THE WORLD BASEBALL CHALLENGE

… it’s what the world is coming to.

www.worldbaseball.ca

 

PRINCE GEORGE AWARDED PEEWEE AAA PROVINCIAL BASEBALL TOURNAMENT

 

February 28, 2013

 

            It’s shaping up as a baseball extravaganza this summer in Prince George.

Again!

            There is exciting news coming off the 2012 summer when the home teams posted great results -- the Prince George Youth Baseball Association hosted the B.C. Minor Baseball Association’s Midget AA tournament at Citizen Field, with the Prince George IDL Midget Knights wearing the provincial crown and advancing to Western Canadians, then the World Baseball Challenge Society organized the 2012 Re/Max Centre City Baseball Canada Senior Championship – which saw the Prince George Westcana Electric Axemen capture the national title on home soil, led by the hitting heroics of outfielder Brandon Hunter and the pitching of, among others, star RHP Leon Boyd, a dual-citizen who will pitch for Holland at the World Baseball Classic in March.

            The third Prince George version World Baseball Challenge returns this summer, with dates and participating teams to be announced by the end of March – but the latest news is all about the city’s best “true youth” baseball team as the Prince George Knights will be the host team for the B.C. Minor Baseball Association’s Peewee AAA Provincial Championship.

            The event will be Aug. 8-11 (rain date, Aug. 12), and will take place at Volunteer Park in the Hart (Heather Road). The host Knights team will be comprised of the city’s top 11-12-year-old players (players born in 2000 and 2001, the age group commonly associated with the ‘Little League’ age), with a total of 10 teams taking part. Debbie Augaitis will be the chair of the event, and the tournament will be presented with support of the World Baseball Challenge Society.

            “We moved from the Little League association to B.C. Minor a few years ago, and this is not only the first time our peewee Knights team will be hosting the AAA-level tournament, it will be the first time Prince George will play in the AAA peewee provincials – we’ve been in AA since moving to B.C. Minor,” said Todd Patterson, president of the Prince George Youth Baseball Association. “This is the crown jewel tournament for B.C. Minor, and it will be here in Prince George. It’s a strong and committed group of players and parents that made this an exciting tournament to bid on, and working with the people who have run the World Baseball Challenge at Citizen Field will make it a success. We hope they have the same kind of success our IDL Midget Knights had last summer, celebrating a championship at home.”

            For the World Baseball Challenge Society, another youth opportunity is a very exciting addition as the world-class international tournament is planned out. These will be the two biggest sporting events in Prince George in 2013.

            “We are committed to making sure the youth, the grassroots, get the maximum benefit from the World Baseball Challenge, and we have been focused on that from the start,” said World Baseball Challenge Society co-chair Shawn Rice.

“We’ve got the Toronto Blue Jays Honda Super Camp coming to the Charles Jago Northern Sport Centre, March 26-28, and this is the second time the Blue Jays have had former major league players here, working with the World Baseball Challenge to teach our young players. In 2009, we ran the successful youth camp with the local Rotary clubs and with Baseball Canada. This is about building the game at the grassroots level, and this Peewee AAA tournament will be an exciting match for fans who love baseball, and always come out to support these community events. We love seeing kids at the park, falling in love with the game.”

Sponsors who get involved with the 2013 World Baseball Challenge will be able to also connect with the B.C. Peewee AAA Provincial Tournament, providing even more opportunity to participate.

 

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            SIGN-UP FOR P.G. YOUTH BASEBALL

This weekend is the opportunity for players to sign up to play youth baseball – at the Active Living Market (formerly known as RecMart) at Pine Centre Mall – March 2 (9:30 am to 6 pm), and March 3 (noon to 5 pm), and in the Kin Centre Atrium March 10 from 8 am to 5 pm. The PGYBA website is http://pgyba.com. Registration information is available by clicking on the link on the left side of the page.

 

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            TORONTO BLUE JAYS HONDA SUPER CAMP LINK

To sign up, go to www.bluejays.com and click on Baseball Academy, or directly to http://toronto.bluejays.mlb.com/tor/baseball_academy/honda_super_camps_en.jsp

Registrations are going well, with 100 spots available. Dates are March 26-28 (second week of Spring Break), 8:30 – 1:30 each day.

 

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WORLD BASEBALL CHALLENGE SPONSORSHIPS – Some partnership opportunities for the World Baseball Challenge/AAA Peewee Provincial Championship are nearly sold out, but many remain available for businesses to get involved with the city`s international tournament. To learn more, contact Shawn Rice, 250-612-9856 or shawnwbc@telus.net

 

 

For further information/comment:

 

Todd Patterson, President, Prince George Youth Baseball Association        250-981-3180

Jim Swanson, Co-Chair, WBC                                                                       250-613-7492

Shawn Rice, Marketing Director/Co-Chair, WBC                                          250-612-9856