After summer season was struck out by COVID-19, fall baseball thrives in Saskatoon
Going Yard Baseball has seen a surge in registrations for fall baseball after COVID-19 foiled the summer season.
“2018 and before we would’ve hosted maybe one or two teams in an age division, now we’re finding enough registrations that we can make three or four teams in an age division,” Jordan Drager told CTV News. Drager formed the league in 2014 after he returned to Saskatoon from playing college baseball in West Virginia.
For James Heapy, having the fall option after two uncertain regular seasons was a relief.
“It was a roller coaster of emotions. It was like, we can’t quite do it, maybe next year, maybe next week,” Heapy said.
He’s been playing his favourite sport into the fall for three years.
Evan Helt has been enjoying fall ball also because it is different from regular spring ball.
“In my league there’s tiers so you don’t really see many players, but in fall ball, everybody is there so you get to learn about more baseball and how people play,” Helt said.
The September option has grown in popularity over the past few years, but COVID-19 has led to an even bigger surge.
Inside Pitch across the city also has fall programs. Cory Hall runs that program and played professionally with the Kansas City Royals.
Here he has four teams with 50 players competing against teams from Regina and Swift Current.
One of the big plusses to playing outside the traditional baseball season is having a competitive edge against other players when they return to the diamond in the spring.
“When I first started here in fall ball, I was still learning how to hit the ball, now I’ve hit home runs at these fields now,” Helt said.
Another appeal for parents and players with both programs is the option to travel to tournaments in the United States.
The Going Yard has taken players to compete in Phoenix before the pandemic and hopes to do so when it’s safe again.
Inside Pitch is planning to travel to a tournament in Las Vegas in November, restrictions permitting.
Do you have a story idea or news tip? Email us.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
Grandparent scam: London, Ont., senior beats fraudsters not once, but twice
It was a typical Tuesday for Mabel Beharrell, 84, until she got the call that would turn her world upside down. Her teenaged grandson was in trouble and needed her help.
Deaths of 4 people on Sask. farm confirmed as murder-suicide
The deaths of four people on a farm near the Saskatchewan village of Neudorf have been confirmed a murder-suicide.
CRA no longer requiring 'bare trust' reporting in 2023 tax return
The Canada Revenue Agency announced Thursday it will not require 'bare trust' reporting from Canadians that it introduced for the 2024 tax season, just four days before the April 2 deadline.
Full parole granted to man convicted in notorious 'McDonald's murders' in Cape Breton
The Parole Board of Canada has granted full parole to one of three men convicted in the brutal murders of three McDonald's restaurant workers in Cape Breton more than 30 years ago.
Incident on Calgary's Reconciliation Bridge comes to safe resolution
Nearly 20 hours after a man climbed and remained perched on top of the Reconciliation Bridge in downtown Calgary, the situation came to a peaceful resolution.
Sunshine list: These were the Ontario public sector's highest earners in 2023
Ontario released its annual sunshine list Thursday afternoon, noting that the largest year-over-year increases were in hospitals, municipalities, and post-secondary sectors.
George Washington family secrets revealed by DNA from unmarked 19th century graves
Genetic analysis has shed light on a long-standing mystery surrounding the fates of U.S. President George Washington's younger brother Samuel and his kin.
'We won't forget': How some Muslims view Poilievre's stance on Israel-Hamas war
A spokesman for a regional Muslim advocacy group says Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre's stance on the Israel-Hamas war could complicate his party's relationship with Muslim Canadians.
Why some Christians are angry about Trump's 'God Bless the USA' Bible
Former U.S. President Donald Trump is officially selling a copy of the Bible themed to Lee Greenwood’s famous song, 'God Bless the USA.' But the concept of a Bible covered in the American flag has raised concern among religious circles.