Five local teams are suiting up for the North Saskatchewan River Baseball League season in 2010, here's a full preview for four of them. The season kicks off May 18.
Jays looking for the next step
By Robb Fenton
Last season the Border City Blue Jays had one of their best in recent memory.
Unfortunately, they couldn’t continue that on into the playoffs as they were eliminated in the first round.
They are coming into this season with a new attitude, knowing they can win and plan to long into the post-season.
“We’re pretty excited. Our team is looking pretty decent so far and we’re all just looking forward to getting out on the diamond,” player/coach Clayton Ermel said Tuesday. “We have an exhibition game Thursday (tonight), then it will be nice to get the league started.”
The team has been hard at work already preparing for the season and a good combination of returning players plus a few newcomers has the roster looking solid from top to bottom.
“We’re looking good. We have a few new guys coming out and most of them look good so far. We also have quite a few guys that came back, so we’re looking pretty decent all around,” he said.
After the 2009 season where the Jays finished near the top of the standings, but were quickly swept aside in the playoffs, they feel they have some unfinished business.
The goal is a simple one, make it back to the playoffs and hopefully make some noise once they’re there.
“We’d like to do well, like any team and make it a little deeper into the playoffs. We’d like to win the league one of these years and hopefully we’re at least going to take a good run at it this year,” Ermel said.
In the past and once again this year, pitching will be the strong point of the Jays roster.
It has allowed them to win some closer games and has also put them in a position to contend for a title for the past few years.
They need the offence to do their part, but keeping the run against down shouldn’t be an issue.
“Our pitching will be our strong point. We’ve got Colby (Field) back, he’s our top pitcher and we’ve got another guy that came into town from B.C. He looks like he’s going to be another good pitcher for us this year,” he said.
Experience, especially from last year’s team will go a long way in 2010.
The Jays have a solid core coming back and will add a few more players to the mix to hopefully put them over the top and into championship contention.
“The guys that have been with us a few years know how the league goes. It takes a year or two to get comfortable with your team, so the guys that have been there a couple years will really help that part,” Ermel explained.
Opening up against the Midget Twins Wednesday will give the Jays a chance to see what their team looks like, but they aren’t taking the Midgets lightly and will be ready to go when they take the field.
“The Midgets have always been tough in the league,” Ermel said.
Game time will be 6:30 p.m. at Legion Ball Park.
Lloyd Jrs looking confident
While they are officially a new team in the league, there is very little new about the Lloydminster Juniors.
The expansion club is made up of players who have progressed through the midget level and now find themselves together again as part of the 2010 NSRBL season.
The Juniors manager Derrick Flash said most of the team has experienced success together and will add a few strong players to this year’s roster.
“We’ve got a roster of 15 players, pretty much the same crew that won AA provincials two years ago. Everybody moved up together and everybody on the team has kind of played together in some capacity over the last six to eight years,” he said.
There will be several other aspects of the Juniors game that makes them tough to play against, but the biggest thing they have going for them is familiarity.
“There’s definitely a chemistry component. Anyone involved in competitive sports know that chemistry is sometimes as important as the talent you put in the field,” Flash said, adding the players the Juniors throw on the mound will be a big reason for success as well. “Pitching will definitely be a strength. We’ll have the same pitching rotation we’ve had the last couple years, which has allowed the boys to win and we’re actually looking at a little better offence.”
In the past scoring runs was the problem for the group of midget-aged players that will make up this team.
Now, that doesn’t look to be a problem as they have added some pieces to the puzzle, as well as developed their own players and their abilities.
“The kids are year older, a year stronger and basically another year more mature. We have a kid by the name of Cody Bosch coming in from Kindersley and I think he can provide some more offence for our team,” Flash said of the changes the team has made. “Steven Latos is back. He went to school in Kamloops, playing baseball there, so he’s going to be back and a little wiser as to how baseball is played at the next level and I’m sure he’s going to help out the rest of the boys.”
While the actual name of the team would indicate they are different, there will be no fooling the rest of the league when this team hits the field.
Flash knows that, but also knows that if his team does what they are capable of, they will be in a good spot to make some noise in 2010.
“I think everybody knows we have a good team. I think the goal is to get home field advantage in the playoffs, which means we have to finish fourth or so and from there, just to play well,” Flash explained. “If we do that, the boys certainly can win.”
Kicking off the season next Tuesday against the Lloyd Senior Twins will give the Juniors a good test right off the bat.
It will also allow them a chance to send a message and see where they stack up against one of the league’s top teams.
“We play the senior Twins first game, so if it’s like last year, that showdown was important in the standings and I think it’s huge,” Flash said to play the Twins tough and get off to a good start. “If you can jump out to some early success it will give the guys confidence and let them roll on and hopefully into the playoffs.”
Game time is set for 6:30 p.m. at Legion Ball Field Tuesday night, in the opening game of the 2010 season.
Midget Twins looking to rebound
It will be a new look lineup and one that will have a sharp learning curve, but also one that has a huge upside.
The Lloydminster Midget Twins had a large turnover of players from last year’s team and will look to do some rebuilding in 2010, but the entire team is excited to kick things off next Tuesday to begin their 2010 NSRBL season.
“We’re looking forward to getting going. The guys have been throwing the ball for a little while, so we’re excited for sure,” Midget Twins coach Jeff Latos said.
Knowing there will be some bumps along the way has the team prepared for the season, but they are still confident in the roster they have put together.
It will take some time to gel and get used to the level they are playing at and Latos knows they can do it, adding it will take some time.
“The team is going to be probably better than we expected, but it is a growing year for us. It’s a rebuilding year because we lost a whole bunch of veterans from last year and we’re going to have a very young team,” he said. “We’re going to have lots of first year kids on the team that have never seen senior ball, so it’s going to be intimidating for them at first.”
It may take a few games for the team to be comfortable with the level they are playing at, or even their teammates, but for Latos and the coaching staff, their goal is to peak at the right time, which is late in the season as they prepare for a potential playoff push, as well as a provincial run.
“We want to get these guys used to this level so when we get to provincials they’re not going to be intimidated by anything we see,” Latos explained. “The other thing, we know we’re not going to win, but we hope we’re going to be competitive with a lot of the teams and all season.”
At this point in the season, with so many new faces and a number of uncertainties, Latos said it’s tough to pinpoint the strength of this year’s team, but from what he has seen, he feels the play in the field should be steady.
And the plan is for the rest of the game to catch up as the season goes.
“I’m hoping our defence will be solid. Offensively I’m not sure how we’re going to do right away,” he said. “We’re not going to be long ball hitters by any means, but as the season progresses I hope we can work and grow, be consistent and our batting averages are going to go up.”
With only a handful of returning players, it’s tough to look at the veterans for leadership because there are so few, but the ones that are going to be on the roster will play a huge role on and off the field.
Latos said the leadership is going to go a long way.
“It will be good. There will be about five guys who are second year kids, who played with us last year. They are going to be the guys that are going to be carrying us for sure,” he said. “We’ve got some first years coming up that are going to be decent pitchers, so that will help, but those second year kids are going to be our leaders.”
Progression is the big word around the Midget Twins and even though they may not come out of the gates flying, if they are hitting their stride heading into provincials, they are on the right path.
“That’s the whole idea. We’re going to play in the league, see better pitching, just play veterans that don’t get intimidated. Hopefully we’re going to grow and become more solid as the year goes on,” Latos said of the goal in 2010. “Then when we do get to provincials we’ll be a much better team.”
The Lloyd Midget Twins open up their NSRBL season Wednesday against the Border City Blue Jays at Legion Ball Park, at 6:30 p.m.
Twins’ title defence begins
After four straight years of heartbreaking losses in the finals, the Lloydminster Twins are back on top.
Now it is time to defend the title they won last season.
The Twins open up the NSRBL Tuesday night against the Lloyd Juniors and are looking for the same success as 2009.
“We’re definitely excited to get back at it. It’s always a long off-season, so it’s nice coming into this season after finishing up on a high note last year. It’s good getting back to the ball park and seeing the boys again and getting ready,” Twins veteran Troy Winterhalt said.
The veteran core will remain intact, but with about seven players not returning to the mix, as well as coach Arnie Lund moving on, the Twins will have a different look and gameplan in 2010.
“Things are coming along. Kelly Hoffer has kind of assumed role of coach, replacing Arnie, so it’s a good thing we have a guy within the team that has been around the team for a number of years. ” Winterhalt said.
It’s no secret what the Twins will rely on to hopefully repeat as league champions.
“The experience, you can’t teach or replace experience and that’s something we definitely have going for us. We’ve got some guys that have been through it for a long time and in the last 10 years we’ve only missed the finals once,” Winterhalt explained. “We’re just steady. Our pitching is always solid, it always gives us a chance to win. Offensively we’ll be there at the end of the year, pitching is our strong point, but we’ll continue to work on our defence.”
As the defending champs, the Twins will have a target on their back, but Winterhalt said that doesn’t really bother the team.
“I don’t think we have any more pressure on us than we put on ourselves. The guys that we have, they all expect a lot out of themselves. We’ve played the game for a long time and we expect a lot and expect to be there at the end of the year,” he said. “Anything else is a disappointment. Our goals are to win and win lots.”
The Twins open up the season Tuesday night against the Lloyd Juniors at Legion Ball Park at 6:30 p.m.
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