Sunday tournament set to celebrate the strong reception for Minor Baseball's return

The Field of Dreams that Port Edward has provided for this baseball season has helped to lay the foundation for the return of Minor Baseball to the region and this Sunday organizers of the North Coast Minor Baseball League will be hosting a tournament to showcase just how far they have come in a very short period of time.

The Sunday event at Port Edwards's McKeown Park field starts at 8:30 AM and features each of the three Divisions that have taken to the field this spring.

Since the league launched on May 2nd some 150 kids have taken advantage of the opportunity to play the sport to this point, making for a strong start for a league that was only a concept less than a year ago.

The District of Port Edward stepped up to the plate as they say earlier this year, making sure that the group had a top end field to play the sport on, with ongoing maintenance on the field ensuring that the game day experience has been an enjoyable one for the kids, coaches and parents.

The organizers were also quite successful in securing a large number of corporate sponsors to help make sure that the re-launch of the sport had the right footing from the very start.

Sunday's tournament features a Round Robin for all teams with the early learners of Blastball getting their time in the Port Ed sun for an hour in the middle of the day.

Blastball for those away from the game for a while, is where the youngest of players learn the fundamentals designed for children who are for Pre Kindergarten  and Kindergarten age.

The next two levels introduce the background to baseball with a division for children in Grades 1 and 2, as well as the final grouping for this year of Grades 3 and 4.

A toss to First Base and the runner is ....
The North Coast Minor Baseball tourney
takes place this Sunday in Port Edward
(photo courtesy NC Baseball website)

Going, going, gone ....
Come see the Big Hitters this Sunday in Port Edward
at the North Coast Minor Baseball tournament
(photo courtesy of NC Baseball website)

With a successful start to the initiative for this year, plans continue to percolate on ideas to expand the league to other age groups. Should they continue to find encouragement from the community, the days of a full slate of baseball for all age groups may not be too far down the way. Bringing back a sport that once was one of the most popular of spring and summer activities for the region.

If the group continues to grow, at some point they will probably require a few more fields to play on, something of note that the City of Prince Rupert's Recreation Commission and Department, as well as City Council may wish to start considering now.

If they want to do a little bit of forward thinking on initiatives for youth, Council may want to start warming up in the bull pen to be ready to offer up a few ideas as to how they can help the league grow and succeed.

The North Coast Baseball League has put in place the roots for a strong development program in the region. This Sunday's tournament provides a good example of how a local group with an idea and a little help from the community, can provide a fun experience for the youth of the North Coast.

If you have some time on a Sunday, take the twenty minute drive out to the ball park, the kids will be ready to put on a show for you. The BBQ will be fired up and there are rumours that Northern Savings mascot "Grizwald the Bear" is heading to the ball park as well.

Some notes on this weekends tournament can be found here.

You can review the full schedule for the weekend and beyond, as well as other notes from the league through the Northcoastball website

Past notes on the re-launch of baseball on the North coast can be found on our archive page.