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Ontario Insider: A Time of Giving Thanks

November 23, 2016

By Chris Kemlo
Ontario Scouting Director

Interested in attending a PBR Ontario event? Check out our schedule by clicking here.

Ontario Insider: A Time of Giving Thanks

This work week is shortened for our friends south of the border with the American Thanksgiving taking place tomorrow. Sure we luck out here in Ontario with some extra NFL Football games to indulge into starting early Thursday afternoon. With me personally, having so many relationships and spending so much of my life in the U.S., it also allows myself to think again about all the things I am thankful for.

I am thankful for the opportunity I have been given from Prep Baseball Report, which in turn allows me to grant opportunity to ball players across Ontario in order to see and help them reach their dreams and goals. Some of the success stories we have come across, with players going off to college, or being selected in the MLB draft and starting their professional careers, it brings an enormous smile to my face to see the players succeed. I am also thankful for all the gratitude we have received from players and parents. My staff and I work extremely hard at what we do, and the small thank you email or phone call goes a long way in showing your appreciation.

Myself and staff, we have listed below some of the reasons why we are thankful, and some of the reasons why players make our job the best job in the world.

Kemlo (Ontario Director of Scouting)

I am thankful for the attention Ontario and for that matter, Canadian ball players are starting to receive in the collegiate ranks. The early signing period saw players from Ontario commit to schools such as: Vanderbilt, Texas A&M, Texas, Cincinnati, Hofstra, Purdue, Niagara, Canisius, Arkansas State, Austin Peay and many more. Other players from the rest of the country turned out schools such as: Auburn, Washington, Tulane, Cal State Northridge, California Santa Barbara and many more.

I am also thankful for the hard work our coaches do with their club and elite teams. The talent continues to grow in Ontario, and this is a direct reflection on the knowledgeable coaches who commit their time and efforts in helping these young men become the best ball players they can be. Without the proper foundation of development in place, the recent success in placing players at college and those who have begun their pro ball careers does not happen.

PBR Ontario Staff

We as a staff at PBR Ontario, created a bullet point list with names of players and what we are thankful about them. Below are some of the reasons why we are thankful we get to do what we do at Prep Baseball Report Ontario.

  • We are thankful for Landon Leach and his 94 mph fastball, along with a developing slider that sits in the low-80s.
  • We are thankful we get to watch Adam Hall. The way he approaches and controls the game, we all know he has skill, but the separator for us is the I.Q. and how he goes about his business on the ball field. 
  • We are thankful we get to watch Cooper Davis run. The way he changes and takes over a game with his speed is something we haven’t seen lately, it's always fun watching Davis out the box and on the bases.
  • We are thankful people still try to steal on Mitch Osborne. Watching him throw the baseball from behind the plate is a treat to watch.
  • We are thankful that Eric Cerantola never played summer hockey. We have heard the talented 6-foot-4 right-hander a 2018 grad is a fantastic hockey player as well. We love kids who are multi-sport athletes, but thankful Cerantola kept the skates away during the summer.
  • We are thankful we have been able to track the development of Dondrae Bremner who has turned himself into a prospect and potential draft pick this coming June.
  • We are thankful for the Naylor Family. With talents like Josh and Noah Naylor coming out of Ontario, they themselves have taken baseball in Ontario to another level.
  • We are thankful the 18u World Championships are back in Ontario with Thunder Bay being the host this summer for the championship
  • And we are thankful another baseball season awaits us. 2017 looks to be another big year in Ontario with top MLB draft prospects here in the province to go along with a slew of talent that is uncommitted in the 2017, 2018, and 2019 grad classes.

Happy Thanksgiving to all our friends in the south.

Enjoy