The Trail AM Ford Orioles will compete at the BC Mens Baseball Championships in Victoria this weekend.
The Orioles begin their quest on Friday with a travel day, and then open the tournament on Saturday against the winner from the Lower Mainland at 9:30 a.m. and face Victoria at 3 p.m.
The Orioles will field a strong line up but not their most potent. Trail will miss some of their top guns on the mound, but have added former Trail players Joey Ferguson and Justin Vilyne to bolster their roster. Gary Ortman also recruited his brother Peter from Vernon, and another Diamondback in Steve Weekman.
Former Winnipeg Goldeye pitcher Chris Kissock will lead the O’s with young college talents Ross St. Jean, Kian Johnson, and Brendan McKay making up three of their strongest assets on defence and at the plate.
“Our defence is our strong point, for sure.” said Orioles manager Kevin Oliver. “These young college kids, they’re pretty solid defensively. We can always use more hitting, and pitching, we did well in Calgary, Chris pitched a dominant game.”
Eight teams will compete in the double-knockout tournament, with Trail playing their third match of the round robin on Sunday at 9:30 a.m. before the playoff round begins.
Trail will host the 2019 BC Senior Men’s Baseball Championships at Butler Park.