JASTER’S JABBERINGS — New era begins tonight for local baseball fans

Opinion

Hey there, time traveller!
This article was published 27/05/2019 (2307 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

Baseball has taken a bit of a hit in southwest Manitoba recently.

In 2017, the Manitoba Senior Baseball League, the only senior AAA circuit in the province, officially folded after taking a year’s leave of absence in 2016. That sparked a junior AAA team, the Brandon Marlins, to be created but they lasted just three years before being unable to field a team this season. The decline is even noticeable at the senior AA level as some teams, most notably the Minnedosa Mavericks who won 10 straight Santa Clara league titles at one point, lacking enough players to hit the diamond this summer.

There may be light at the end of the tunnel though. The area will feature the highest level of baseball since the 1990s starting this evening when the Wheat City Whiskey Jacks play their first-ever home game at Andrews Field. The Expedition League is a summer college league, making it the highest level of ball in the region since the independent Prairie League — which featured the Brandon Grey Owls and Westman Wranglers — ran from 1995 to 1997.

I have never seen an Expedition League game, but I have covered a summer college circuit in the Western Major Baseball League, which is based out of Saskatchewan and Alberta. It’s pretty good baseball with guys who are on NCAA or NAIA teams trying to develop by seeing more playing time during their off-season in these leagues.

Not only will it be good-quality baseball to watch, but the Whiskey Jacks have some sort of promotion on almost every game day, whether it’s a food special, between-inning entertainment or fireworks after the game. They seem to want to make every time they play in Brandon an event, not just a baseball game.

The team is also bringing life back to Andrews Field. With more than 30 home games scheduled between today and Aug. 4, the facility will be better used this season than it has been for a long while when it mainly hosted MSBL, senior AA, high school and minor baseball events, the latter three of which will still be able to use the facility. Renovations are also being done to Andrews Field and there’s talk of more to come, like actual seats with backs instead of just benches.

After winning their season opener on Saturday, it looks like the Whiskey Jacks may be competitive this season as well. The team has home games for eight straight days, so take an evening, or Sunday afternoon, and head down to the ballpark to see what the league and team is all about.

Just a few other thoughts:

• A lot of former Brandon Wheat Kings and hockey players from southwest Manitoba continue to make their mark in the sport. Past Wheat Kings captain Mark Stone was named the most valuable player of the men’s world championship on Sunday despite Canada falling 3-1 to Finland in the final, while Wheat Kings alumnus Brayden Schenn and Brandon native Joel Edmundson suited up for the St. Louis Blues in Game 1 of the Stanley Cup final on Monday.

Those two aren’t the only players with local connections playing for a championship. Morgan Geekie of Strathclair scored the series-clinching goal in double overtime to lift the Charlotte Checkers to the AHL’s Calder Cup final. Former Wheat King Stelio Mattheos is also on the team. Meanwhile Brandon’s Zach Whitecloud and the Chicago Wolves are also pushing for the Calder Cup.

• There will be one less local connection in the Canadian Football League this season. Brandon University Bobcats men’s basketball alumnus Jordan Reaves is out for the season after tearing the ACL in his right knee during Saskatchewan Roughriders training camp, according to a Reaves tweet and Regina Leader-Post’s Murray McCorrmick.

Don’t be surprised if Reaves is back next season though. He plays a large role on the special teams and he is a determined and driven person. He was so focused on becoming a professional athlete that after he struggled to sign a pro basketball deal in Europe after university, he switched sports and eventually cracked a CFL roster despite not playing football for more than a decade. Hopefully he has a good recovery and we’ll see him back on the gridiron in 2020.

• Good luck to Brandon’s Chris Bird and Minnedosa’s Matteo Lisoway as they try to crack the Canadian men’s sitting volleyball team that will compete in the Parapan American Games in Peru in August. The duo are on the extended roster and competed in exhibition matches in Ohio on the weekend.

• After watching Scotiabank Arena and the city of Toronto going crazy celebrating the Toronto Raptors earning their first trip to the NBA Finals, I couldn’t help but think back to a few controversial decision the team made in the last year.

They fired Dwane Casey as head coach shortly before he was about to be named the league’s coach of the year and then hired his assistant Nick Nurse. As much as people were excited about acquiring Kawhi Leonard and what he could potentially bring to the team (he had barely played the year before), they had mixed feelings about getting rid of DeMar DeRozan, who was one of the most dedicated Raptors of all-time. The team also dealt a few other fan favourites this season. Despite all the heat the organization may have felt shortly after those announcements were made, I don’t think anyone is complaining now.

• Toronto posted a better regular-season record than Golden State and beat the Warriors in both of their meetings this season, in November and December. My gut, however, says Golden State comes through in six games. It would be fun to watch the celebration in Toronto if the Raptors do win. I just hope the focus is on the players and fans other than Drake.

• The one thing that bothered me from the Raptors’ conference title is the national broadcasters saying it’s the first Toronto team playing for a championship since the Blue Jays in 1993. They either have very short memories or little respect for teams like the CFL’s Argonauts, Major League Soccer’s Toronto FC and the National Lacrosse League’s Rock.

The Argos won a Grey Cup two years ago, and let’s not forget the 100th Grey Cup in 2012 when they won the CFL title on their home field. TFC’s 2017-18 campaign was one to remember as well as they won the Supporters Shield, MLS Cup and lost in a shootout in the CONCACAF Champions League. The Rock claimed five titles between 1999 and 2005. None of those are small feats, but apparently something that’s forgettable from people who gave them a lot of coverage during their runs.

• This is one of the busiest weekends for high school sports with baseball, softball, urban soccer and rugby provincials on. Most are in Winnipeg this year, although softball is up in Russell. Good luck to all the Westman athletes competing.