By JOE McFARLAND

This will go down as a year many around Baseball Alberta won’t soon forget.

From near-record player registrations to watching one of their alumni make his debut on the biggest baseball stage, executive director Danielle Moffat says something special is happening in Alberta.

The organization celebrated all of its successes and looked ahead to the coming year during the annual Baseball Alberta Annual General Meeting and Awards in Edmonton on Nov. 22.

While much of the attention was happening on and around the field, Moffat says many off-field initiatives she started in 2022 have also taken shape.

She says 2024 will be remembered as a “pivotal” year for renewal and growth.

“We made major strides on collaborating with provincial governing bodies, operating outside of the Alberta silo with information and resource-sharing, which I’m extremely proud of and excited about for our future,” Moffat told Alberta Dugout Stories: The Podcast. “We are learning from other people and not having to stay stuck in what we might have thought was the right path.”

And if all goes according to plan, more is on the way in 2025.

BRING ON THE BIGHORNS

One of the first big orders of business heading into the 2024 season was the birth of a new brand for Baseball Alberta.

On January 29, the organization changed its visual identity with the new “Team Alberta Bighorns.”

The animal’s resilience, adaptability and strong sense of community became key features for what the organization wanted to capture with its strategic direction.

Moffat says they went through several ideas and iterations, trying to find the right one after having used the previous logo for nearly 50 years.

A new era… 🐏 pic.twitter.com/Nk1LEGj6KQ
— Baseball Alberta (@BaseballAlberta) January 29, 2024

“There are many attributes of the bighorn sheep that we think make it the perfect fit for what our vision is, what our goals are and who we are as an organization,” she said. “We are super-happy with what the end result was.”

The Alberta blue, Prairie gold, light shale and white colours made their debut during the summer, and Moffat says the new look was a big hit for the athletes who were able to represent Alberta.

The new duds were on display at several Baseball Canada national championships, highlighted by gold medals for the Red Deer Braves in 18U and the 14U Team Alberta Girls team at Western Canadian Championships.

Several others finished on the podium including Dawgs Academy at the 15U Ray Carter Cup and the 16U Girls championship.

REPPING THE BLUE AND GOLD

Two of the major award winners say it was a dream come true getting to represent their province again and come back home with hardware.

The Baseball Alberta Elite League Player of the Year was Red Deer’s Luke Schmitt, who was outstanding on the mound all season.

Going home with some hardware 🔨

Congrats to Zach MacDonald and Luke Schmitt on taking home Rookie of the Year and Player of the Year honours! 👊#OneGoal | @reddeerbaseball pic.twitter.com/YkSlXxA5Y0
— BAEL (@BAEliteLeague) November 26, 2024

He went 5-1 with a 1.29 earned run average, allowing just 10 earned runs in 54.1 innings of work, becoming a major piece of a double-gold medal-winning Braves squad.

“I never expected something like this to happen – I’m just grateful for it,” Schmitt told Alberta Dugout Stories: The Podcast.

“I wouldn’t be here without a tonne of people working hard for me.”

Meantime, two-sport star Kaitlyn Ross picked up her first Women’s Open Player of the Year after an outstanding performance at nationals.

Congrats to Kaitlyn Ross, the 2024 Women's Open Player of the Year! 👏

Kaitlyn led Team Alberta with a .417 average, .562 OBP, and pitched a shutout vs. Nova Scotia at the 2024 National Championships.#BAAwards24 | @TeamAlbertaBSB pic.twitter.com/TtUBWtH7jZ
— Baseball Alberta (@BaseballAlberta) November 23, 2024

The Redcliff native, who is also a star goaltender for the Mount Royal University Cougars women’s hockey team, hit .417 and played stellar defense behind the plate for the Bighorns, and also pitched a shutout against Nova Scotia.

“I’m obviously honoured,” she said. “I had a great time and it showed in the way I was playing and the fun I was having.”

Ross went onto help Baseball Canada’s Women’s National Team secure a bronze medal at the Women’s Baseball World Cup later in the summer.

Scroll down for the full the list of winners…

ON THE RISE

From the top performances of Alberta athletes on the national stage or players like Erik Sabrowski showing the path to the highest level of the game by making his Major League Baseball debut with the Cleveland Guardians, young athletes and their families are seemingly taking notice.

Growth has become a name of the game for Baseball Alberta in the years since the pandemic, a trend which continued in 2024.

A total of 17,837 players signed up to play, which is up from 2023 and near the pre-pandemic high of 18,083.

The organization also saw 326 teams taking part, up from 304 in 2023.

Baseball is benefitting from several factors like changing demographics in the province and challenges facing other sports like hockey, where enrolment is dropping across the country for a myriad of reasons.

While it’s good news for the game, it also presents some unique opportunities for Baseball Alberta and other grassroots organizations across the province.

“One of the challenges we will face is meeting the growing demand for baseball while still ensuring the quality of programming remains high,” Moffat said.

“With participation increasing, we feel like we need to address challenges like resource allocation and facility access.”

She says several parts of the province are already bursting at the seams and don’t have access to enough ball fields, while others are short on coaches and officials.

ANOTHER BANNER YEAR AHEAD

When Moffat first took on the executive director role in 2022, she says she had a three-year “modernization plan” that involved the entire organization from top to bottom.

From strategic planning and governance to staffing and technology, she credits her Baseball Alberta team for making the pieces all come together.

While progress has been made on several fronts, Moffat says they want to keep that momentum going in 2025 and beyond.

She says one of the big moves was to align their governance model with an industry standard in sport across Canada, changing the size and make-up of the board to reflect the diversity in the community while strengthening decision-making and transparency.

“I think we have a good plan and need to continue down that path,” Moffat said. “I’m confident that we will see some exciting changes.”

On the field, she says they are already going to see a pair of big wins, particularly in the female game.

A strong suit for Alberta in recent years, girls baseball will be making its debut at the Canada Summer Games in St. John’s, Newfoundland, while Calgary will host the first-ever 19U Women’s National Championship, which is a category age change from the previous 21U event.

Moffat says it’s all good news for Alberta heading into 2025, with the key to it all being success at the grassroots.

“Success will be at the community level,” she said.

“I hope Baseball Alberta member organizations will feel that they are receiving more value from our provincial governing body from the previous year, where volunteers feel less stressed and more empowered to do right for their local members, players and coaches.”

Junior Umpire of the Year – Will Arndt – Edmonton

Murray Service Umpire of the Year – Devon Redekopp – Edmonton

Umpire Hall of Fame – Jon Oko – Edmonton

Ted Rudd Minor Coach of the Year – Zelaya Downs – Edmonton

Baseball Canada Grassroots Coach of the Year – Dion Barry – Fort McMurray

Baseball Alberta Life Member Award – Gordon Gerlach – St. Albert

Wally A. Footz Builders Award – Innisfail Facility Enhancement Association (Murray Reay and Jenny Crumley)

Baseball Canada Volunteer of the Year – Twyla Reid – Buffalo Lake

Off-Field Manager of the Year – ‘A’ – Pauline Therriault – Smoky Lake

Off-Field Manager of the Year – ‘AA’ – Tammy Regamy – Edmonton

Off-Field Manager of the Year – ‘AAA’ – Steven Belzile – Sherwood Park

President’s Award – Ryan Lucas – Sylvan Lake

Ron Hayter Bursary – Anders Lindgren (Parkland County), Evan Gorr (Linden) and Kerr Wallin (Chestermere)

Millie Warwick/Betty Carveth Dunn Bursary – Ashley James – Spruce Grove

Carl Linden Bursary – Pacey Phillips – Neutral Hills

Bob White Memorial Scholarship – Cohen Jorgensen – Leduc County

Doris Taylor Scholarship – Ashton King – Calgary

14U Girls Player of the Year – Ara Siemens – Calgary

16U Girls Player of the Year – Claire Hingley – Edmonton

Women’s Open Player of the Year – Kaitlyn Ross – Redcliff

11U ‘A’ Player of the Year – Keegan Lawson – Consort Cubs

11U ‘AA’ Player of the Year – Brody Gardner – Red Deer Braves

13U ‘A’ Player of the Year – Sam Robinson – Athabasca Trappers

13U ‘AA’ Player of the Year – Lucca Semashkewich – SWEMBA White Sox Black

13U ‘AAA’ Player of the Year – Aidan Robinson – Olds Spitfires

15U ‘A’ Player of the Year – Bob Pawluski – Smoky River Stingers

15U ‘AA’ Player of the Year – Rhett Wiles -Calgary City Royals

15U ‘AAA’ Player of the Year – Josh Mills – Black Gold 47s

18U ‘A’ Player of the Year – Taylor Fankhanel – Bashaw Bandits

18U ‘AA’ Player of the Year – Matthew Deibert – Okotoks Outlaws

18U ‘AAA’ Player of the Year – Michael Szpak – Fort McMurray Oil Giants

22U Player of the Year – Tanner Israelson – Provost Pilots

Baseball Alberta Elite League Rookie of the Year – Zach MacDonald – Red Deer Braves

Baseball Alberta Elite League Player of the Year – Luke Schmitt – Red Deer Braves

Association of the Year (Small) – Mannville Minor Ball

Association of the Year (Medium) – Edson Minor Ball

Association of the Year (Large) – Red Deer Minor Baseball Association