Time is running out to register for the Agassiz Athletics baseball season.
At least one baseball team will be playing on home turf this year, with the Peewees having enough members to make a full roster. But the Bantam team has already been cancelled and organizers hope the other teams will see more players sign up before the deadline of early March passes.
Chris McCurdy, president of the Agassiz Baseball Association, says they are looking for six to eight more players for the mosquitos team (kids born in 2004 or 2005). Organizers would love to see a tadpole roster filled up too (kids born in 2006 or 2007). Their ideal set-up for the Tadpoles would be to have enough players for a couple teams so they can stay in Agassiz and play against each other while they work on their baseball skills.
While McCurdy would love to see a baseball team at every age level offered locally, he is realistic too. The association wants to make sure that the kids who really want to play baseball will still have time to sign up for the Chilliwack league if this one doesn’t go ahead. So, they have a firm deadline of the first week of March for registration in the Agassiz league.
“It would be a shame” for the rest of the teams to not go ahead, says McCurdy.
He admits it was an ambitious plan to try and organize teams from young kids right through to teenagers. He says it’s possible that parents don’t realize how early the registration times are given that games don’t start until April. But for those kids already signed up, practices have been in full swing for weeks now.
Every Sunday afternoon, from 2-5 p.m. is open practice time. And local baseball players have a huge advantage now that they have a batting cage and pitching machine permanently set up.
“It’s pretty exceptional,” says McCurdy. “Having the batting cage right there with the pitching machine, the kids will be way ahead.”
With practices either in the Agricultural Hall or the baseball diamonds out back, plus the deluxe batting cage set securely up inside the padlocked picnic shelter by the hall, the fairgrounds are quickly becoming the baseball association’s dream come true. There is everything in one spot needed to train top-notch teams at all levels. Now, they just need the players.
To find out more or to register, see www.agassizll.com. Or check out a practice this Sunday afternoon, between 2 and 5 p.m.