Alberta Dugout Stories: The Podcast

In an era where fans packed ballparks by the thousands to watch games and tournaments, Jimmy Rattlesnake was a headliner. His reputation was second-to-none, and his accomplishments have been recognized in many ways. There is no higher honour in this country than to be named to the Canadian Baseball Hall of Fame , and earlier this week, the pride of the Ermineskin Cree Nation took his place in the...

Greg Morrison has seen baseball in Medicine Hat from almost every angle imaginable. From a young player in the American Legion to winning a Pioneer League Triple Crown with the Baby Jays in 1997 to coaching the Western Canadian Baseball League Mavericks before becoming owner and general manager in 2009 , Morrison is using his experiences to help young ball players at the grassroots level around th...

Dane Tofteland has had quite the adventurous last few years in baseball. After setting records despite several injuries in his time with Indiana State University, he helped the Okotoks Dawgs capture the 2019 WCBL championship . The 2020 summer season was turfed with the pandemic, which allowed him to spend time at his family's farm near Grande Prairie. The Dawgs Academy grad then started the 2021...

Jordan Procyshen admits the last few years have been nothing short of a rollercoaster ride. The Calgary product was a 14th round pick of the Boston Red Sox in 2014, and after a few years in their farm system, was sent on a whirlwind including the Los Angeles Dodgers , independent baseball, Baseball Canada and this past season with the Double-A affiliate of the Texas Rangers. While he's been chasin...

With the baseball season coming to an end here in Alberta, we thought we’d switch things up on this episode to bring on someone we’ve wanted to chat with for a while. Willie Steele is the author of “Going the Distance: The Life and Works of W.P. Kinsella" . Released in 2019, it’s the biography of the Alberta-born scribe most famous for the novel “Shoeless Joe.” Kinsella was born and raised in the...

Much like our last few podcast guests, Carson Hindmarsh has had himself a busy summer. Aside from starring with the Okotoks Dawgs Black during the WCBL season, the 17-year-old Saskatoon native found himself playing with Baseball Canada's Junior National Team at the 18U Friendship Series in Florida. His season isn't over either as he's planning on another trip with the national team soon, and big t...

Matt Grabmann has become a world traveler in his short baseball career. Just this summer, he went from Dawgs Black in the Western Canadian Baseball League to Baseball Canada's Junior National Team to the Baseball Factory All-America Game, where he drew plenty of praise and was touching 95 miles per hour on the radar gun. The right-hander from Nova Scotia is a Dawgs Academy product who has also com...

Boston Warkentin was among a handful of Okotoks Dawgs players recently named to Baseball Canada's Junior National Team which took on the US in a best-of-seven Friendship Series. He pitched in ten games for Dawgs Black this summer before being summoned to the national team, where he impressed every time he stepped on the bump. Originally from Delta, BC, the 18-year-old righthander came through Dawg...

Many athletes dream of the day they are able to represent their country on the world stage. St. Albert's Max Hartman was able to do that recently when he was named to Baseball Canada's Junior National Team that was heading to Florida for the 18U Friendship Series against the United States. The Washington State University commit joins us this week to talk about his baseball journey, which includes...

Cody Hendriks has certainly seen his share of baseball stadiums, airports, and quarantines over the past year. But traveling is nothing new for the 17-year-old, who is originally from the Netherlands. His family moved to Coquitlam, BC when he was 10, then a few years later, he came west to Dawgs Academy in Okotoks. Being from Netherlands meant he was eligible for their U18 team at the European Cha...

Fresh off their trip to Quebec for the Baseball Canada Women's National Team showcase , Helaina Appleyard and Hayley Lalor join us on this week's episode of the podcast. They were among four Albertans named to the roster ( Madison Willan and Ellie Jespersen were the others), taking part in everything from fitness and baseball drills to practices and intrasquad games. Appleyard has been on Baseball...

For the first time since 2015, the Lethbridge Bulls have captured the Western Canadian Baseball League title. It was quite the ride for the Bulls, who finished the regular season on a six-game losing streak, including the final four to the Sylvan Lake Gulls, who they met in the semi-finals. They would go on to sweep the Gulls and the Edmonton Prospects. We recap the run and are joined by WCBL Play...

You couldn’t have asked for a better day of baseball on Saturday in Okotoks, as the Western Canadian Baseball League held “Baseball Day in Canada.” Not only did it feature two games between the Dawgs Black and the Edmonton Prospects, but also a full-day broadcast with interviews and panel discussions. Ian Wilson, who co-hosted the event along with Joe, stops by to talk about the event. We also lis...

Kyle Froehlich has been as consistent as they come for the Sylvan Lake Gulls this summer, and he’s doing it as a two-way threat. At the plate, the Nipawin, Saskatchewan native is hitting .330 with six home runs and 29 RBIs in 29 games. On the mound, he’s made 11 appearances, mostly in relief, sporting a 1-3 record with five saves and a 2.40 ERA. He put up similar numbers this past spring with Colb...

Many players around the Western Canadian Baseball League are getting the chance to play in the stadiums they grew up watching baseball games in. Such is the case for Ty Penner. The Lethbridge native is in his second season with the Bulls and has been having a solid season. The Vauxhall Academy of Baseball grad and UBC Thunderbirds infielder is among the league leaders in batting average and double...

The NJCAA Division II final series between LSU-Eunice and Western Oklahoma was one for the ages . It also included a pair of players with ties to Alberta. We previously chatted with Airdrie's Ayden Makarus about becoming a national champion, and this week, we bring a conversation we recently had with fellow Dawgs Academy grad Jackson Fraser. The freshman right-hander hails from Buena Vista, Saskat...

As the Western Canadian Baseball League season winds along, we wanted to give you a chance to get to know some of the players who have been entertaining us with their play this summer. That continues this week with Dawgs Black infielder Alejandro Cazorla Granados and Edmonton Prospects outfielder Conor Bronson. The two have had very different paths that have now crossed. Cazorla Granados is origin...

Many eyes were on the 2021 MLB Draft this week as young baseball players hoped to hear their names called over the 20 rounds. In the end, 17 Canadians were taken and while none were from Alberta, a handful played or trained here. We recap what all happened, plus we're joined by Milwaukee Brewers draft pick and Dawgs Academy grad Tristan Peters as well as San Diego Padres selection and Vauxhall Aca...

One of the big storylines heading into the Western Canadian Baseball League season was about how it would be an "All-Canadian" summer. It was viewed as an opportunity to show off the great talent we have in Canada, especially here in Alberta, as we slowly emerge from the COVID-19 pandemic. In this episode of the podcast, we chat with a couple of players who are suiting up for teams close to home....

At 5'8" and 215 pounds, Carlin Dick isn't the most imposing player on the Lethbridge Bulls roster. But fans are definitely taking notice as he's opened up the WCBL season on fire. Through five games, the Vauxhall Academy product was hitting .333 with two doubles, five runs batted in and two stolen bases. The Abbottsford, BC native is also coming off an All-MAAC All-Rookie Team season with Canisius...

Cole Tucker figures to be a prominent piece of the Dawgs Red squad during the 2021 Western Canadian Baseball League season. The native of Mount Pearl, Newfoundland is a Dawgs Academy product who went on to play with Southeastern Community College before spending the last couple of years with the Niagara University Purple Eagles. He's coming off a spring where he hit .391 with three home runs and 1...

It will be a season like no other, that can absolutely be certain. First pitch on the 2021 Western Canadian Baseball League season is upon us. Five teams will be taking part: the Edmonton Prospects, Lethbridge Bulls, two squads from the Okotoks Dawgs and the expansion Sylvan Lake Gulls will be hitting the field this summer with dreams of winning the coveted Harry Hallis trophy. And for the first t...

Ayden Makarus can now add "national champion" to his impressive baseball resume. The Dawgs Academy product was part of the LSU-Eunice squad that captured the NJCAA Division II title over the weekend in an exciting 5-4 extra innings win over Western Oklahoma. Makarus has been an immediate contributor to the Bengals offensively after a successful high school career, including a spot on Baseball Cana...

It’s been a long time since we’ve been able to look forward to actual baseball on Alberta diamonds. But after the provincial government announced its roadmap to reopening, baseball organizers started formalizing their “return to play” plans. There’s an air of cautious optimism, especially knowing that plans can and likely will, change. So we thought we’d go right to the source this week and chat w...

Every young baseball player starting off his college career dreams of making an impact right out of the gates. But maybe not to the extent Logan Grant achieved with the Bismarck State College Mystics . The freshman catcher/infielder made life difficult for opposing National Junior College Athletic Association pitchers, hitting a fantastic .423 with eight home runs, 58 RBIs and six stolen bases in...