Tag: JNT

Eight CPBL players help Team Canada to bronze at world qualifier

With a bronze-medal victory in Chitré, Panama at the COPABE U18 Pan Am championships on Sunday, the Canadian Junior National team secured a spot in next year’s World Baseball Softball Confederation U18 Baseball World Cup, and it did so with the help of eight current or former members of the Canadian Premier Baseball League.

The circuit was represented by CPBL graduates Noah Naylor, who is currently a member of the Cleveland Indians organization after being selected 29th overall in this year’s draft; Denzel Clarke, playing at Cal State Northridge; and Daniel Carinci, a member of the University of Alabama squad. Current representatives of the league at the championships included Dasan Brown, Blake Buckle, Owen Diodati, Keegan Pulford-Thorpe, and TJ Schofield-Sam.

Ontario Blue Jays infielder Buckle was also named a tournament all-star after the final victory.

Team Canada beat Nicaragua 5-3 to take the medal and advance to next year’s tournament, and the Junior National Team program and preparations for the U18 World Cup will begin in March with the annual spring training trip in St. Petersburg, Florida.

Eleven CPBL players to represent Canada against Dominican Summer League prospects

The Canadian Junior National Team is just about set to depart for its third trip of the season, and final tour before Major League Baseball’s draft begins on June 4, and among the 30 young players invited to match up against Dominican Summer League prospects are 14 who hail from Ontario, and 11 members of Canadian Premier Baseball League teams.

Among those 11 CPBL players, four represented Team Canada at the World Baseball Softball Confederation’s U18 Baseball World Cup last September right at home in Thunder Bay, with Noah Naylor representing the Ontario Blue Jays, Eric Cerantola and Griffin Hassall hailing from the Great Lake Canadians program, and Denzel Clarke from the Toronto Mets organization. Fellow league members Dasan Brown, Jaden Brown, Blake Buckle, Daniel Carinci, Owen Diodati, Keegan Pulford-Thorpe and TJ Schofield-Sam will join the quartet in the Dominican, and all 11 players are following up a spring trip with the Canadian squad to Florida in April.

On the upcoming trip, Team Canada will play 13 games in nine days against clubs in the Dominican Summer League clubs from organizations that include the New York Mets, Chicago Cubs, New York Yankees, Philadelphia Phillies, Detroit Tigers, Milwaukee Brewers, Toronto Blue Jays, Seattle Mariners, Houston Astros, Minnesota Twins, Tampa Bay Rays, Los Angeles Dodgers, and Pittsburgh Pirates. Baseball Canada’s director of national teams and manager of the junior squad Greg Hamilton leads a coaching staff that includes former national team member Chris Begg, and Robert Fatal, attending as a guest coach.

The Junior National Team program has travelled to the Caribbean baseball hotbed every year since 2011, with the trip providing young Canadian players with a truly unique baseball opportunity.

“The Dominican Summer League camp is a very important component to our Junior National Team program that will provide an invaluable experience to our players,” Hamilton said. “Players will be challenged with an intense schedule, while also dealing with elements in the Dominican Republic that they don’t face at home. The strides taken at this camp will better prepare our team for success going forward.”

In addition to providing an excellent development opportunity for players, the Dominican Summer League camp will aid in the selection process of Canada’s roster for the COPABE U18 Pan Am championships that will take place from November 23 to December 2 in Panama City, Panama. The event also serves as a qualifier for the 2019 WBSC U18 Baseball World Cup.

Lucas Parente enjoying final experience with Junior National Team

THUNDER BAY, Ontario – Lucas Parente is having the time of his life at the World Baseball Softball Confederation’s U18 World Cup on home soil in Thunder Bay.

When the 18-year-old outfielder was first added to the Canadian Junior National Team almost a year ago, his sights were set on just making the next trip with the squad, with no eye on the world championships more than 10 months later. Now, he can’t imagine dreaming of anything else.

“Everything has been amazing,” Parente said. “This is probably the best group of guys I could ask for. I love them all. And the crowd – it’s just something that I might never experience again, so I definitely want to soak it all in and enjoy it. This is my last trip as a junior. It’s different, because when I made the team last October I wasn’t really thinking about this trip – I just wanted to stay on the team after each trip. So once the Dominican trip happened [in May], I really focused on making this team.

“This is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity. Like Greg [Hamilton, Baseball Canada’s director of national teams] always says, this is going to be one of the most special athletic things you do in your career and your life. Once, he told us how [Toronto Blue Jays outfielder] Dalton Pompey would say this is one of the coolest things he’s done, and that made me want to make it even more and I’m just glad that I did. I’m really glad I’m here.”

Parente and his Canadian teammates began their journey to the medal round at the world championships with an extra-inning heartbreaker against Chinese Taipei, before losing their second game against Korea and landing in a hole that forced them to win three straight matchups at Port Arthur Stadium in order to advance to the super round of the event.

Staving off relegation to the consolation round, in a must-win contest against Italy, Team Canada didn’t hold a lead until the ninth inning, completing an epic comeback before adding dominant wins against Australia and Nicaragua to move on.

“We didn’t expect to be in that 0-2 hole early, but Korea and Chinese Taipei are good teams, so I knew those were going to be tough games,” Parente, a native of Burlington, Ontario said. “Our intensity definitely changed after those first two games, because we knew if we lose another one, we’re out. So it was do-or-die every other game…The game against Italy was probably the most intense game I’ve ever played, and it was probably the most fun, when we won.

“The crowd here is nothing that I’ve ever experienced before. I’ve never played in front of a crowd like this before, and just having them on your side is something that definitely helps us and gets our intensity up a lot.”

When the tournament is all said and done – after Parente and the rest of the national team compete for bronze on Sunday, after beating Japan on Friday to move into the medal round – the 5-foot-9, 170-pound outfielder will move to London, Ontario, to work further with the Great Lake Canadians program that he believes got him right to where he is currently.

“I don’t think I would be playing for Team Canada if I didn’t go to GLC,” he said. “Working with Adam Stern, Chris Robinson, Adam Arnold, and all the coaches there, it’s a different level of coaching. If I didn’t go there, I wouldn’t be here, and this has been a pretty cool experience.”

Taking some additional time after high school to find a desirable opportunity for his post-secondary education, Parente wants to explore his options and make a better-informed decision before heading off to school next summer.

“I want to get better and hopefully find a school I like, a program that I want, and a nice place to live for four years,” he said. “I’m looking for a good program and good coaches, and somewhere I can develop. I also want to go somewhere that I’ll actually get a chance to play right off the bat.”

Experiencing a lot of growth over his last couple of seasons with the Canadians, Parente is hoping to keep that progression going even further as he makes baseball his primary focus for a little while, and continues to work hard and get better.

“I’ve evolved a lot since I started with them,” the young player said. “Before I was there, I had a little bit of talent, but going to GLC made me aware of how to play my game and use that ability, because I’m a smaller player and I need to play a different game. I’m not supposed to hit home runs. They taught me really how to play my game to the best of my ability.

“My game is pretty much built around speed. I use bunting, try to hit line drives, and beat out ground balls, stuff like that. That’s what I try to do. I work on my speed a lot, and my hand-eye coordination.”

Parente is one of eight current or former Canadian Premier Baseball League players at the World Cup in Thunder Bay. He is joined by GLC teammates Griffin Hassall and Eric Cerantola, Toronto Mets Denzel Clarke, Dondrae Bremner and Landon Leach, and Ontario Blue Jays Harley Gollert and Noah Naylor.

Noah Naylor gets his own taste of World Cup competition with Team Canada

THUNDER BAY, Ontario – Noah Naylor had heard about world championship experiences before.

Heading into the World Baseball Softball Confederation’s U18 World Cup on home soil in Thunder Bay, the 17-year-old catcher and third baseman had watched from afar when his brother Josh – the 12th overall pick in the 2015 draft – played for Team Canada on the world stage in Mexico and Japan.

“This is one of the biggest events overall,” Naylor said. “Playing against different countries, representing Canada across my chest, it’s definitely something to be thankful for…Events as big as this, seeing other players go through it, like [Canadian 2016 second-rounder Andrew] Yerzy, Josh, and a whole bunch of others, it’s just something that I’ve always dreamed of being in.”

Joining the Canadian Junior National Team almost two years ago, Naylor learned from his older teammates what the experience was like in those other countries. The native of Mississauga and his teammates had also gleaned insight into what it might be like from Greg Hamilton, Baseball Canada’s director of national teams.

“This is amazing,” Naylor said. “Having the home crowd behind you, and Greg has preached this a lot, having the sea of red in the crowd, it’s…an unreal moment for a few days, and I look forward to everything that comes along the way.”
But the experience has really been something that Canada’s current top prospect heading into next year’s draft has needed to feel firsthand to fully understand.

“It’s been amazing,” he said. “Being around my brothers, playing with them, and having a great time outside of the game as well. We’ve got a good chance ahead of us, we just need to stay with our game and just play our hearts out and not take anything for granted.”

Entering his third year with the junior squad and his final season with the Ontario Blue Jays after the World Cup, Naylor has spent much of his time drawing comparisons to his brother while trying to create a path for himself.

“I’m still in the midst of creating my own identity,” he said. “Having Josh going through this whole thing before me has been helpful. He’s told me about all of his experiences, and I’m just trying to make it all my own and build my career around me, and give thanks to everybody who’s helped along the way.”

When the younger Naylor was first invited to join Team Canada, he was originally given a jersey with the No. 35, the same digits his older brother had worn through his four years with the national squad. A little less familiar to all those around him than Josh was at the time, Noah asked if there was any possibility of a trade.

“I asked for a different number,” Naylor said in the spring. “I didn’t want to change anything, but it’s probably more about creating my own path rather than having the same number and doing everything the same as Josh.

“I’m obviously honoured and thankful to have him as a brother, and to carry the same legacy on and have the same number, and that would be cool, but I felt like a different number would be different for me, just to see me go through a different path. It’s something that I look forward to.”

Ironically, at this year’s World Baseball Classic – Josh’s first opportunity to play with the senior national team – he was given Noah’s new No. 32. But with a couple of seasons under both of their belts since the original switch, and a multitude of chances for Noah to separate himself, it was something for the brothers to laugh about.

“We definitely have differences,” the younger Naylor said. “Since Josh is a lefty, he’s definitely limited in terms of positions, but we’re two different players hitting-wise because he’s more of a power guy, and I feel like I’m more of a line drive, gap-to-gap guy with a little bit of pop. That’s the main difference between us, besides the fact that he’s bigger and he’s got a really good arm and stuff like that. Other than that, there’s not too much different about us.”

A left-handed hitting backstop and infielder with good bat speed, a strong arm, an impressive ability to hit, and some power, Noah has been nothing short of impressive on his own merit throughout his high school career.

“Noah brings a lot to the team,” Hamilton said. “He slows the game down, he plays under control, he plays with confidence, he’s a good, complete hitter, he gives you a good at-bat. I look at him as a good hitter with some power, as opposed to his brother, whose power kind of defined him but he was also so good hitter. I see the inverse with Noah, being a good hitter with some power. Your eyes don’t pop out with the power, where with Josh it was the power.

“They’re different personalities too. One’s going to run overtop of you and step on you to beat you, and the other competes very well. With Josh it was a vicious competitive streak, and a good kid outside of it but he was going to be a real tough, hard-nosed kid on the field. Noah plays pretty level, and plays with ease, and he has a more laid-back type personality, but he has a really good chance to be a really good hitter.”

While Josh’s competitive nature may have been more evident in his time with Team Canada, Noah believes that is definitely something they have in common.

“We compete in anything and everything, you name it,” the Texas A&M commit said. “Whether it’s a video game, or just pick-up basketball or anything. We’re definitely competitors. That’s something that we do share with each other, and I don’t think that will ever go away…

“He always beats me at video games. I don’t know why, there’s something with them, he’s always been good at those and I can never get one over him. Maybe the occasional game I’ll win, but it’s an effort, and never really by a blowout or anything like he would beat me. But for outdoor sports like basketball, pick-up hockey on the street, I would beat him at that. I like being outside more, but that’s kind of how it’s been throughout our lives.”

The middle child among three Naylor boys – 12-year-old Myles a standout talent in hockey and baseball – Noah has started to take charge a little bit more on the field lately than ever before, stepping up as one of the longest-tenured players currently wearing the red-and-white uniform.

“I do portray a little bit of a leadership role, but I definitely feel that as time goes on, I’m going to have to start to pick it up,” Naylor said. “Along with some of my other teammates, be a leader for everyone to look up to and follow, because why would I want to be someone who nobody would look up to or follow?

“Seeing these guys leave, they definitely helped me and I hope I’ve helped them get better. Being a leader, and showing the next group or some of my other teammates, helping them get through everything, that’s the key.”

Naylor is one of eight current or former Canadian Premier Baseball League players currently at the World Cup in Thunder Bay. He is joined by OBJ teammate Harley Gollert, as well as Great Lake Canadians Griffin Hassall, Eric Cerantola and Lucas Parente, and Toronto Mets Dondrae Bremner, Landon Leach and Denzel Clarke.

Eric Cerantola takes on Team USA in World Cup competition

THUNDER BAY, Ontario – As Team Canada moves into the super round of the World Baseball Softball Confederation’s U18 World Cup, the stakes only continue to get higher, the competition better, and the stage bigger.

Advancing from its pool with Korea and Australia, the Canadian Junior National Team will take on the best of the opposing group, matching up against USA, Japan and Cuba on the road to the medal round. On Thursday, Canada starts its super-round run with the three-time defending champs, and will send 6-foot-5, 195-pound right-hander Eric Cerantola to the mound to square off against the Americans.

“I’m as ready as it gets,” he said. “I’m excited that the coaching staff is handing me the ball and I’m ready to go. I found out probably 20 minutes after the game [against Nicaragua], when [pitching coach Mike Johnson] came up to me and told me, and I’m ready for it…I got a quick taste of the tournament in my last outing [against Korea] and I’m looking forward to Thursday.”

Despite Team USA looking like the team to beat in Thunder Bay, its pitching staff having allowed only one earned run through its first five games, Cerantola isn’t worried about who his opponent is or what the team has done, because it doesn’t change anything for the 17-year-old righty.

“I like to think that I won’t be thinking too much about who we’re playing,” Cerantola said. “I know they’re going to be a good team, and I just need to stick to my game plan, keeping hitters off balance and throwing strikes. If I can do those things, I’ll do just fine…

“Our guys are really good and they’ve been hitting the ball all over the place, in clutch situations, or using the long ball, and you never know what they can do. And defensively, we have very solid defenders and that’s part of my game plan, throwing strikes and letting the defence do their job.”

With a front row seat for all of the action Canada provided in its run through the opening round, Cerantola has enjoyed not only what his squad has accomplished on the field, but also the reaction of the home-country crowed through it all, with almost 15,000 people passing through the doors at Port Arthur Stadium to watch the boys in red and white.

“The experience so far has been amazing,” the native of Oakville, Ontario said. “Having the home crowd behind you, it’s just an incredible feeling that they’re cheering for your side. We’re just glad that we’re playing well for them and we hope to keep it going. It’s so much fun playing with the fan support, and it really is just a great experience.”

After an extra-inning heartbreaker to start off the tournament against Chinese Taipei, a tough loss to Korea, an epic ninth-inning comeback over Italy and two dominant wins against Australia and Nicaragua, Cerantola and his teammates have experienced almost everything international baseball has to offer, and have been forced to adjust quickly to the learning curve.

“I’ve learned that in international baseball, every team can beat any team at this point,” Cerantola said. “Even [Wednesday], we kind of let Nicaragua come in a little bit, and it was a game at one point. So every team can beat any other team on any given day, it’s just a matter of going out there and playing your heart out.”

Throughout the last year with the national squad, the Great Lake Canadians hurler and Mississippi State commit has been preparing for the World Cup, using outings against professionals to get ready to pitch on the highest international stage, and continuing to learn and get better the entire time.

“The junior team has been a great opportunity to get to face professional batters, and to get to learn really how to pitch against those kind of batters,” Cerantola said. “It’s completely different than being at home, playing against other high school players. You really have to bring out that third pitch and learn how to locate. If you don’t locate, the mistakes are bigger. But it’s been fun.”

As the fun turns into intense competition, the Canadian squad is confident in the progress Cerantola has made and what he can bring to the table as it looks to continue moving forward.

“He’s grown a lot,” said Greg Hamilton, Baseball Canada’s director of national teams. “He’s got some gifts, obviously. You can’t take credit for teaching some of the things he brings to the table. I don’t think any of us can or should. He’s got size, he’s got an easy arm, he’s got great plane, and he spins the breaking ball.

“It’s just a matter of growing into that understanding and realization of the talent he has, and not getting too caught up in being in a hurry for all that to come together, and making changes rapidly…He’s got the makings of everything you’re looking for in a real, legitimate arm, so he’s got a chance to be really good.”

Already the greatest experience the former hockey player has ever had in baseball, Cerantola is hoping to keep riding that wave into the super round and beyond.

“This is incredible,” he said. “Just the fact that you’re playing international baseball against the best of other countries, and that you’re at home at the same time, it’s just amazing.

“This is the best thing I’ve ever done. It’s everything from the games – the games are always intense – everyone’s in it, everyone’s playing to win, the guys are awesome, we all have the same goal in mind, and that’s to win the gold medal, and the crowd has been awesome as well.”

Cerantola is one of eight current or former Canadian Premier Baseball League players currently with the Canadian Junior National Team at the World Cup in Thunder Bay. He is joined by GLC teammates Lucas Parente and Griffin Hassall, Toronto Mets Denzel Clarke, Dondrae Bremner and Landon Leach, and Ontario Blue Jays Harley Gollert and Noah Naylor.

Former Mets hurler Leach brings pro experience to World Cup

THUNDER BAY, Ontario – As the pressure rises and the excitement builds at the U18 Baseball World Cup, the Canadian Junior National Team will look to its most professionally experienced hurler to take the mound against one of its toughest opponents.

Matching up against South Korea to follow a tournament-opening loss for the Canadians against Chinese Taipei and a rained out, postponed contest against Nicaragua, 18-year-old right-hander Landon Leach will get the ball for the host squad, following his first taste of professional baseball after being selected by the Minnesota Twins in this year’s draft.

“This means everything,” Leach said. “Especially because the Twins let me come. So I was really happy that they did that. I’m really grateful for it, and this is the last time I get to be with all the boys. This tournament means a lot to us, so I feel like this is a really great opportunity. And it’s a World Cup – how many people can ever say they played in this? And hopefully we win it, but it definitely means a lot to me to be here.”

The native of Pickering, Ontario and graduate of the Toronto Mets program – where he began as a catcher and was converted to the mound just a couple of years ago – was the highest Canadian selected in this year’s draft, taken by Minnesota out of the Canadian Premier Baseball League with the first pick of the second round, chosen 37th overall.

After signing for $1.4 million, the young hurler joined the organization’s rookie-class Gulf Coast League team and went 2-0 with a 3.38 in five games and 13 1/3 innings with 10 strikeouts, using confidence he gained from having squared off against similar competition with the junior team over the last couple of seasons.

“Having the pro experience definitely helps a lot,” the 6-foot-4, 220-pound righty said. “Because with the Twins we have video review, we have meetings about analyzing different hitters, different counts, different pitches, different zones, and what the hitter’s seeing, what the hitter’s seeing about the pitchers. So I feel like having those meetings with the coaches down in pro ball is definitely going to help me read the batters better during my game.”

After watching his squad battle Chinese Taipei to open the world tournament at Port Arthur Stadium, and getting a glimpse of what the home crowd can add to the atmosphere when the Canucks give them something to cheer about, Leach believes he and his teammates can build from the extra-inning loss and find success as they move forward.

“I thought we played really well against Taipei,” the young pitcher said. “It was a good game from both sides, and just a couple of things determined the game, but it was definitely a good game. The crowd was in it obviously, and it was loud for us, being at home, and we were pumped to be there.

“But at the end of the day, it was a heartbreaking loss, because the game was so close, and there were a lot of ups and downs, but we can come back from this and definitely improve. And I’ll do anything for us to win against Korea.”

Playing with the core of Canada’s World Cup team on multiple trips over the last two years and growing close with his fellow countrymen, the squad’s flamethrower is looking forward to seeing the group play to its potential in Thunder Bay, and complete his career with the Canadian Junior National Team on a high note.

“It’s obviously really exciting to be here, definitely enjoying being at home, because the crowd’s always into it and they’re rooting for you instead of the opponent,” Leach said. “We definitely see the support. It’s obviously really important to win here because we’re trying to win a championship, but our team is really close, and we’ve been together for quite a while, and I feel like we’ll come together and just keep pushing and grinding through it.”

Heading into the game against the highest-seeded team in Canada’s pool – with Italy, Australia and Nicaragua rounding out the group with Canada, Chinese Taipei and Korea – Leach believes in his team to get back to basics and use their strengths to move forward and into the super round of play.

“I feel like we can all come together and play like we usually do,” he said. “There’s no added pressure on me because I’ve pitched in fairly big games already, and I’m just going to go out there and do what I can do. Obviously, we have to win, but I’m just going to do me out there and let that [dictate] the outcome.”

Leach is one of eight CPBL players on Team Canada’s roster at the World Cup in Thunder Bay. He is joined by fellow Mets Dondrae Bremner and Denzel Clarke, Great Lake Canadians Griffin Hassall, Lucas Parente and Eric Cerantola, and Ontario Blue Jays Harley Gollert and Noah Naylor.

From Bermuda to Sarasota, my life as it led to the Orioles

By Adam Hall

It all started in Bermuda.

That’s where I was born, and where I was raised until I turned 12. I played every sport I could, and I knew they came easier to me than other people, and that if I worked hard, I could hope to be the best. I also knew that if I stayed on the island, I would probably max out my athletic years in track and field.

But I wanted to play baseball.

It wasn’t popular in Bermuda. I played for the Diamondbacks, and was lucky to play with kids older than I was so that I could get better. There wasn’t a ton of competition around, but it was a sport where you could always be working on something, even if you had no one else to play with. I gravitated to it because I could always be doing something to try and get better, and you can see improvements without even playing games.

My ceiling was up to me, and that has always been something I’ve enjoyed about it.

There haven’t ever been any professional baseball players from Bermuda before. I’ll be the first, when I officially take the field in Sarasota, Florida with the Gulf Coast League Orioles. It’s a cool fact, but I don’t feel like I overcame any odds to get here.

I’ve been fortunate to be on the path I took.

First, my parents, Helen and Tyler, let me move to Canada before I was even a teenager. We had visited every summer, coming to see my grandparents, and I got a glimpse of baseball in London, Ontario with the Badgers. My coaches now, who saw me then, said that I stood out, and that was probably what helped convince my mom and dad to let me leave. They mentioned it could be a possibility in the future, and I talked them into it that year, when I was 12.

That was the start of the next step.

I never really thought much about moving away from home, because I just wanted to go and play. I wasn’t too concerned about leaving my parents. I lived with Ken Frohwerk and Karen Stone, whose son Zach also played for the Badgers, and didn’t find it difficult to be in another country, although my mom might say something different. But I was playing baseball, so I was happy.

The next summer, a new program was starting in London. Adam Stern, who played in the big leagues with the Red Sox, had built a baseball facility in London when he retired, and with a few other pro guys from the area retiring from playing, they started the Great Lake Canadians, an elite program comparable to a travel-ball team in the States.

I went from playing 10 games a year with maybe 10 practices in Bermuda, to 60 games a season in London. During the off-season, I was probably going to Centrefield Sports, Sterny’s facility, three to five times a week.

That was when I started hearing about the draft, and what it might be like. My GLC coaches Sterny, Chris Robinson or ‘Robbie’, Jamie Romak and Brock Kjeldgaard all told me about their experiences and how different it was for all of them. Jamie went out of the same high school I did, A.B. Lucas Secondary, Brock from Indian Hills Community College, and Sterny and Robbie both went out of university, the University of Nebraska and the University of Illinois, so I got to hear their views and opinions on it. They told me what to expect either way, and tried to help me make sure that I would someday make the decision I wanted to make, not what other people wanted me to do, or thought was best for me.

Being with the Canadians helped me get to Team Canada, where I’ve had some of my best moments on the field. The junior national team has been my favourite thing to do, and I’m lucky I have been able to do it for three years. I couldn’t have been more excited when I first found out I made the team. It was a goal I had set for myself, and something I knew I wanted to do. I’m as much Canadian as I am Bermudian and it meant a lot to make the team.

The trips with Team Canada are the best, just because of how close you get with all the guys, and I’m pretty fortunate because I’ve been able to travel all over with them. I’ll keep some of the best moments with the team, but I’ve been to Australia, Japan, Dominican, Cuba, and throughout the States, and the whole experience has really been the best thing that I’ve done so far. It does so much for Canadian baseball players, and it did so much for me.

Even though I don’t know right now what the plan will be, I do hope I get one more trip with the junior team this summer, to the world championships on home soil in Thunder Bay, Ontario. I’d like to be able to support the program and give back a little bit of what it gave to me, and I’m optimistic about it. I’ve heard really good things about the crowds in Thunder Bay, and having that many fans behind you as you’re representing your country, just thinking about it gives me chills.

When I started with the national team, that was when things really kicked into gear leading up to this summer. I began to look at college options, falling in love with Texas A & M and committing to the Aggies, and really started to get a feel for what the draft process was going to be like.

My parents and I learned a lot. Eventually they both moved to London and we got to be together again, and a lot of our life was about baseball. We were pretty unaware of the whole process of what would happen leading up to this year’s draft, and the whole extent of everything there is involved with it. There’s definitely more than you can expect, even if someone explains it all to you ahead of time. It’s a lot more when you go through it yourself.

We had a lot of meetings and phone calls, being introduced to agents and college recruiters and area scouts and cross checkers and scouting directors, having people visit our home, ask questions, answer questions, go to showcases, go to big league stadiums, more meetings, more phone calls. Each one of us learned through it all.

I learned that I can’t control everything that happens. I went into it all with the mentality to just keep playing my game and not worry about trying to impress scouts. Obviously, I didn’t know if that was how you should approach it, before getting into that situation, but that’s what I did learn, to just try to go out and play my game and be myself.

The process did not go the way I thought it would.

Last year, the year before my draft year, when I was in Grade 11, I performed pretty well in the spring and throughout that summer on the showcase circuit. I was having fun and playing well.

Then this spring, I had some difficulties getting my game back and getting ready.

This was my year, and I expected it to keep going into this year. That was a little bit of a problem for me. I was frustrated, of course. Anytime you’re not doing what you want to be able to be doing, you’re going to get frustrated. But I had to try to manage that, so that it was healthy instead of trying to do too much and pushing myself too hard.

Hopefully it has helped me. Now I have a better idea of how to get through a slump when it’s an important time and I might be pressing a little bit. I was able to find myself again, and if it ever happens again (hopefully it doesn’t), I will know I can get through it.

In the days leading up to the draft, there weren’t a ton of phone calls, definitely less than I might have expected. There were probably five teams that I talked to within a couple days of the draft. I had a bunch of workouts pop up right before, but I expected that. I went to Kansas City to work out for the Royals, and then to Florida for the Astros and Padres, and then there was one in Milwaukee for the Brewers.

The night of the first two rounds of the draft, every pick took a really long time. I was with my mom and dad, and the family who took me in when I moved to London at their house. We were all watching it, not really distracting ourselves with anything else, and I was getting restless. The time between selections was painful.

When the second round started, with the first pick, the Minnesota Twins took my Team Canada teammate Landon Leach. That was a temporary distraction because I was really happy for him. He’s worked hard and improved a lot, and it was definitely something he deserved.

About 10 seconds before the 60th pick of the night and of the draft, my agent Matt Colleran called me and told me the Baltimore Orioles were going to take me, and my name would be the next one to be called. Matt told me what they were offering and asked if I was good with it, and that was the extent of the call before I got to hear my name.

I was pretty happy, to say the least.

So were my parents, friends, and everyone around me.

Right afterward, Chris Reitsma called to congratulate me. Reits is a national cross checker with the Orioles now, but when I met him, he was coaching the junior national team. Other than playing for Team Canada while he was a pitching coach, I had never talked to the Orioles before the draft. He was my only interaction with the organization at all.

It was a little bit surprising, but I knew that was something to expect. That’s what had happened to Sterny when he got drafted. I knew it was a possibility. And it didn’t really matter who it was in that moment, it was exciting.

My next interaction with the Orioles came when the draft was all over, and they made arrangements for me to come to Baltimore to put pen to paper and make it official. I graduated high school a little earlier than my peers, and I was about to leave London and become a professional baseball player.

I flew to Maryland with my mom and dad, and the first night we got to walk around the city a little bit. It was my first time in Baltimore, and it was definitely interesting. It’s right on a bay, so I guess you could say it has some similarities to Bermuda.

We got to go to Orioles Park at Camden Yards the next day. First, I had to go through all of their medical examinations, so they could make sure they were getting a healthy player before signing over their money and committing to me, but then we got to go to the field. They gave us a tour, and we got to watch the team take batting practice, and we stayed for a game against the Cleveland Indians.

The ballpark was a lot different than I expected, but most are. I really liked that out in right field, on Eutaw Street, they have a marker for every home run ball that’s been hit in a game on the ground in the street, with the distance and the name of the guy who hit it.

It would have to be a pretty deep opposite-field shot for me to get there, but maybe someday.

We met quite a few guys in the Orioles’ front office, and it was good to get to talk to them, because they’re people I’ll be dealing with in the future now. It was with them that we made it official.

The actual signing of the paperwork wasn’t very ceremonious. They took a picture with me and my parents and the contract after I had gone through it all, but you just go through and sign what needs to be signed, and it’s all done with less importance than you might think.

But the Baltimore Orioles made me a millionaire. I don’t have the money yet, so technically I’m not, but I signed with them for $1.3 million, and I wouldn’t even say it if it wasn’t posted everywhere for anyone to see. I don’t think I’m going to do anything with it right away. A lot of guys I know bought cars with their bonuses, but I won’t need one down in Sarasota, so I’m not going to get a car right away.

I would like to do something for my parents, but they won’t want me to do that. I’m going to have to try to figure that out.

But now it’s official.

I’ve been fortunate with what I’ve been able to do, being able to move from Bermuda, being able to play with the Badgers, and then the Great Lake Canadians, and then with the junior team. I don’t think I could have been in a better position from where I’ve been, with my parents and all the support they’ve given me.

Obviously growing up in Bermuda and playing baseball isn’t the most ideal place to start, and maybe the odds were not necessarily in my favour, but I feel like they’ve been pretty good.

They worked for me, and here I am, ready to move again.

Four CPBL players selected in MLB’s first-year player draft

In the midst of the second Canadian Premier Baseball League season, the circuit found success on Major League Baseball’s first-year player draft board in yet another year.

In total, 20 players were chosen in the 2017 selection process from north of the border, including nine out of Canadian high schools, with four hailing from Ontario and every one of them representing a CPBL program.

Toronto Mets right-hander and native of Pickering, Landon Leach was the first Canuck off the board this year, the Texas commit selected with the first pick of the second round by the Minnesota Twins, 37th overall.

“The draft is exciting, but all spring I’ve been doing my best to go one trip at a time, not really thinking too much about the future,” Leach said. “I just wanted to do my best in every game that I pitched, and it’s definitely exciting.

“My whole family is excited about the future. It’s not a big family, but they’re all happy for me and they’re going to support me through anything…They’re happy for me and everything I’ve done already.”

Great Lake Canadians shortstop Adam Hall quickly followed Leach in the draft, when the Baltimore Orioles chose the Bermuda-born Londoner and Texas A&M commit with the 60th overall pick, also in the second round.

“I can bring a little bit of everything, whether that’s speed, defence, my arm, batting, power,” Hall said. “When I bring all of that to a game, that’s what impresses people. It’s not just one thing in particular that I’m going to impress someone with.”

Ontario Blue Jays outfielder and Mississauga’s own Cooper Davis was chosen by his hometown Toronto Blue Jays in the 25th round of this year’s draft. The 15th Canuck chosen during the selection process, taken 759th overall, Davis is committed to Vanderbilt University in Nashville, Tennessee. Dondrae Bremner, a Cincinnati commit from Toronto and shortstop in the Mets program, was selected by the Reds in the 31st round of the draft, 917th overall, as the 17th player from north of the border whose name was called.

***

The four CPBL players selected this year follows the inaugural season of the league, in which 12 Canadian high schoolers were chosen in the draft, with all six hailing from Ontario coming from the CPBL. Toronto Mets catcher Andrew Yerzy was the first one off the board in 2016, selected by the Diamondbacks in the second round, 52nd overall, and eventually signing for $1,214,100 before heading off to spend his season between the Arizona League and the Pioneer League.

“I’ve talked a lot with Andrew Yerzy, he’s one of my good buddies,” Leach said. “I worked out with him in the off-season as well, and I talked to him about how pro ball is and what it’s been like for him. He told me everything about it and what he liked about it. He said it’s obviously a grind, but he’s enjoying it at the same time, because he loves to play…

“He said it’s a big transition obviously because our trips are [to play pros] for two weeks, and you’re over there for eight months, so it’s definitely a big change in time, but honestly I feel like I’m ready. I know I’m ready for that.”

Ontario Blue Jays righty Jordan Balazovic was taken in the fifth round last year, 153rd overall, by Minnesota, eventually signing for $515,000 and spending his first professional season with the Gulf Coast League Twins, posting a 1.97 ERA over eight games and 32 innings before turning 18 years old.

OBJ catcher Luke Van Rycheghem was chosen by Arizona in the 23rd round and spent his first pro season in the AZL after signing for $100,000. Mets southpaw Matt Jones was taken by the Twins, and the 28th-round selection shared his rookie season with Balazovic in the GCL after he signed for $70,000.

Great Lake right-hander Austin Shields was selected by the Pirates organization in the 33rd round and got in just over six innings of work in the GCL after signing for $205,000 just before the deadline. His Canadians teammate and outfielder Jake Wilson was taken in the 39th round by the Red Sox, and opted to fulfill his commitment to Bowling Green State University.

***

Several graduates of current CPBL programs were also taken in the 40 rounds of the draft from Monday to Wednesday. Former Ontario Blue Jays right-hander Zach Pop was selected in the seventh round by the Los Angeles Dodgers. The University of Kentucky flamethrower and native of Brampton was the third Canadian chosen, 220th overall.

Pop was followed by Daniel Procopio of Niagara University on the second day of the draft, taken in the 10th round with the 295th pick by the Los Angeles Angels. The Toronto-born right-handed pitcher spent some of his high school playing days with the Toronto Mets program. Fellow Mets grad and Toronto native Eric Senior was chosen in the 13th round – 403rd overall – by the Washington Nationals out of Midland College. J.D. Osborne, another former Mets player and a catcher from Whitby, was chosen out of the University of Tampa in the 22nd round, as the 659th pick in the draft.

Other high school players hailing from the Great White North chosen through the 40 rounds of the draft include Clayton Keyes, an outfielder from Calgary, Alberta, taken by the Diamondbacks in the 15th round; Abbotsford, BC’s Cade Smith, a right-hander chosen by the Twins in the 16th round; Jason Willow, a Victoria, BC native and shortstop, taken in the 24th round by the Orioles; Quebec City second baseman Edouard Julien, taken by the Phillies in the 37th round; and the Tigers 40th-round selection, second baseman Rhys Cratty from Langley, BC. All nine Canuck high schoolers chosen are members of the Canadian Junior National Team.

Canadian college players chosen throughout this year’s process include Jonathan Lacroix, a right fielder from Seminole State and native of Montreal, Quebec, selected by the Astros in the 12th round; Prince George, BC’s Jared Young, a second baseman at Old Dominion taken in the 15th round by the Cubs; left fielder Raphael Gladu of Trois-Rivieres, Quebec and Louisiana Tech, taken by the Mets in the 16th round; Sherwood Park, Alberta’s Tanner Kirwer of Niagara University, the centre fielder taken by the Blue Jays in the 20th round; Louis Boyd from North Vancouver, an Arizona shortstop, selected by the Mariners in the 24th round; Northwestern Ohio righty Kyle Thomas, a Mississauga native, chosen by the Tigers in the 30th round; and Jake Lumley, a product of Canisius College from Windsor, the second baseman taken by the Athletics in the 33rd round.

In addition, two players who were born in Canada but grew up elsewhere were selected in the draft. Right-hander Christian Lindsay-Young from Hamburg, New York was chosen by the Reds in the 21st round out of Niagara County Community College; and righty Jordan Scheftz from Irvine, California was taken in the 23rd round by the Indians out of Central Florida.

Great Lake’s Hall selected in second round of draft

Hailing from the opposite of a baseball hotbed in Bermuda to becoming the 60th overall pick in Major League Baseball’s first-year player draft this year, selected in the second round by the the Baltimore Orioles, Adam Hall has proved himself to be an anomaly over and over in his young career.

Born and raised on the British island territory in the Atlantic ocean, Hall grew up playing soccer, cricket and volleyball, excelling in track and field, while honing his baseball skills in the country’s rookie league and benefiting from competing against older players, a opportunity given to him by the late Tom MacNeil, before earning funding from the Bermudan government to help him pursue his dream further.

On a summer trip with his parents Helen and Tyler to Ontario, the young infielder experienced his first chance at a Canadian baseball season before his teenage years. Hall was always an exceptional athlete, and his talent was recognized early. Not long after that first season, he moved full-time to London, Ont., essentially on his own at first, living with a host family and playing for the local Badgers team.

Fast forward several years since then, and two additional moves to bring his father and then his mother to southwestern Ontario, Hall graduated to the Great Lake Canadians program in its inaugural season, and as the program grew, so did the London resident’s presence on the Canadian baseball scene.

Hall joined the Canadian Junior National Team program at 15 years old and along with the guidance of national squad guru Greg Hamilton, has had a plethora of big-league coaches along the way, starting with Great Lake’s Adam Stern, Chris Robinson and Jamie Romak, and continuing with Team Canada instructors Pete Orr, Justin Morneau, and Hall of Fame second baseman Roberto Alomar, to name a few.

“If I had stayed in Bermuda, I wouldn’t even be playing baseball because they don’t have age groups for me,” Hall said earlier this year. “Maybe I would be doing track and field…Canadian baseball has changed my life a lot. Getting to work with Stern and [Robinson] and those guys at Centrefield Sports, they’ve been a huge part of my development. I would be here if it wasn’t for them.

“And the program that Greg runs is just phenomenal. When you talk to American scouts and they’re impressed and saying that it’s the best program out there, you know that’s really complimenting it. They’re going to want to say that the US has something better – the US is a baseball powerhouse – [and] they’re saying the Canadian junior program is the best program. What I’ve been able to develop through that and improve through that, it’s really been everything.”

Since joining Team Canada, Hall has been on countless trips to St. Petersburg and Orlando, Florida, along with the Dominican Republic, Cuba, Australia, and to the 2015 U18 Baseball World Cup in Osaka, Japan. The shortstop cherishes each tour as much as the entirety of the experience of representing Canada on the diamond.

“You remember the people you played with, the people you met, how close you were with them, and just how the family comes together that is Baseball Canada,” he said. “The experiences will last a lifetime and you’re a part of the family forever.”

Hall’s initial shot at the showcase circuit was at the Toronto Blue Jays-hosted Tournament 12, the first of many doors to open for the 6-foot, 170-pound shortstop. Beyond four appearances in four years at Tournament 12, the middle infielder also participated in multiple Perfect Game events, the East Coast Pro showcase, the Area Code Games, the Under Armour All-America Game, and Perfect Game’s All-American Classic at PETCO Park.

Though the 18-year-old never considered himself the prototypical type of player expected at the kinds of showcase events he participated in – not blowing everyone out of the water in any one category – his ability to remain consistently at the top of each of his tools was what separated him from the crowd.

“You think of the guys who go to those games and you think of big guys who are hitting the ball far and pitchers who are throwing 95 [miles per hour] plus,” Hall said. “I wouldn’t say I’m the typical guy to go to those but obviously I’m pretty happy that [I did]…

“I can bring a little bit of everything, whether that’s speed, defence, my arm, batting, power. When I bring all of that to a game, that’s what impresses people. It’s not just one thing in particular that I’m going to impress someone with.”

Hall has certainly impressed all those he’s been around throughout his years of development in Canadian baseball, and the Texas A & M commit has a bright future ahead of him, no matter what decision he makes.

Hall’s selection in the draft followed fellow Canadian Premier Baseball League member and Team Canada teammate Landon Leach, taken by the Minnesota Twins with the first pick of the second round, 37th overall, who was most impressed throughout his tenure with the national squad by the infielder.

“Adam Hall has really impressed me the most since we’ve been playing for the Junior National Team,” the 17-year-old right-hander said. “Especially with his work ethic and his hitting ability, and his defence as well. Overall, he’s been a good teammate and a good player to be around.”

Adam Hall pays it forward with help from GLC and Home Run Sports

Fortunate to be the recipient of some assistance – and plenty of free equipment – through his journey in baseball so far, Adam Hall wanted to offer the same to some of the young players in his community.

The Great Lake Canadians shortstop, and top position-playing prospect north of the border heading into the upcoming draft, took some time between trips with the Canadian Junior National Team this spring – after matching up against professional competition in St. Petersburg in March and before playing at extended spring training in April – to give back, in conjunction with the Canadians program and Home Run Sports in London.

Each year, Great Lake players utilize fundraising efforts to help lower program fees. Top fundraisers earn prizes, including equipment from Home Run Sports. Named a winner, the Canadian Premier Baseball League player offered his equipment back to candidates found by the local store, and together they made got the seasons of about a dozen young players started off on the right foot.

“I get a lot of stuff through baseball, so I have more than enough equipment already,” the 17-year-old infielder said. “So I was talking to my parents [Helen and Tyler] about it and we just thought we should do something to give back, and then Home Run Sports gave us an opportunity to do that and we were able to set something up with them.”

Hall’s father got the ball rolling with the baseball and softball store, whose staff was more than happy to participate and assist in the process.

“It really happened through Home Run Sports,” Hall said. “My dad talked to them to try and see if we could do anything with that, and the event came out of it. We planned it all probably about a month before the event happened.”

Added Tyler Hall: “The Junior National Team equips its players very well, and Adam received a lot of gear at different showcase events last summer. So it was nice for him to be able to donate the value of his fundraising incentive prizes. We’ve been fortunate to have assistance on many fronts over the last five or six years, so giving back is a natural thing to want to do.”

On a Saturday at the beginning of April, Hall and Home Run Sports combined to outfit 12 young players between the ages of seven and 11 years old, who left fully equipped and eager for the upcoming season.

“Home Run Sports chose the recipients,” the Bermuda-born native of London said. “They called the local programs and asked around to figure out which families would be suitable for what we were doing.

“There were a couple of groups of kids that came in. I had a meet-and-greet with them, talked to them about their baseball teams, my baseball, and what I’ve been able to do with baseball. Then I kind of took the kids around, found a glove for each of them that they liked, and I helped them with that a little bit, finding a glove that was right for them.

“Then they picked out some batting gloves, and they got to choose the colours they wanted for those, and then they also got cleats from Home Run Sports. I didn’t do that, Home Run Sports hooked them up with cleats, and then they got a package from Home Run as well, with a t-shirt, water bottle and hat.”

Watching from the sidelines, Tyler Hall was especially proud of his teenage son’s efforts and the impact he made not only in the moment but beyond the event.

“We are of course proud to see Adam thinking of others, and acting as a positive role model,” the elder Hall said. “The Great Lake Canadians and Home Run Sports were really enthusiastic about the idea, and jumped right in to make it a great event. We were also touched to learn that GLC 14U player Dylan O’Rae donated the value of his custom Rawlings glove that he earned through his fundraising efforts.”

All in all, the day couldn’t have been better for all those involved.

“It was definitely fun, especially seeing the reactions of the kids,” Hall said. “They were pretty excited about all the equipment, the hats and the cleats, and that helped a lot. Two of them even wore their cleats home from the store. It felt good to be able to help. They were excited and they were happy, and seeing that was pretty cool.”