3 and 0 on the back of three one run wins in a row. Another win for NS would guarantee them a bye into the semi-finals of the tournament and an opportunity to play for a medal.

Things started off with a bang for Team Nova Scotia. Starting pitcher Kyle Hunt made quick work of NL in the first inning with a strikeout and two groundouts. When Nova Scotia came up to bat, they were ready to rock. Leadoff man Ryan Fitzgerald started things off with a hard line drive hit to Left Field. Nick Gravel followed up with a hard grounder but Newfoundland was able to make the play and force out Fitzgerald at second for a Fielder’s Choice. Noah Boutilier was then walked on 4 pitches bringing up cleanup hitter Camden Rendell. Rendell proceeded to rip a hard line drive past the Shortstop and into the Left Field gap, scoring Gravel. NL managed to get an out next and then Shane Cowan came to the plate with two runners on. Cowan ripped a hard line drive into the Left Field gap for a Triple, scoring both Boutilier and Rendell. Camilo Riesgo then ripped the first pitch he saw for a single to score Cowan. Brett McMullin came up next and kept things rolling with a single of his own to move Riesgo to 3rd. Riesgo then scored on an error on the relay throw. Next the NL pitcher induced a Pop Up to end the inning but NS was up 5 to 0 after 1 complete.

In the second inning Team NL managed to get on the board. Alexander French led off with a single but was forced out on the Fielder’s Choice grounder by Liam Bavis. Jay Miller then reached on an error, moving Bavis to 2nd. Hunt then struck out Sebastian Ojeda looking for the second out of the inning. Ben Halfyard then worked a walk to load the bases. NL’s number 9 hitter grounded a ball between 3rd and Short to score Bavis. Hunt then induced a Groundout to end the inning and keep the damage at only 1 run.

In the bottom of the 2nd, NL replaced starting pitcher Michael Healey with Dylan Morgan. After inducing a Fly Ball out, Morgan then gave up a hard Line Drive single to Nick Gravel. After then inducing a line drive out from Noah Boutilier, Morgan next faced Rendell, who hit a hard line drive to deep Center that bounced off the Center Fielder’s glove to score Gravel. Morgan then induced a ground ball out to end the inning with a score of 6 to 1 NS.

In the top of the 3rd, Team NL was able to close the gap. Jacob Gillis led off the inning with a line drive single. Hunt then struck out Chase Tucker looking. Alexander French then singled. Hunt started the next at bat but after reaching 55 pitches was replaced by Nolan O’Brien to ensure he was still available to pitch later in the tournament. O’Brien ended up finishing a Walk to Bavis to load the bases. Jay Miller then hit a ground ball single to score Gillis and French. O’Brien then got Ojeda to ground out but Bavis scored on the play. Halfyard flew out to center to end the half inning and the score was now 6 to 4 for NS.

In the bottom of the 3rd Nova Scotia started a two-out rally. Brett McMullin and Duncan McLaughlin both walked. Fitzgerald hit another line drive to Left Field but McMullin was not able to score on the hit. With the bases loaded Gravel pulled a hard line drive down the first baseline but the NL First Baseman made a nice play to end the rally.

In the top of the 4th O’Brien struck out Whyte and the induced groundouts from Abbott and Gillis for a 1-2-3 inning. In the bottom of the inning, NS got another two-out rally going. Short walked and Cowan singled to get things rolling. A pop up to Short ended the rally for NS.

In the top of the 5th, Newfoundland got things rolling again. Tucker singled and French followed that up with a Double. Bavis then singled to score Tucker. O’Brien then struck out Miller to slow the NL momentum. Ojeda got things going again though with a single to score French. After Ojeda was caught trying to steal second, Halfyard was walked and Bavis scored on a Wild Pitch. Kiwean Song came on to replace O’Brien and closed out the half inning with a strikeout of Whyte. In the bottom of the 5th, Chase Tucker came to the mound for NL to replace Morgan. He faced 4 batters in the inning giving up only a line drive single by Fitzgerald. At the end of the 5th the score was 7 to 6, with Newfoundland taking their first lead of the game.

The top of the 6th started out OK for Nova Scotia but quickly went downhill. Song induced a groundout from Abbott but then hit Gillis with a pitch to put him on. Tucker then reached on an error. Newfoundland then had three hits in a row including two bloop singles to score 2 Runs and load the bases. Song then walked Ojeda to score a 3rd Run. Pinch hitter Dawson O’Toole-Oldham hit another single to score another run. Song then struck out Whyte again and got Abbott to ground into a Fielder’s Choice to end the inning. In the middle of the 6th the score was 11 to 6 for Newfoundland.

In bottom of the 6th NS had some work to do and ended up being successful with a two-out rally this time. Short got things started with a Hit By Pitch. Cowan then singled. Corson O’Rourke came on as a Pinch Hitter and Tucker immediately Balked to score Short and move Cowan to 2nd. O’Rourke then singled to score Cowan. Singles by Breton Sibley and McLaughlin loaded the bases but the inning ended when Fitzgerald hit a Fly Ball over the Left Fielder that was covered by the Center Fielder who was playing deep. At the end of 6 the score was 11 to 8 Newfoundland.

In the top of the 7th Song settled down giving up only a single to Tucker. Down by 3 runs in the bottom of the 7th Nova Scotia needed a big rally and the “Cardiac Kids” came through with just that. Gravel got things started with a Walk. With a heads up play Gravel kept rolling past first, stole 2nd and induced a wild throw from Tucker to move to 3rd. That seemed to rattle Tucker a bit and he then hit Boutilier with a pitch. An error by the Second Baseman on Rendell’s grounder scored Gravel to make it 11 to 9. Tucker then walked Mike Short to load the bases and Liam Bavis came in to replace him on the mound. Shane Cowan then lined out to Center and O’Rourke hit into a Fielder’s Choice at home. That brought up Breton Sibley with the bases loaded and two outs in the bottom of the 7th. Sibley did not let the pressure get to him. He promptly hit a deep fly ball to right-center for a Double, scoring Rendell, Short, and O’Rourke for Nova Scotia’s second walkoff win in a row.

There were many hits in this game on both sides but Sibley’s was by far the most important and so was awarded the Player of the Game in this one.

2019 Baseball Canada Cup – Nova Scotia Wins Seesaw Battle With New Brunswick To Move To 3 and 0

Value CanuckLeave a comment

On Thursday evening (August 8th) Team Nova Scotia was looking to continue their winning streak at the 2019 Baseball Canada Cup. They were facing Team New Brunswick for the third time this year.

Taking the mound for Nova Scotia in this game was Ethan McLellan. He got off to a good start in the 1st inning, giving up only an opposite field bloop double by Max Grant. In the bottom of the 1st Nova Scotia managed to score two runs without the benefit of a hit, going up 2 to 0 by way of a hit batter and two New Brunswick errors.

McLellan took that lead with him into the 2nd inning and ran with it, striking out the side. He then proceeded to serve up 3-up 3-down innings in both the 3rd and 4th.

For their part New Brunswick and starting pitcher Jordan Fortin settled things down, managing to allow 0 additional runs all the way to the end of the 5th inning and stranding six NS runners in the process.

The top of 5th inning was a bit of a turning point in the game with NB taking the lead. Owen Lohnes led off the inning with a double. Connor Hill then walked and Nick Ruston sacrifice bunted Lohnes and Hill to 3rd and 2nd. Lohnes then scored on a sacrifice fly by Brayden Allain. Pinch hitter Olivier LeBlanc then hit a triple to drive in Hill. At that point Nova Scotia brought in Layton Cuvilier to replace McLellan. Cuvilier gave up one more hit to Grant to score Leblanc and give NB a 3 to 2 lead. Parker Hanrahan replaced Cuvilier in the 6th and held NB without any additional runs.

That NB lead held until there was 1 out in the bottom of the 6th. At that point Duncan McLaughlin hit a line drive double to get things started. Ryan Fitzgerald then hit a double of his own, a line drive that one-hopped the left field fence. Fitzgerald’s hit scored McLaughlin and tied the game.

In the 7th inning, for the third game in a row, Timmy Mann took the mound for Nova Scotia to close out the game. Brayden Allain led off the inning for NB with a single and moved to 3rd on a missed pickoff attempt. After a ground out, a hit batter and an intentional walk loaded the bases for NB. Kaden Sock then hit a single to score a run and put NB ahead again. NS then had a chance to get out of the inning with a potential double play but they could not complete it, getting only the out at second and allowing a run to score. The throw to first bounced past the first baseman, allowing a second run to score on the same play. Mann was then able to settle things down, getting Logan Walsh to ground into a Fielder’s Choice, and then struck out Lohnes to end the inning.

Heading into the bottom of the 7th down 6 to 3, Nova Scotia had some work to do. Fortin, still on the mound for NB, kicked things off by hitting Noah Boutilier and walking Cam Rendell. Fortin temporarily got things back on the rails with a strikeout. Coach Kevin Richardson then brought in Shane Cowan as a pinch hitter and with the pressure on, Cowan delivered a single to load the bases. At that point Joey Boudreau came on to pitch for NB and quickly committed a balk to score Boutilier. Michael Short then proceeded to hit a line drive Triple over the Center Fielder to score Rendell and pinch runner Tyler Boudreau and tie up the game at 6 to 6. New Brunswick then walked McLaughlin and Fitzgerald to load the bases, bringing up Pitcher Timmy Mann for his first at bat of the tournament with game on the line.

On the first pitch of the At Bat, Mann fouled off a Suicide Squeeze Bunt attempt. He then worked the count Full and finally took a ball low for a Walk which scored Short for the Walk Off win.

Nova Scotia pitchers McLellan, Cuvilier, and Hanrahan combined to hold New Brunswick to 3 runs over 6 innings but Mann was awarded the comeback Win.

Nova Scotia had 8 hits in this game but Michael Short’s game tying Triple was the most important hit of those and Short was accordingly awarded Player of the Game.

2019 Baseball Canada Cup – Team Nova Scotia Downs Manitoba in Another Nail-Biter

Value Canuck

At 8:00 AM Saskatchewan time on Thursday morning (August 8) the Nova Scotia 17U Selects faced Team Manitoba for the second game of their schedule at the 2019 Baseball Canada Cup.

Taking the mound for Team Nova Scotia was Duncan McLaughlin. Things got off to a great start as McLaughlin struck out 1 and induced two fly outs in the first inning. In the second inning the first batter doubled his way on, McLaughlin struck out the next, and the third batter of the inning singled to set up a 1st and 3rd situation. Nova Scotia put on a play to deal with this situation in case of a steal but when it happened, they didn’t execute it properly and the error allowed the runner to score to put Manitoba up 1 to 0. McLaughlin then closed out the inning with a fly out and a strike out, but the damage was done and NS was in catchup mode.

Manitoba Pitcher Tyler Smith kept NS in check for the first three innings, allowing only 1 hit and 2 walks. However, in the 4th inning, Nova Scotia mounted a comeback. Camden Rendell led off the inning with a single. A couple of Manitoba errors put Michael Short and Camilo Riesgo on as well. With the bases loaded, Rendell scored on a Wild Pitch and the other two runners advanced. Layton Cuvilier then grounded to 3rd and Short was thrown out at home. With Left Fielder Ryan Fitzgerald then up, Cuvilier stole second base and Riesgo scored on the throw down. With NS now up 2 to 1, Fitzgerald hit a line drive to Left Field to score Cuvilier. The inning ended on a fly out to right.

McLaughlin continued to hold Manitoba in check all the way to the end of the 5th inning, but in the top of the 6th, they started to mount a comeback of their own. Jordan Lussier led off the inning with an infield single. Dawson Tanner roped a hard line drive past a diving Fitzgerald for a Triple, scoring Lussier. With the score now 3 to 2 with the tying run on 3rd, NS brought in their closer Timmy Mann. Mann kept the Manitoba hitters off balance with a mix of fastballs and off-speed pitches, inducing three outs without allowing Tanner to score from 3rd.

In the 7th, Nova Scotia was not able to score so Mann came back to the mound with a 1 run lead. He struck out the first batter looking and then induced a flyout to Left. With two outs Deagan Morcom ripped a Triple to straight-away Center. With the tying run on 3rd, Mann induced a flyout to Center to end the game and clinch the win for NS.

Duncan McLaughlin is credited with the win. He had 5 strikeouts, 0 walks, and spread 8 hits over 5 innings, giving up 1 Earned Run.

Timmy Mann is credited with the Save. He had 1 strikeout and gave up only 1 walk and 1 hit in 2 innings of work. Mann was also awarded the Player of the Game.

Camden Randell led the offensive attack for Nova Scotia with two hits. Ryan Fitzgerald chipped in with an RBI single. Those were the only hits that Nova Scotia had in this big win.

2019 Baseball Canada Cup – Team Nova Scotia Wins First Game Over Alberta In Extras

Value Canuck

On Day One of the 2019 Canada Cup, Nova Scotia won their first game over a tough Alberta squad with a hard-fought 2 to 1 victory after 8 innings.

Nova Scotia got things started early with a run in the first inning. Number 2 hitter Nick Gravel drove a grounder up the middle for NS’s first hit. He eventually moved to 3rd and scored on a passed ball. Despite having a total of 9 hits, NS did not score again until the 8th inning. The offensive attack was led by Micheal Short who was 3 for 3 with two doubles and a triple. Layton Cuvilier chipped in two hits of his own.

Tyler Boudreau got the start on the mound for NS and he put together a masterful performance. Boudreau gave up only 1 hit, two walks, and zero runs over 5 2/3 innings.

Parker Hanrahan came on to close out the 6th. In the bottom of the 7th Hanrahan struck out the first batter to keep the shutout intact. The second batter was Alberta pinch hitter Connor Crowson and he proceeded to hit a Home Run over the left field fence to tie the game. Hanrahan then walked a batter, struck out the next, and NS Head Coach Kevin Richardson intentionally walked another to set up the force play. The inning ended when pinch runner Michael Lovsin was caught stealing at 3rd.

Extra innings at Canada Cup invoke a tie breaker rule where the last two outs from the previous inning start the inning at 1st and 2nd. Things got started with a Passed Ball that moved Ryan Fitzgerald to 3rd and Nick Gravel to 2nd. Fitzgerald then scored what turned out to be the winning run on a base hit by Noah Boutilier.

In the bottom of the 8th Alberta also started with runners on 1st and 2nd. Alberta immediately sacrifice bunted the runners over to 3rd and 2nd. Richardson brought in Timmy Mann to replace Hanrahan on the mound and then intentionally walked the next batter to set up a force play at all bases. The next batter hit into a Fielder’s Choice and Mann finished things off by inducing a Fly Out to Left Fielder Fitzgerald to end the game.

Hanrahan ended up with the Win with Mann getting the Save. Player of the game was Tyler Boudreau.

Nova Scotia just finished their second game with a 3 to 2 win over Manitoba. I will have an update on that game tonight.

2019 Baseball Canada Cup – Team Nova Scotia

Value CanuckLeave a comment

The 2019 Baseball Canada Cup (17U Nationals) gets underway tomorrow in Regina, Saskatchewan. I will be watching each of the Team Nova Scotia games and providing updates during the tournament. To kick things off I thought I would provide a bit of information about the team and their schedule.

The Team Nova Scotia roster can be found HERE.

For any college coaches out their who may be interested in getting more information about Team Nova Scotia, the team’s FieldLevel profile can be found HERE.

The Nova Scotia tournament schedule can be found HERE. That link takes you to the NS schedule on the Game Changer website where you can see live updates and request email updates.

PLEASE NOTE – all game start times listed are local Saskatchewan time, which right now is aligned aligned to Mountain Time as Saskatchewan doesn’t adjust to Daylight Savings Time as most Provinces do.

Things get started for Team NS tomorrow (August 7th) at 11:00 AM Saskatchewan time with a tough matchup against Team Alberta.