WCBL unveils 2021 schedule

By Ryan McCracken on December 1, 2020.

rmccracken@medicinehatnews.com
@MHNMcCracken

It remains to be seen what public health guidelines will look like come late May, but the Western Canadian Baseball League is confident it’ll be time to play ball.

The college summer baseball league unveiled its 2021 schedule Monday afternoon — a 56-game campaign that will put the Medicine Hat Mavericks in Moose Jaw on May 28 to open the season against the Miller Express.

“Just like everything else it’s going to be determined on borders and what Alberta Health Services allows, but we are hoping for a baseball season. We’re excited for it,” said Mavericks owner and general manager Greg Morrison, whose squad is scheduled to host the Regina Red Sox for their home opener on May 29.

“It’s nice that they have something put out. And we’re planning. Nolan (Rattai, field manager) is at the office, he’s signing players. You’re probably seeing that on social media. We have 28 guys who are ready to play baseball.

“I just can’t believe we’ve gone this long without a baseball game.”

There will be a few changes for the upcoming season, most notably the addition of the Sylvan Lake Gulls. The Mavericks will only cross paths with Sylvan Lake twice this season — July 9 and 12 — and both games will take place at the newly constructed Gulls Stadium.

The best players from the Eastern and Western Conferences will face off in the WCBL All-Star Game and Extravaganza on July 24 at Seaman Stadium in Okotoks, with the post-season set to kick off Aug. 8.

The playoffs will once again feature three rounds of best-of-three baseball. The WCBL introduced the best-of-three format in 2019, while expanding the regular season from 48 games to 56.

“I think some of those decisions were to extend the regular season, let everybody get their games in,” said Morrison. “That’s something I think we’ll look at every year.”

Morrison added extra innings in the regular season will feature a runner on second to start each frame. No stranger to marathon games, Morrison says the new rule will maximize the game experience for fans and families while giving players the time they need to recover between games.

“You’ve got these guys, they leave it out there for 15 innings and they’ve got nothing left the next day,” said Morrison. “Let’s get it done in an inning or two if we can.”

The WCBL will also be aiming to make the most of a difficult situation by growing the game in new areas through the Edmonton Prospects. A perennial rival of Medicine Hat, the Prospects will be without a home diamond this season as they work to build a new field in Spruce Grove. As a result, they’ll spend the entire 2021 season on the road, playing in opposing stadiums as well as various Edmonton-area cities.

“You’ve got to tip your hat to the Edmonton Prospects for wanting to pull that off. In essence, their summer is a road trip,” said Morrison. “You’ve got to respect them for wanting to stay in the league this year and not taking a year off.”

The hope continues to be that no WCBL teams will need to take the year off, but Morrison says he’s still planning for restrictions in the 2021 season.

“I joke with people that I’m already looking forward to summer 2022, because if this vaccine is at the end of summer, I’m sure there will be some limitations,” he said. “This year, it’s get through it, survive, get some baseball out there if we can.”

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