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Through The Lens Of The Players

March 22, 2019
Cam Black-Araujo
PBR Ontario Scout


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Through The Lens Of The Players

As the dust settles on our first ever PBR Spring Training and the players head back to school, coaches head back to work and we wrap the tournament up with post-event coverage, it’s easy to look back and see how this event brought a province that was freezing cold together with the sport of baseball, some thousands of kilometres down south. 

The Tri City Giants, Fieldhouse Pirates, Mississauga North Tigers, Toronto Mets, Ontario Nationals and the Ontario Yankees were all represented during Spring Training and ABC Academy from Quebec stopped in for a day as well. 

We had six straight days of baseball with practices getting underway in the morning and games coming in the evening. While we wrap this up and interview players that took part in PBR Spring Training, they continue to remind us that despite the amount of time spent on the all-turf diamonds at Boombah Sports Complex in Sanford, Florida, baseball won’t be the only memories they take away from this March Break. 

Let’s begin with the bus ride… because let’s be honest, it’s difficult to forget two 24-hour bus rides in an 8-9 day span but it symbolizes an important part of the weekend for the players. 

“The bus ride is super important because you get to bond with guys you don’t get to spend a lot of time with,” explained Owen Caissie, a 16-year-old outfielder for the Fieldhouse Pirates and Kentucky Wildcats commit. 

“Like I bonded with pitchers that I don’t practice with, but I sat beside a pitcher and I didn’t know him before and now him and I are good buddies. We all know each other better now from the bus ride because it’s long and you have to be together.”

Teams completed the trek through the States, arriving at the four-star Westin Lake Mary throughout the day on Saturday, with Spring Training kicking off bright and early at 8 a.m. on Sunday morning under the lights. 

Teams that morning were treated to a scenic practice as the stadium lights shone over the four turf fields in Hub A at Boombah Sports Complex, with fog and dew still covering the fields from a brisk Florida night as the sun slowly rose over the facility. 

The quality of the fields, as well as the set up at Boombah seemed to be another favourite among the players and parents who attended with four fairly new all-turf fields backing onto each other, allowing scouts to walk back and forth between multiple games as well. 

“I can’t think of anything back home that we have like this so it’s just a great experience to come out and play on beautiful diamonds like this,” says Cam Faber, a first baseman on the 18U Tri City Giants.

Teams took full advantage of the fields during the week, seeing them in use from 8:00 in the morning until roughly 9-10 at night. But with scouts in mind, the set-up at Boombah was perfect for our Spring Training Showcase on Day Three with defensive and offensive drills running simultaneously on two different fields.

While the players enjoyed the chance to showcase their offseason improvements outdoors for the first time and in a different setting than accustomed to, some also mentioned the timing of the showcase came at a perfect point during the week.

“It was good to start off with games and not the showcase because we went right into things right away and it’s better than just getting off a bus and trying to perform as best as you can,” explained Caissie.

While the players spent the majority of their time at the field or on a bus, we tried to help the coaches by setting up meals for the teams throughout the week and keeping the players busy with a trip to watch the University of Central Florida (UCF) take on Yale in baseball on Day Four of Spring Training.

For some players, it was their first real taste of what college baseball looks like and for some, it was a vision into a spotlight they one day hope to see themselves in, playing Division I baseball.

“Seeing the different level from college ball compared to us is awesome,” said Tyler Coley-Estrada of the Tri City Giants who was watching his first college baseball game.

“The stadium is beautiful, a nice college D1 stadium and it’s just amazing to see the players play here.”

But as the UCF fans cheered their teams victory and teams rolled out of John Euliano Park, there was just a day and a half remaining of PBR Spring Training. 

And now a week later, we look back on the week and how much of a success it was thanks to all the teams, players, coaches and even the parents who came out and turned it into a vacation.

Being our first tournament, and especially being a little far from home, we didn’t know what to expect. The Ontario baseball community was ever present under the palm trees at Boombah Sports Complex this March Break, with some teams showing well when they went up against some of Florida’s elite academy baseball teams.

After watching six straight days of baseball from squads across the province and seeing some of the talent and newcomers bursting onto the scene, we know we are destined for an exciting 2019. 

With that being said, we thank everyone who took part or helped in any capacity with our first ever PBR Spring Training and we already look forward to Spring Training 2020.

We leave you with a few words from some prospects on the experience.

Jonah Feldstein LHP / OF / Crescent School, ON / 2020

“Playing on these beautiful diamonds after being in the cold winter for so long and playing indoors, it’s a breath of fresh air and it’s just been an unbelievable experience.”

Bryce Arnold SS / 2B / Blessed Trinity, ON / 2020

Rankings  StateRank: 4 / POS: 1

“The experience has been great, the atmosphere here and the competition has been unreal. The highlight of my week has been just playing with my teammates, getting down here in the warm weather and out of the cold and just getting a good practice in for the season.”

Jacob Douglas C / 1B / St.Marys, ON / 2019

Rankings  StateRank: 166 / POS: 25

“I’ve been to Dodgertown three times and then to Cartersville, Georgia twice but this one was by far the best set-up for where the diamonds were. The hotel was unbelievable. You guys and your coverage and getting names out as top performers was awesome and I really couldn’t have asked for anything better.”