We are collecting names for those that interested in registering this fall. I have also attached a registration form that you can fill out and sign to ensure you have a spot this fall. There are a lot of questions on what we will be allowed to do but we are planning as if it will be a normal year while we practice social distancing and follow government guidelines which may mean no inter-provincial travel. We have not made this registration open to all members of Baseball Sask yet, but I thought I would give people on this email the first opportunity.
Our academy focuses on developing baseball skills and athleticism to compete at a high level. Our coaches and the strength/speed coaches at Ignite Strength do a great job with our athletes. We will be putting added focus on playing more games due to the fact this year’s shortened summer schedule limited the amount of games played.
Interested players are encouraged to get in touch with their school in order to organize their academic schedule as players will need to have their 5th period off from school and some players may need to take an online summer class to do that.
Click on this promotional video – it will give you a sense on what we do to develop players. One of our pitchers – Kyle Froehlich’s velocity jumped from 81 mph in the fall to now throwing 86-88 mph.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=S64yjXe8odQ
Purpose:
Provide players elite baseball and strength training opportunities in order to maximize their potential in baseball. We want to prepare players to compete at the highest level in midget in Canada and cater to players wanting to pursue college baseball programs. This program is ideal for players in grade 10-12 who are able to adjust their academic calendar in order to fit training during weekday afternoons. We are proud to say we have had two past participants drafted by MLB teams – Logan Hofmann and Connor Sparks. Last year head coach Ryan Carter of Colby CC in Kansas visited our program to scout Sask players as Kyle Froehlich signed a letter of intent to play Trojan Baseball.
Covid Pandemic
There are some questions regarding what this program will look like and how many athletes we will be accepting with the restrictions due to Covid. We are planning as if it is a regular year and making necessary adjustments as the government allows. There is a strong possibility of a limit of athletes and limited travel.
Schedule:
In semester 1 we will be outside at Leakos/Cairns field from Sept 3 – Oct 18th, Tuesdays, and Fridays. Mondays and Wednesdays will be a designated strength training day at Ignite Conditioning at the Gordie Howe Complex. On inclement weather days during this time period , the program will be moved indoors at Gordie Howe. Practice and training will begin at 2:30 and will conclude at 4:30.
We will also be scheduling games. We will know more about some possible travel tournaments later this summer but we are planning on playing most weekends from Sept – Oct.
Oct 19– Dec 20 the program will be indoors full time. Mondays, Wednesday and Fridays will be strength and speed with Ignite along with baseball skills training. Tuesdays and Thursdays will be baseball only. We will begin at 2:30 and conclude at 4:15-4:30 each day. There will be no training Nov 10,11,12,13 and 16th. Our last day before the Christmas break will be Dec 18th and our first day back after the break is Jan 4th, 2021. Our last day of the first semester will coincide with final exams for high school players. There will be a separate registration for the second semester. This link will give you highlight of some of the things we do each day – https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=S64yjXe8odQ
Academics:
Players are expected to work with their high school to organize their calendar to allow players to train during the above times. Players that attend a Saskatoon Catholic school are eligible to achieve a special project credit by participating in the program by completing an approved self directed assignment through Cyberschool. Players in the public system are not eligible for a special project credit.
Cost:
Last year we charged $2000 for a program that went from Sept – until final exams in January. This year we are not sure of the cost due to the fact we may not be able to travel. If there is no travel the costs will be less than $2000. In 2019 the fee covered the following:
- Baseball Saskatchewan hat and workout wear
- Ignite strength training
- Rental vans for travel and hotel
- Rental at Cairns/Leakos and Gordie Howe
- Coach honorariums and expenses
- Equipment costs, baseballs, exercise bands etc.
If you would like to register for the academy or if you have more questions please contact Greg Brons @ greg@baseballsask.ca or (306) 220-6953
2020 Fall Academy Registration
We are very happy to announce that the Government of Saskatchewan has now officially stated Phase 4.2 of the Re-Open Saskatchewan Plan will open up on Monday, June 29, 2020. All of the conditions detailed on Page 78-79 of the Re-Open Saskatchewan Plan must be followed.
Although the Government has set this date, each Minor Ball Club will need to contact and receive approval first from their Municipality before getting on the diamonds and parks.
Please note that this will now open up both Phase 1 – Return to Train and Phase 2 – Return to Play of the Baseball Sask Return to Train and Play Protocol. This will allow members to schedule and play games, practice, train, hold registration and evaluate players for Team selection.
Under Phase 4.2, Tournaments and Inter-Provincial Travel to play games are NOT permitted. This means that teams are not allowed to leave Saskatchewan to play any games and out of province teams are not allowed into Saskatchewan to play games. Travel to games within Saskatchewan amongst Saskatchewan teams, however, will be allowed starting June 29th.
Also detailed in Phase 4.2, it makes reference to Mini-Leagues needing to be formed with limited travel when social distancing cannot be provided in a contact sport. However, this does not apply to the sport of baseball as it is not a contact sport and social distancing is easily provided.
There are some Baseball Sask members that live just over Provincial borders and register as members to play in Saskatchewan on Baseball Sask teams. This is allowed as long as they are travelling directly to and from without making stops in between.
There was a waiver form emailed to all members already registered in the Ramp Online Registration System for 2020 that must be signed in order to take part in any Baseball Sask sanctioned activity. This form is also available on our website for those not able to sign it online.
Good luck to all communities able to start playing games as of June 29th. Batter up!
Sincerely,
Mike Ramage
Executive Director
CLICK HERE FOR MORE DETAILS ON THE BASEBALL SASK RETURN TO TRAIN AND PLAY
As we prepare to Return to Train on June 22nd, please take a few minutes to read the following document that will give you all some very important information regarding the upcoming 2020 Baseball Sask season.
Be sure to follow all rules detailed in the Baseball Sask Return to Train and Play Protocol as well.
Update on 2020 Baseball Sask Season
We are very happy to announce that the Government of Saskatchewan has now officially stated that Phase 4.1 of the Re-Open Saskatchewan Plan will open up on Monday, June 22, 2020. All of the conditions detailed on Page 70 of the Re-Open Saskatchewan Plan must be followed.
Although the Government has set this date, each Minor Ball Club will need to contact and receive approval first from their Municipality before getting on the diamonds and parks.
Please note that this only opens up Phase 1 – Return to Train of the Baseball Sask Return to Train and Play Protocol. This will allow members to practice, train, hold registration and evaluate players for Team selection.
Baseball Sask will make an announcement sometime next week regarding the official date for Phase 2 – Return to Play from our Return to Train and Play Protocol. No games shall be played prior to that date.
Our Board of Governors has also approved a Motion to decrease the Membership Fees for all Active Members to $15 each (originally $25). This will include all players, coaches, managers and executive. With the shortened season we wanted to make it more affordable to our membership. (Senior Non-Competitive and Affiliate Members fees remain at $5.
Let’s get this season started!
CLICK HERE FOR MORE DETAILS ON THE BASEBALL SASK RETURN TO TRAIN AND PLAY
Yours truly
Mike Ramage
Executive Director
UPDATE: Please see photo to the right to view remaining spots left. Some are already full. We may look to schedule more in the future should the demand be there.
These past couple of months have been truly surreal and something that many of us have never experienced before. With that in mind, Baseball Sask is continuing to offer our members programming to enhance their baseball knowledge as well as allow them the ability to receive NCCP certification.
With social distancing & isolation in mind, Baseball Sask has been working hard at adapting programming to service members, and Coach Training is no exception. Still wanting to meet the needs of associations & their coaches, we have found a way to offer the same NCCP training. Rather than in person clinics during this time, the same training will be facilitated ONLINE. We have trained 6 Saskatchewan Coach Developers to facilitate this training on-line. We are confident that coaches will gain the same knowledge & training as in person, & of course, the same credit will be granted.
Participation takes place in a live, Adobe Connect online classroom setting using a home computer or laptop. There will be 15-20 coaches per four-hour session who can break into discussion rooms of 3-5 coaches. Online clinics hosted by Baseball Sask are open to all coaches throughout Saskatchewan and the cost $30 for Initiation and $50 for all other clinic. Final instructions will be sent to registered coaches leading up to the online event.
The second round of the 4 Regional & 2 Provincial Clinics offered online are now scheduled. Clinics are first come first serve & close at 20 coaches, so, register today.
CLICK HERE TO REGISTER
The Baseball Sask Board of Governors met on Monday, June 8th and have made the extremely tough decision to cancel all 2020 Provincial Championships. This decision was not made lightly as it was a topic of discussion for many weeks now. We were holding out hope, however, seeing that we have not even been given a date for Phase 4 to open, it was not fair to our current and future Host sites to plan adequately.
We also carry the responsibility to look out for the health and safety of our members. Provincial Championships bring with them mass gatherings from different teams from all over Saskatchewan. We cannot estimate what the allowable outdoor maximum gathering limit will be for late August. Due to this, we cannot guarantee that our Championships would even be approved by the Government of Saskatchewan at that time.
We have heard from many of our members who have stated that their main area of focus will simply be to provide some type of a local baseball season for their teams and leagues. We want to give them the ability to do just that and not worry about being done prior to Provincials.
We sincerely thank all of our communities that were prepared to Host a Championship. You will all be given the right of first refusal to host these again in 2021.
In conclusion, we realize that there are members who will be very disappointed with this decision and we fully understand that. We appreciate your love and dedication to our great game. Unfortunately, with so many unknowns in such a fluid situation, we have made this difficult decision.