By IAN WILSON
One of the top umpires in the Western Canadian Baseball League has been recognized for his officiating achievements across several sports in Alberta.
Kris Hartley – who serves as an umpire and an assignor for the 12-team WCBL – was presented with a Technical Official Recognition Award at the Alberta Sports Hall of Fame Class of 2026 induction ceremony on June 6th in Red Deer.
“Kris has distinguished himself as an elite-level official on the ball field, ice rink or volleyball court. He officiates at the highest levels in softball, baseball and volleyball,” noted the Alberta Sport Recognition Award Winners overview.
“Beyond his on-field achievements, Kris has devoted countless hours to the advancement of officiating within multiple sport organizations provincially and nationally, reflecting a deep understanding that the long-term success of sport in Alberta depends on strong, well-supported officials. Through mentoring, evaluation, clinics, and one-on-one guidance, Kris has played a pivotal role in developing new officials and supporting experienced officials as they progress toward higher levels of competition. He serves as a role model for officials across Alberta, exemplifying the values of leadership, and accountability.”
Hartley has officiated international competitions in four sports, including ice hockey, baseball, fastpitch softball and volleyball.
His 2025 highlights included umpiring the U18 men’s fastpitch Pan-Am event in Argentina, where he worked home plate for the championship game, and supervising both the U20 men’s fastpitch nationals and Baseball Canada’s U13 nationals.
Hartley worked as a referee at the Volleyball Canada youth nationals and as a referee assistant for the 2025 U19 men’s volleyball Pan-Am championships in Calgary.
In addition, Hartley is the umpire education chair for Softball Alberta and he focuses on training and development as an umpire committee member with Baseball Alberta.
This summer, along with his duties with the WCBL, he is slated to work at the 2026 Canada Cup Women’s International Softball Championship in Surrey, B.C. and at Baseball Canada’s Road to Okotoks championship event.
He will also travel to Oklahoma City for the women’s USA Softball International Cup, which is being held in late July and early August.
Taking time to celebrate his most recent award means a lot to Hartley, who was also named the winner of the Mitch Ball Memorial Award as the 2024 Umpire of the Year in the WCBL.
“Winning this award is a huge honour due to the fact that as officials we strive to not be recognized by doing a good job and not making mistakes. There are lots of deserving officials and to be one of two recognized in the province is a huge honour,” said Hartley.
“Officiating the WCBL is one of the top leagues of baseball we have in Alberta and being able to officiate the league with other top-level umpires allows me to maintain a high level standard with reps and experience so that when I get into a situation officiating national or international levels I can be prepared for whatever may happen.”
The Alberta Sport Recognition Awards program was established in 1987 to acknowledge the outstanding achievements and commitment of high-performance coaches, technical officials, and volunteers in the province.
