Baseball is back on the brains of thousands of kids across London and the surrounding area. Athletes representing the London District Baseball Association (LDBA) flooded our diamonds and harnessed their skill across levels ranging from Rookie to Senior in 2016, while competing against teams from across Ontario, Canada and the USA. Our summer pastime has seen tremendous growth in recent years, and we expect this trend to continue in 2017. Baseball is Back!
Teams from across the LDBA were front and centre at both the provincial and national level in 2016. Provincially, the London West Tincaps represented LDBA in the Minor Rookie ‘AA’ championships and brought home the gold medal with class and style. Likewise, the St. Thomas Cardinals dominated the Rookie Division at the ‘AA’ level and earned a well-deserved championship. Not to be outdone, the London Badgers were successful in capturing Gold in the Major PeeWee ‘AAA’ championship, adding yet another trophy to the shelf at the Batters Box.
The London Tecumsehs represented admirably, earning an unprecedented five silver medals in one year across all divisions, which speaks to the quality of their baseball program. Silver medals were also won by the St. Thomas Tomcats ‘AAA’ Junior team, as well as the Ilderton A’s Midget ‘A’ team. Nationally, the St. Thomas Tomcats were finalists at Eliminations, as were the Strathroy Royal at the Senior Nationals. For the third straight year, the host London Badgers 13U PeeWee team showed the country why the Badger program is considered one of the elite baseball programs in the country by bringing home the bronze.
In 2017, London will welcome teams from across Ontario to compete in both the Minor PeeWee ‘A’ and Minor Mosquito ‘A’ provincial championships, which will be hosted by the London West Tincaps and North London Nationals, respectively. The London Badgers will play host to the 2017 18U National Championships at Labatt Park. St. Thomas was also awarded the 2018 21U National championships, where teams from across the country will get a look at the much-anticipated brand new Cardinal Field. Both the 12U Minor PeeWee London Tecumsehs and the London West Tincaps will be participating in a week-long international tournament in Cooperstown, New York this summer, while the London West Tincaps take their 14U team to Cuba to play against some of the best kids in the world at their age group.
Much success was had individually by present and former LDBA athletes in 2016 as well. Matt Brooks of the St. Thomas Cardinals joined the St. Clair Saints, where he served as one of their catchers. Colton Phibbs (St. Thomas Cardinals) and Alex Lamont (London Badgers) both joined coach Mike Lumley as rostered players for the Western Mustangs. Another Badger, Hayden Regnier, joined the Fanshawe Falcons alongside Robert Doyle (London Tecumsehs). Doyle was named OCAA Rookie of the Year, and both were part of the 2016 OCAA National Championship team. Daniel Lichty of the London Badgers was awarded a scholarship to Huntington University in Indiana, while Travis Keys, also of the Badgers, signed with the Lake Michigan Red Hawks. Great job boys!
With warmer weather on the way, most organizations are currently holding their registrations for 2017. If you interested in registering, please go to www.ldbabaseball.ca/Links and click on your home organization’s link. If you are not sure which home associate you belong to, please use our boundary search for clarification (www.ldbabaseball.ca/Pages/1190/Boundaries).
Let’s Play Ball!
Submitted by Rob Jamieson for LDBA Baseball and photo by Becky Collins
