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.

Brunner Back Home

Being named the KJCCC Pitcher of the Week was just the cherry on top of the shortened season for Graham Brunner.

The Barton Community College Cougars star lefthander put together a gem of a season before the coronavirus pandemic abruptly halted the season.

We talked about that and more in this conversation from a recent episode of Alberta Dugout Stories: The Podcast.

7th Inning Stretch: Max Hartman

One of the younger players from Alberta who attended the recent Tournament 12 (T12) in Toronto was Max Hartman.

The 15-year-old roamed the outfield at Rogers Centre for Team Navy during the showcase event, which was hosted by Blue Jays Baseball Academy and took place from Sept. 17-21.

We spoke with the Dawgs Academy product before and after the T12 to find out more about him and what it was like to be selected as one of Canada’s top 150 baseball prospects.

He answered the following seven questions for us for our 7th Inning Stretch profile.

7th Inning Stretch: Jean-Luc Bussieres

The Tournament 12 (T12) in Toronto has come and gone for another year, but we’re still checking in with some of the Alberta players who took part in the prestigious showcase event.

Catcher Jean-Luc Bussieres, 17, is one of the 150 baseball prospects who played at Rogers Centre in the T12, which took place from Sept. 17-21. Originally from Edmonton, but now attending Foothills Composite High School as he trains at Dawgs Academy in Okotoks, Bussieres was kind enough to make time for us recently.

Here’s what he had to say in response to seven questions we asked him as part of our ongoing 7th Inning Stretch series.

7th Inning Stretch: Tyrese Johnson

Tyrese Johnson literally came out of left field at this year’s Tournament 12 (T12), but his performance shouldn’t come as a surprise to anyone.

The outfielder, an Okotoks Dawgs Academy player, attended T12 last year and admitted that nerves got the better of him, but he went to Toronto more mentally prepared this time around.

The experience paid off. The Calgarian received “Player of the Game” honours on day three of the showcase tournament, which took place at Rogers Centre from Sept. 17-21. The annual event shines a spotlight on 150 of the best Canadian baseball players between the ages of 14 and 19 years old.

Johnson made time for our 7th Inning Stretch series before he left for Ontario.