In the meantime, If you’re looking for a “unique gift” this XMAS SEASON for the ballplayer in your family, (ranging from possibly as low as $72 to $330) you might –  like many of the rest of us 70 or so past participants – may consider taking advantage of it while it last. Nothing is forever, as they say.

v     JAN – MARCH TRAINING SESSIONS (MOSQ – JR. MEN): They’re filling up fast once again from players from Van to Chilliwack. Should you want to give your child “AN OUTSTANDING XMAS GIFT”, that perhaps will KEEP ON GIVING FOR A LIFETIME, send me an email at serj@dugoutclub.ca and I’ll forward you the information. Note: For those “tight on funds” at this time of year (or in general for that matter), please feel free to discuss with me “In Confidence”.

v     PLAYER DEVELOPMENT FOR THOSE IN TADPOLE and/or 1^st YEAR MOSQ – 1 ½ HR SESSIONS

In spite of our desire to begin a BASEBALL ACADEMY one day, we fully realize that it’s the “Grassroots Development” that will sustain this “vision”. We’ve taken it upon ourselves to book some times AT THE OVAL for players in that age group….Times presently available are TEN Weds Nights (5:15 – 6:45 p.m. from Jan. 26^th to March 30th) and/or SIX Sunday Nights (2 separate sessions from 6:00 – 9 p.m.-) from Feb. 20^th – March 27^th…If there’s a TADPOLE / MOSQ Cord that would like to consider developing this program along with us, please get in touch with me at serj@dugoutclub.ca. Failing any interest in this, we’ll look for other uses or return the time to the Oval in a timely fashion. (Nobody can then say they “didn’t have the chance”, right?)

NOTE: Approx cost would be between $12 – $17 / session depending on participant interest and numbers!! (About the price of a movie with popcorn, etc….Only thing is “THIS OVAL EXPERIENCE” will be with you a lot longer!!!)…There would also be a “Free Introductory Open House” on Jan.23^rd to introduce you to the facility, should the appropriate coordinators help to bring this about.

v     JR. MEN REGISTRANTS “SHORT ON CASH” – Should the above “TADPOLE OPPORTUNITY” come to fruition, we’ll look to those Jr. Men aged 18 – 24 years old to help run these sessions in return for “registration dollars” provided by “TDC”. (You’ll need to get your CRC done….There may also be opportunities from the associations and/or the Dugout Club to take courses in order to get your NCCP qualifications in the event you’d like to carry on coaching into the season.)….If you’re interested in this opportunity and have registered/plan to register to play Jr. Men’s, send me an email.

FACTS AND FICTION ABOUT THE OVAL

FALSE – “It’s only for the “privileged” - The strength is in the numbers….If 60 TADPOLE / MOSQ players wanted to get involved – over 3 separate sessions –  we could help them to do that  for about $15 / session with Jr. Instructors….IN THE OVAL….Read that over again…….slowly.

TRUE – We’re looking into adding a PERSONAL TRAINER COMPONENT for any parents waiting for their children. (It’s in the works).

FALSE – “You can’t get up there unless you’re a member” – Like any member facility (Steve Nash, YMCA, Pools, etc), it has it’s limitations BUT if you really want to come up there, just head my way on the Sunday Night sessions OR drop by the XMAS CAMPS this weekend and I’ll show you what “we’re all about”.

TRUE – “It’s Serj’s Place” -  ABSOLUTELY!!…. Just like “CHEERS” was Norm’s and Cliff’s place!!!….I love “THE VIBE” of walking into that building on any given day…There’s a reason that Volleyball, Hockey, etc have come on board there….Not to mention Baseball Canada’s Girl’s Program, NW LL, etc…..Heck, if it’s MY PLACE, and you guys are paying the light bill through your taxes, etc….that’s even better!!

FALSE – “Serj likes to talk a little” – No Way!!!!…..I like to talk A LOT…… when it comes to BASEBALL!!….I’d go all day and all night given the chance..(Ok, some of you already think I do!!….It’s been both my “curse” and my “BLESSING” for 49 of my 55 years!!!….There’s worse addictions, yes??))

If you’d like to partake in “Talking Baseball”, you can send me an email at serj@dugoutclub.ca or call and LEAVE A MESSAGE at 604.275.6988 (Hit 1 for “Baseball Matters For Serj”) and I’ll get back to you asap should you require any further information on these opportunities.

HAPPY HOLIDAYS TO ALL!!!

The “R.O.O.T. 4 BASEBALL” project has the following available for your registrants and associations.

-          Xmas Camp on Dec.18^th and 19^th OPEN TO ALL organizations and put on by www.bat-unlimited.com

-          5 slots of 5 hours (or portions of) to run evaluations, team tryouts, Pitcher’s Workouts, etc. (On Sundays from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. – Feb.27^th, March 6^th, 13^th and 20^th. Sat, March 5^th is also available from 2 p.m. to 9 p.m.).

-          We’ll begin running 1 ½ hour Sunday Sessions again in the New Year from Jan.16^th – March 27^th. (From 4:30 p.m. – 9:00 p.m. depending on the age group. Excludes Super Bowl Sunday).

***This can be open simply to individuals amongst your associations that want an opportunity to enhance their baseball experience when the season starts or, as discussed with a couple associations, complete teams with equipment and/or Instruction provided. Note: There are 5 concurrent dates (Feb.20^th – March 20^th) that a section of the area is available for a team to do some “throwing, footwork, T-Work, etc” while we’re there set up…This would be with your own coaches / instructors but under our “facility” supervision. (“Hitting” is limited to T’s. and soft toss is this area.)***

-          Anyone interested in helping run a “Charity Tournament” one day in this facility, let me know.

First 2 pictures show 2/3rds of the Inside Track Zone and is what we use on most Sunday nights.

Last 3 pictures show ENTIRE INNER TRACK ZONE available at times.

The effort to bring “Diamond Sports” to the Richmond Olympic Oval (www.richmondoval.ca) keeps motoring along and gaining momentum. Having said that, the task is far from finished…..Here’s a few programs that are being considered viable as we march onward.

1)           Xmas Camps being held on Dec.18^th and 19^th at the Richmond Oval. Please consider the following as part of this offering.

-          The registration form at www.bat-unlimited.com indicates you must have played “Little League” in the prior year to have the opportunity to participate. That’s a faux-pas that’s being corrected. Note: B.A.T. stands for Balanced Athletic Training which is the group running the camps.

-          Some associations indicated they may use this camp – and the opportunity to share in the “Oval Experience” – as an incentive for “Early Registration” (in the way of a draw for “Early Birds”) or perhaps even for “Volunteers” for stepping up and taking over the coordination of a Division within their organizations. I’m sure there’s many other ways we can collectively think of in helping out the game and the offering of such.

-          As the “R.O.O.T. 4 BASEBALL” project is being administered by The Dugout Club – while not actually being the one’s running this camp – we’d like to extend the opportunity for 5  young players that would otherwise not normally be able to afford to attend such a camp, to do so. (The application being developed is similar to that of KidSport, with that being one of our preferred charities.). If you have any questions or input on this, please contact serj@dugoutclub.ca

2)           Opportunities to have your “Player Evaluations / Coaching Development” hosted at The Oval.

Coming off the extremely positive experience of hosting the Girl’s National ID Camp on the same weekend as the Baseball Canada Convention,  ( http://www.baseball.ca/eng_news_story.cfm?NewsID=1784 ) we’ve opened up 5 opportunities to do the very same for any associations/organizations that are interested. (From 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. running into our Sunday night sessions.). Please contact me for further details on this opportunity – especially if you’re concerned about the “worst winter in history” coming at you during your eventual tryouts, etc.

3) Proposed “Charity Wiffle Ball Tournament”.

I’d very much like to know if your organizations would be willing to “help build” an effort as seen on this link….  http://littlefenway.com/fenway/home

While it may be a “farfetched” idea, is it really beyond our realm to perhaps begin an “Annual Indoor Icebreaker” down the road some???… (with perhaps the charity being the Challenger program and/or “KidSport”  – with specifically those wanting to play Baseball??)….Thoughts? Volunteers?..If not at the lower age, I’ll pursue it at the older ages down the road. (As they have in the link.)

4) Ten Sunday Night Sessions for the New Year – ( Jan.16^th – March 27^th excluding Super Bowl Sunday)

Truth be known, if I had a way to take the “R” (Richmond) out of “R.O.O.T.”, I would. Players have come from all corners of the Lower Mainland and Fraser Valley to participate in these inaugural sessions. (And will be given 1^st priority to re-register for the New Year thus filling the spots). Having said that, we’re presently working on taking the final 8,400 sq. ft of floor space on Sunday Nights– for a total of just over 29,000 sq. ft. (Think about that for a minute!!)….Adding to the present 45 participants would clearly allow us to do so, and to continue to send the message that “Our Game Matters”.

5)           Jr. Men’s Western Canada Team – We’re being asked to put forth a team of 19-21 year olds and commit by April 1^st. As many as 8 Jr. Men from B.C.Minor associations are presently working out at the Oval. Perhaps it’s a start of the “core group”???….Vote on the Poll Question to give us some kind of “indication” of interest…After all, the Jr. Men’s Div. started on a “Poll Question”…..no reason why this effort couldn’t as well!!

In closing, I’d like to thank all those that have assisted in moving this effort along and we look forward to continuing to add to the group of “believers”. Should any of you be interested, we continue our series of sessions each Sunday night until Dec.12^th (4:30 – 9 p.m.)…..Drop by!!

Cheers, Serj Sangara

P.S. Some have said that you can get things done “cheaper” or have referred to “cheapest” as a way to go……..BUT, if you look in the Webster’s Dictionary, that’s defined as “low in price: inexpensive; easily obtained; and of little value or estimation”……..Enough said on that, I believe…ONWARD HO!!!!

B.C.Minor Director

Baseball B.C. Director

Richmond Sports Council Member

DCBBC Director

For fifteen female baseball players, they had the chance to work out at the Richmond Olympic Oval as Baseball Canada held an Identification camp for girls in conjunction with the annual fall convention. The camp was open to current baseball players or those coming from the softball world that would like to give baseball a try.

“We want to increase the pool of players and get more athletes,” said André Lachance (Ottawa, ON), Head Coach of the Women’s National Team. “The facility here is incredible and if it (Identification Camp) can help bring baseball in Richmond into the Oval that would be great.”

Players were tested in speed, agility, plyometric and endurance drills before getting into traditional baseball drills. Towards the end of the session, pitchers were able to throw and receive instruction from Lachance and other guest coaches.

“The biggest thing for me is that I’m looking for athletes,” explained Lachance. “Once you have those physical tools and you see that a girl is committed, you can teach them the proper mechanics of hitting, pitching and other skills of the game.”

Participants also had a chance to receive instruction and learn about the Women’s National Team program from three current players as Kate Psota (Burlington, ON), Nicole Luchanski (Edmonton, AB) and Becky Hartley (White Rock, BC) helped conduct the camp.

“I didn’t have an opportunity like this when I first started,” said Psota. “I wanted to let the girls know that there is an opportunity to for them with baseball and to give it a shot.”

One such player that took advantage of the camp was Hailee Renkers (Surrey, BC) who was a member of the national champion BC team that won gold at the Bantam Girls level in August.

Renkers started playing softball when she was four and switched to baseball when she was ten. She doesn’t hide the fact that she’d like to continue with the game and see how far she can take it.

“I’d like to play baseball as long as I can, keep pushing myself and hopefully I can make the national team.”

For Renkers this was her first step towards reaching her dream. She has to look no further than to Kate Psota for proof that it truly is a special experience to represent your country.

“Playing for the National Team is something that you can’t understand unless you do it, it’s incredible.”

Baseball Canada would like to thank Richmond City Baseball, B.C.Minor and The Dugout Club for making the event possible.

Many of you sent emails wondering “if I got in”….The answers are “No and Yes”….(No to Weds – inspite of our best efforts as seen in the sign – and YES on Thursday!!)…..BUT what you really need to know is that I enjoyed BOTH  DAYS spent with Jai -  in that atmosphere – immensely.

I came away from there thinking that once the “Oval Project” is well on its way, the “DUGOUT CLUB” should set two more goals….1) Get a player INTO the World Series one day AND 2) Just get a “fan”  TO a World Series one day. Both as a representatives of the  “The Dugout Club”….. Someone, PLEASE , tell me that would be impossible!!!

In order to whet some appetites to that “challenge”, I share with you a few photos below….Putting YOURSELF into the picture could be as easy as “photo shopping” yourself into there…But not as much fun of course……Maybe an easier way is a) We get a whole CLUB together to buy two “CHEAP SEASON TICKETS” to a contending team, and then we have a “raffle” amongst our group to see who gets to go as our “representative” each year…….OR b) We find a guy with contacts to MLB and tell them “what we’re about” and perhaps they extend us two tix each year…..(Hello “Jeff Z.!!)…..Hmmmmmm????

Serj

The intention of the group is to start out with the younger ages (9-12) on available SUNDAY NIGHTS (Space is limited). Pursuant to that, we’ll see where the interest and capabilities of the facility lies as far as opening up some opportunities to the older groups. (13 – ?)

Critical to our effort was finding instructors whom not only knew the game, but were solid believers in positive reinforcement and developmentally appropriate practices.

Instructors

Derran Watts developed a love for baseball growing up in Brampton, ON during the heydays of the Toronto Blue Jays. He later enrolled at the University of British Columbia as a student-athlete and, after playing for two years, was drafted by the New York Mets. Watts played minor league baseball in the Mets organization for five seasons.

Throughout his career, Watts took as much pride in his community involvement as he did in his on-field efforts, so when he retired and returned to UBC to complete his degree, he continued to be involved in the community. Coaching was a natural fit for Derran who will handle the hitting and fielding efforts for our group.

Jeff Zeilstra began his coaching career in the PBL with the White Rock Tritons in 2003 before pursuing other opportunities to grow the game of baseball overseas.  After working as a Major League Baseball (MLB) Envoy coach in Europe in 2005 he took a job as the Head Coach of the men’s national team where he led the team to a 5^th place finish at the Olympic Qualification tournament in Spain.   More recently, Jeff acted as the pitching coach for the DC Baseball Royals for two seasons while working full-time with VANOC (2010 Olympic Winter Games) as well as the pitching coach and advisor for the French national team. In between he’s also worked as an associate scout for the Pittsburgh Pirates and has been involved in various development programs for amateur baseball both locally and internationally.

As a player, Jeff attended Treasure Valley C.C. He went on to graduate from U.B.C with honors with a Bachelors Degree in Human Kinetics.

Josh Ridgway, much like “Elvis”, has left the building (and moved to the Caribbean…..We’ve made him a promise that we’d always keep at least ONE “soft toss” station open for him to return to!!

Lo and behold….”Shut out” on the FREE PLAYS as well……Oh well, perhaps NEXT time?? (As I tell myself each Weds, Fri and Saturday!!)

Hope to see you all at the Midget Provincials in ?????

Serj