Five Airdrie athletes represented their hometown against top-level competition on the ball diamond, by being selected to play on the Calgary AAA Blues U18 team in the Babe Ruth Pacific Northwest Regional tournament last week.
From July 20 to 23, the Babe Ruth Pacific Northwest Regional tournament brought together 10 teams vying for a spot at the Little League U18 World Series in Missouri later this month. Calgary hosted the qualifying tournament over the three days, with the AAA Blues competing against other U18 teams from Washington, Oregon, and Wyoming.
Even though the Blues were unable to come out of the tournament with a spot at the World Series, five of the team’s athletes represented Airdrie in a high-level competition. Ben Luterbach, Evan Beebe, Jack Reynolds, Jared Hall, and Clayton Ree were able to clinch spot on the U18 team.
Beebe, who plays in-field and pitches for the team, said the high-stakes tournament was an opportunity to showcase Alberta baseball. He added it’s a good experience to play the sport at such a competitive level.
“I think it’s awesome. I think that we have the opportunity to show how Calgary baseball is against some of the U.S. teams,” Beebe said.
Beebe said there was a lot of support from friends and family throughout the tournament, which was held at Optimist Athletic Park in southwest Calgary.
He added everyone on the Blues is supportive of each other. When the team comes together, Beebe noted the cohesion of the group feels natural.
“We all gel very well,” he said. “We all motivate each other and want what’s best.”
Head coach of the AAA Blues, Jordan McClocklin said they took pride in being able to host the tournament this summer. Noting that baseball is known more as an “American sport,” he added it is always a challenge to play the top touring teams from the Pacific Northwest region.
Leading up to the tournament, the Calgary team participated in 40 games to ensure they were adequately prepared. Looking to compete at a high level, the Blues even travelled down to Montana and Washington to take on U.S. opposition.
McClocklin said in addition to those games, the team had an extensive practice schedule.
“We’re probably out there five to six days a week,” he said. “If it’s not a game, it’s practicing.”
According to the tournament website, Calgary played nine games in six days, winning four and losing five.
During tough moments, McClocklin said it is important to remind the athletes they can’t control everything that happens on the diamond. He added it’s important to pick your teammates up and not linger on the unfortunate things.
Looking forward at the athletes’ future careers, McClocklin said a lot of the players participating in the tournament will likely go on to play competitive college baseball when they graduate from U18. He said the Babe Ruth tournament provides players a chance to go up against the best and recognize the effort demanded to reach that level of excellence in the sport.
“There’s a lot of players that come out of this tournament, few years down the road, who will end up playing Division 1, Division 2 college baseball,” he said. “So just the opportunity to measure up against them and see how they compare and what work they have to do to get to that level if they want to do that as well.”
