On a hot summer day, a cold ice shower was just what the doctor ordered for Louis-Charles Larouche.
It was a deserving gift for the Dawgs Academy slugger after he put on what can only be described as a clinic at the first-ever Morneau Cup Home Run Derby.
Already having hit three homers in gameplay during the inaugural 19U national championship, he was looking forward to the opportunity to representing the home team in the derby.
And he didn’t disappoint, hitting seven over the fence in the first round and another 10 in the championship against Zach Barker of the Ontario Blue Jays.
“I never thought 10,” Larouche laughed as he thought about what his expectations were going into the final round. “I felt like I had an empty tank with like 30 seconds left on the clock, so I just put my all into it.”
While he’s more than happy with his performance and a new piece of hardware, Larouche says there’s more business to take care of before the weekend is out.
TRUST IN HIS COACH
The competition was set up with seven teams to be chosen at random, along with the host Dawgs, to select one player to take part in the Home Run Derby.
Each contestant had two minutes to tee off, along with a 30-second timeout to grab some water and get encouragement from their teammates.
With Dawgs Black co-head coach Jeff Duda throwing behind the cage, Larouche says he was able to get into a rhythm pretty early on.
“I’ve been hitting with him for a long time,” said the San Jose State University commit. “I know I’ve been doing well with him, so I know the timing and everything, so I felt like he was the guy to do it.”
He got the crowd into it right away as he hit seven homers to advance to the final, matching the total put up by Barker.
BOMBS AWAY
Like two heavyweights facing off at pre-fight weigh-ins, a certain on-field host (OK, it was the writer of this story) randomly had Larouche and Barker stand in the batters’ boxes at Seaman Stadium to cross their bats for a little fun before they got to work.
And the two hammed it up for the crowd.
“I was built for this, honestly,” Barker said. “I trained for this. Ready to go. Swing’s feeling good. Let’s do this thing.”
Larouche responded.
“Since the day I was born, I was built to hit at a home run derby,” said the Montreal native. “Hometown advantage, so we’ll just have fun. Let’s go.”
The Dawg then did what he’s quickly becoming known for around his academy.
Tanks. Bombs. Dingers. Whatever the vernacular, the 19-year-old delivered, much to the delight of many in attendance.
He also received a golden bat for his efforts from Rawlings Canada. Barker came away with a silver bat.
EYE ON THE BIG PRIZE
Larouche likely spent the night resting and relaxing after putting on a show during the derby.
As nice as it was to win an individual event, he says his focus is heading straight back to his Dawgs teammates as they get ready to take part in playoff action at The Road to Okotoks.
They finished the round-robin in first place in their pool with a 3-1 record, including a 16-0 victory over the UBC Thunder to close out action on Friday.
The Dawgs get the bye to the quarterfinal, which they will play Saturday night at Seaman Stadium.
“We’re pretty confident,” Larouche said. “I feel like we should just keep that energy all the way up. The same energy we had on the bench, same hitting, same pitching, we just have to be ready to go.”
The ultimate goal is in sight for the left-hitting slugger, as he hopes to be a major factor in helping the Dawgs claim the inaugural Morneau Cup.
“It is the tournament that everyone in Canada wants to win right now at this age,” Larouche said. “It would be like a dream to lift that trophy at the end.”
The semi-finals and championship game will be held on Sunday in Okotoks.
HOME RUN DERBY RESULTS
Round 1
Tanner Morris – Vauxhall Academy – 3
Liam Benevides – Mississauga Tigers – 2
Trentin Kooy – Team Saskatchewan – 3
Daril Rodriguez – Gulls Prep – 4
Zach Barker – Ontario Blue Jays – 7
Giuliano Marcangione – DT Selects – 2
Louis-Charles Larouche – Dawgs Black – 7
Carter Bestebroer – Langley Blaze – 1
Round 2
Louis-Charles Larouche – Dawgs Black – 10
Zach Barker – Ontario Blue Jays – 3
Main image provided by Scott Savard Photography.
You can get your tickets to The Road to Okotoks here or watch all games online here.
