Close But No Soroka

Watching Calgary’s Mike Soroka succeed at the Major League Baseball level is somewhat bittersweet for Greg Morrison.

The Medicine Hat Mavericks owner and general manager might find himself asking “what if” when he thinks back on the summer of 2015.

Morrison had managed to convince Soroka to play for the Mavericks that summer, but it wasn’t meant to be as he was drafted in the first round of that summer’s MLB Draft by the Atlanta Braves.

And the rest, as they say, is history.

In The Cards: 2018 Medicine Hat Mavericks

The Medicine Hat Mavericks were the last champions of the Western Major Baseball League (WMBL) in 2018. The league has since become the Western Canadian Baseball League (WCBL) and last year it ushered in a new reigning champ in the Okotoks Dawgs.

During this edition of In The Cards, we take a closer look at that title-winning Mavs team, which posted a 38-9 regular-season record. Offensively, Medicine Hat led the league in runs, hits, runs batted in (RBI), on-base percentage, walks and batting average. They also placed close to the top of the WMBL in several pitching categories.

Steal My Sunshine

Those dark clouds hovering over the baseball world don’t seem to be going anywhere. What started as a bleak-looking rain delay graduated to postponed games, and we are now in a phase where many cancelled contests won’t ever be played.

What’s lost may never be found.

One of the latest casualties of the COVID-19 pandemic is the Western Canadian Baseball League (WCBL), a summer collegiate circuit previously known as the Western Major Baseball League with historical roots dating back to the 1930s.

Season in the Balance

There have been a lot of questions surrounding the upcoming summer baseball season in Alberta, across this country and around the world. Will it happen? Can we have a shortened campaign? How willing are players and fans to take part?

Those questions and more have been hanging over the head of Kevin Kvame. Over the last few weeks, the Western Canadian Baseball League (WCBL) president has been trying to stay on top of all of the COVID-19 developments.

We spoke with Kvame about the current status of the WCBL.

2020 Vision

Despite a summer that pretty much didn’t happen weather-wise, the Western Canadian Baseball League is touting it as a success.

Now all eyes are on the future, starting with a 2020 season that will feature two fewer teams.

As league president Kevin Kvame told us, 2021 will also be a season of change with expansion coming to Alberta.