[templatic_contentbox type=”normal” title=”2015 Ontario Baseball Provincial Champions – Minor Bantam B Division”] Front Row (left to right): Jayden Purdy, Matt Houle, Hayden Gear, Alex Tomlinson, Adam Duwyn, Jordan Kelner, Connor Stefan Back Row: Head Coach Mike Houle, Ass. Coach Dan McLorn, Kyle Brezinski, Craig Kaufman, Colton Ebel, Tyler Kean, Ass. Coach Jeff Ebel [/templatic_contentbox]
Interest in baseball is taking off in Woodstock, Ontario, and the results – on and off the field – are showing. This season, nearly 570 youngsters played within the Woodstock Minor Baseball Association (WMBA), which featured 35 house league teams for kids aged 3 to 18 (400+ players and 70 coaches) and 11 travel teams for kids aged 6 to 18 (150+ players and 44 coaches). And, of course, there have been countless volunteers.
Woodstock teams won two provincial titles last year, and had another team finish second at OBA’s. The WMBA organizes six tournaments annually, including a house league tourney, two provincial events, two Intercounty League Championships and a Provincial Play-down, and the Association of course holds several year-end banquets where awards are handed out.
“We’re building a successful program here in Woodstock, and we’re continuing to grow year after year,” said WMBA President Jeremy Jeanson. “We have an executive board with 12 members who put in countless hours of volunteer time to make the organization run well, and we’re always looking for people interested in helping build this sport for our community.”
The WMBA holds two ‘Rally Cap’ sessions per summer, which help enhance the first experience with the game of baseball for players and coaches. The program teaches the five FUNdamentals of the game, and players perform different tasks in order to earn a coloured Baseball Canada Rally Cap. The ‘Home Run Project,’ meanwhile, which was launched four years ago, continues to improve the experience for Woodstock players and families.
“It has been the driving force for the betterment of the game in Woodstock,” Jeanson said. “The Home Run Project is focused on developing players, coaches and umpires and providing a safe environment in which players can learn and participate in the sport of baseball.”
Both programs, as well as indoor winter workouts at Cowan Park are proving to be a success in the area of player development, as the WMBA entered more competitive travel teams into the Inter County Baseball Association (ICBA) in 2016 than in any other year.
www.woodstockminorbaseball.com
Submitted by SportsXpress team, contributions by Jeremy Jeanson
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