No Flocking Way

Not everyone was able to comprehend what transpired at Pogadl Park in Sylvan Lake on August 15th.

Even some of the players weren’t aware that Evan Wilde, Brett Higgins and Zane Pollen had combined to throw a no-hitter in a 9-0 win over the Lethbridge Bulls.

It was the first no-hitter in the WCBL since 2019, but also had some mystery for many in attendance.

3 UP, 3 DOWN WITH LEVI ABBOTT

If you’re scanning the strikeout leaderboard for Levi Abbott’s name, check at the top before working your way down.

The 6-foot-3, right-handed pitcher for the Lethbridge Bulls leads the Western Canadian Baseball League (WCBL) in Ks, with 66, through his first 43.2 innings of work this summer and his other statistics have not suffered during his eight appearances.

We caught up with Abbott to pick his brain on the summer he’s having in the WCBL for a segment we like to call 3 UP, 3 DOWN.

2021 MLB Draft Review

A total of 17 Canadians were chosen in the 2021 MLB Draft.

While none hailed from Alberta, several trained here or have connections to this province.

We run down those connections and highlight some of their accomplishments.

3 UP, 3 DOWN WITH NOAH OR

Catcher Noah Or is like your favourite playlist right now … he’s offering up all the hits.

Through nine games in the Western Canadian Baseball League (WCBL), the Richmond, British Columbia native is leading the pack in batting average (.486), and on-base percentage (.568). His 15 runs, 17 hits and nine runs batted in (RBI) are also near the top of the leaderboard.

Get to know Or a bit better in our latest edition of THREE UP, THREE DOWN …

The Green Light

It feels like we’ve been running the bases for a while now.

We’ve been caught in some rundowns, and have been desperate to stay safe for what feels like an eternity.

But with Alberta entering Phase 3 of its “Open For Summer” plan, Canada Day baseball provided a little more reason to celebrate as we rounded third and it felt like we made it home.

WCBL Opening Weekend: Photo Gallery

It was a beautiful and historic weekend in Alberta.

The Western Canadian Baseball League (WCBL) returned to action for the first time since August of 2019.

The comeback was significant for many reasons, some baseball related and some not.

Check out some of the images we captured from a full weekend of baseball …

WCBL Season Preview

The Western Canadian Baseball League (WCBL) is all about the “Canadian” this summer.

With the 2021 WCBL season set to get going on June 18th in Sylvan Lake and Lethbridge, players from the Great White North will be on full display across Alberta. For the first time in the summer collegiate baseball circuit’s history, rosters of each of the five teams will be 100% Canadian.

With that in mind, let’s take a tour around the league, check out some of the players, and see what we can expect from each team during their 40 games of regular-season action.

Palm Before The Storm

Damiano Palmegiani is back with a vengeance.

The Surrey, B.C. native was a highly-touted prospect coming out of Vauxhall Academy of baseball, being drafted by the Toronto Blue Jays in 2018.

After a couple of years of struggles, the hard-hitting infielder has found his swing again with the College of Southern Nevada, which has many thinking he’s ready for the pros.

Northern Exposure

The Western Canadian Baseball League (WCBL) has announced plans to soldier on with a 2021 season that will feature all-Canadian lineups for the first time in the summer collegiate circuit’s history.

Facing uncertainty over a number of COVID-19 pandemic issues – including health restrictions that will likely impact attendance and game-day activities, as well as unease about the timeline for the reopening of the Canada-U.S. border – the WCBL has made a number of significant changes for this year’s season.

Abbott & Canisius

Every athlete has a number of questions they ask themselves before they decide on the route they want to take next in their journey.

For Lethbridge’s Levi Abbott, he had three key criteria on the school he wanted to go to.

In the end, the Vauxhall Academy of Baseball pitcher decided on Canisius College in Buffalo, N.Y.