The team entered championship weekend as favourites, having gone 15-1 during the regular season.
Head coach Stefan Newell said he was proud of the hard work of his team, staff, volunteers and parents for making this season possible.
“We worked hard all season,a lot of dedication… they had the mindset to always get better,” said Newell. “This weekend was really special. We had the opportunity to host provincials right here in Yarmouth in front of a lot of local fans.”
The team kept their strong season going into the playoffs, defeating the Sydney Sooner 6-0 in semi final play and then winning the championship over the Tri County Rangers 13-1.
“There’s lots of moments that will really stick around in my memories for a long time,” said Newell.
Next up for the Gateways is the Atlantic championships, which are hosted in New Brunswick September 18 to 20. Newell said there’s sure to be more challenges there, but that he’s confident in his team’s ability to do well and bring the championship back to Yarmouth.
The Kenora Youth and Family Wellness Camp is closing out July with a lineup of free sports clinics, giving local youth the opportunity to learn from professional and high-level coaches.
Last week, participants took to the basketball court for a clinic hosted by the Raptors development team, where they worked on skills and drills with experienced coaches.
The sports programming continued Friday with a soccer camp led by representatives from Toronto FC, one of Canada’s premier professional soccer organizations.
The action isn’t over yet.
The Toronto Blue Jays Care Foundation will be in Kenora next week to host a free baseball clinic for players aged six to 17. The event is scheduled for Wednesday and will provide young athletes with instruction and activities focused on developing baseball skills.
Jays Care will also offer a coaching clinic on Tuesday for youth baseball coaches looking to build their knowledge and teaching skills on the diamond.
A Nova Scotia baseball legend is having his jersey retired.
Jim “Rico” McEachern has worn many hats for the Sydney Sooners. He’s been president, general manager, and even played and coached at the same time, all the way from their 1977 inaugural season until 2001.
Now, for the first time in Nova Scotia Senior Baseball League (NSSBL) history, the league is honouring his 50 years of commitment to supporting and promoting the sport by retiring his jersey league wide.
President of the NSSBL Brad Jacobs said in a press release that although this is the first time the league has bestowed a league-wide number retirement, the decision was an easy one.
“Rico’s legacy is unprecedented, and the unanimous support of our board and the league’s other four teams reflects the respect he has earned across senior baseball in Nova Scotia.” said Jacobs.
In 2009 McEachern returned to the team, and was inducted into the Cape Breton Sport Hall of Fame as a builder.
McEachern then went on to lead the Sydney Sooners to back-to-back league championships as a manager in 2013 and 2014, and earned the team a third title in 2017.
The retirement ceremony will take place on July 11 at 6:30 p.m. at Susan McEachern Memorial Ballfield, right before the Sooners take on the Kentville Wildcats. There is no admission price for the ceremony or game, and the league is encouraging community members to come out and show their support to McEachern and the Sooners.
A baseball field in Saint John’s north end is getting a second chance at life with some help from the Toronto Blue Jays.
St. Peter’s Field has been out of commission for more than a decade.
The Port City Pirates hosted an Atlantic tournament in 2015.
Plenty of time and money was spent to get the field up to snuff for the event.
During the following winter, however, a tree fell on the backstop and the field was put out of service.
Yan del Valle is part of the group The Friends of St. Peter’s.
He said the group, along with the Port City Pirates came together to rescue the field.
Del Valle said he and Port City president Adam Doherty were watching their children play ball at a field in Moncton that had been refurbished through the Blue Jays Foundation’s Field of Dreams program.
“I remember Adam saying, ‘If there is a field in Saint John that the Jays will pick it’s St. Peter’s Field,’” del Valle said.
That chance conversation led the two groups down a path that concluded over the weekend.
St. Peter’s was one of 22 fields named by Jays Care as recipients.
The Saint John field received $148,000 that will support Phase 1 of the project, an initiative to revitalize the historic field.
A small group of people knew the Pirates organization would be one of the recipients of the Jays funding, and they organized a Blue Jays watch party uptown for June 7.
Unfortunately, poor weather forced the party inside Market Square, but the rain didn’t dampen the reaction to the announcement.
Doherty said Phases 1 and 2 will get the field into a playable state, so spectators can come and watch a game.
“Phase 3 is kind of like a wish list,” he said. “We hope that there’s enough stamina to go the distance with this and hope there’s enough support from the community that we could put lights in the place, build a clubhouse, all that sort of stuff.”
For Doherty, the project will have a practical benefit for the baseball community in the city.
The Port City Pirates run programming all the way to 18U, and it’s difficult to find field time with only two fields in Saint John that are the right size.
“Our interest is to try and get another 18U field in the city that’s accessible,” Doherty said. “Kind of like a home field for those kids.”
Doherty said while the 18U AAA team would likely continue playing at Memorial Field, the 18U AA and A teams would make use of St. Peter’s.
The next step is fundraising.
Doherty said the organization has reached out to the provincial government through the Regional Development Corporation.
They’re also going to launch a sponsorship program with various tiers like grand slam sponsor down to base hit, depending on how much money a group or individual gives.
Doherty said he’s hopeful the people of Saint John will step up in support of the project.
“Baseball is a big part of the city’s history,” he said.
And baseball culture is one of support.
“I was at Memorial Field and there was an umpire that was walking around, he forgot his sunglasses somewhere,” Doherty said.
“He made his way over to the canteen area and somebody had turned them in. And he made the comment that kind of stuck out to me and he said, ‘Oh, baseball people are good people.’”
Since the announcement, Doherty said he’s received lots of emails from people with some past connection to St. Peter’s or the Port City Pirates just to ask about the next steps and what they can do to help.
“It’s kind of comforting to know that the baseball community will be there for us.”
A fascinating piece of history
Del Valle’s son, Diego, helped out by digging into the history of the field and putting together a project that he’s submitted to the Heritage Fair National Showcase.
Del Valle said he learned some history that touched him as a baseball fan and Cuban.
On July 9, 1976, the Cuban national baseball team was touring Atlantic Canada and played a game at St. Peter’s.
Del Valle said he learned his baseball hero, first baseman Antonio Muñoz, played in that game.
“I grew up worshipping him,” del Valle said. “I used to write in newspapers in Cuba before I came to Canada and I remember writing an article about him, making the argument that he was the best hitter in Cuban baseball history.
“When I find that was in that field, you know, it closed the deal for me.”
If you’d like to support Diego’s project, visit this link.
