OUA Playoff Preview: Laurier comes in as the favourite
By: Justin Ayles
Canadian Baseball Network
This weekend, six teams will be battling it out for the chance to be crowned OUA Baseball champions and hoist the Jason Guindon trophy. The regular season was grueling and Mother Nature didn’t help one bit. All six teams have a shot this season but it will take a total group effort with help from all over to get it done. Here is the OUA Baseball Playoffs Preview for each team.
LAURIER GOLDEN HAWKS (15-3)
The Golden Hawks came into the season with the pressure off of them. Losing a ton of core pieces and bringing in young talent seemed like a rebuilding year in hindsight, but it was the complete opposite. The Hawks took advantage of existing talent and mixed in recruits with quality freshman to build on the fly.
Laurier has been all about pitching this season. Christian Hauck, AJ Padmore, Jake Tougas, Zach Lawrence, and Austin Hassani make up the best rotation in the OUA. These five arms are all capable of winning big games and having help from Kyle Symington (six saves) and Nicholas Murray in the bullpen will be crucial in a nine-inning long playoff atmosphere. Jonathan Brouse and Jeff Hunt led the way offensively as they both had all-star worthy seasons.
Look for offensive support from Robbie Cant and Daniel Apostoli as they both have had solid campaigns. A player to watch out for this postseason is first baseman Nic Lannutti, the sophomore had a ridiculous 12 RBIs in only 18 at-bats as he has been a proven weapon off of the bench.
Predicted Starting Lineup:
1B – Jeff Hunt
DH – John King
CF – Jonathan Brouse
RF – Daniel Apostoli
2B – Callum Murphy
SS – Robbie Cant
C – Ryley Davenport
LF – Brett Medland
3B – Matt Voight
Key Reserves: Adam Shaver, Nic Lannutti, Connor Patterson, Nicholas Ott, Dallas Taylor
Starting Pitchers: Christian Hauck, AJ Padmore, Jake Tougas, Austin Hassani, Zach Lawrence
Bullpen: Kyle Symington, Nicholas Murray, Christian Pandoff
WESTERN MUSTANGS (14-4)
The Mustangs are putting their OUA Championship on the line as they look to be the first team to repeat since Toronto did so in 2011 and 2012. Western had lost a few of their proven winners this past season but other veterans have picked up the slack and they really haven’t missed a beat.
Shortstop Nolan Anderson has had an MVP type season as he is in the top five in almost every offensive category. First baseman Jeff Martin is a hitting machine as he has proven that for two straight campaigns now. Outfielder David Panchyshyn has had a breakout campaign and Turner Spears has hit well despite an arm injury.
On the bump, Western will throw out Ryan Beckett, Leo Labine, Alex Lamont, and Dustin Godden. Look for Ben Smith to make an impact this weekend as he was bouncing back from an injury most of the regular season. A player to watch out for this postseason is outfielder Haydon Woodley. The veteran had a huge playoff performance in 2015 and will be relied on for speed and big hits this weekend.
Predicted Starting Lineup:
SS – Nolan Anderson
DH – Turner Spears
1B – Jeff Martin
RF – Haydon Woodley
C – Taylor Patterson
CF – Andrew Warner
LF – David Panchyshyn
3B – Eric Beauchesne
2B – Matt Bowden
Key Reserves: Damon Crumplen, Josh Szeto, Arizona Phoenix
Starting Pitchers: Ryan Beckett, Leo Labine, Alex Lamont, Dustin Godden
Bullpen: Ben Smith, Reece Huntley, Sasha Gerster
BROCK BADGERS (14-4)
The Badgers are coming off a very successful first regular season with Marc Lepage as head coach. Brock saw a lot of core pieces leave due to graduation but this deep squad was able to soften the blow by stepping up and performing in larger roles.
Brock was led offensively this season by freshman Matt Legg and sophomore Tyler Nakamura. These were two under the radar players who came in and made immediate impacts. Blake Stepien had a very solid junior campaign at first base and watch out for transfer Jaiden Hill who is getting hot at the right time.
On the mound, you have sophomore standouts Chase Porter and Alex Nolan leading the way. Veteran Jeff Baggaley will be counted on as well for a big start. Player to watch out for this postseason is none other than two-time league MVP Justin Gideon. The slugging outfielder struggled in the regular season but he will have to be a key contributor this weekend as he has done so in the past.
Predicted Starting Lineup:
RF – Tyler Nakamura
2B – Matt Legg
DH – Dennon Koziol
3B – Jaiden Hill
CF – Justin Gideon
1B – Blake Stepien
SS – Noah Koffman
C – Matt Casburn
OF – Dawson Veeneman
Key Reserves: Josh Wray, Michael Enns-Ward, Spencer Gorick, Cody Malone
Starting Pitchers: Chase Porter, Alex Nolan, Jeff Baggaley, Derek Zwolinski, Rhys Tapper
Bullpen: Ryan Bench, Nick Subramaniam, Jake Near, Adrian Yuen
GUELPH GRYPHONS (11-7)
The Gryphons had a rollercoaster of a season. Started off hot, fell apart in the middle but picked it back up down the stretch ending the season with a six-game win streak. The Gryphons have had a balanced offensive attack starting with Nick Interisano who ended up with the second-best average this season.
Matt Forer put together another solid campaign and Robert Wolfer has been a pleasant surprise at second base. On the mound Sam Salemi and Nate Kramer have had good seasons and will be looked upon this weekend.
Jordan Inkol and Denver Carter may be put in multiple inning situations out of the pen. A player to watch out for this weekend is outfielder Matt Allen. Matt missed the start of the season with an injury but will be a catalyst at the bottom of the order to get the offense rolling.
Predicted Starting Lineup:
2B – Robert Wolfer
LF – Joe Ciccia
1B – Matt Forer
3B – Nick Interisano
RF – Gordon Walmsley
SS – Mason Copeland
DH – Jake Gerovac
C – Troy LaCoste
CF – Matt Allen
Key Reserves: Kyle Kinsey, Evan Britt, Tyler Randa
Starting Pitchers: Nate Kramer, Sam Salemi, Robert Wilson, Liam ROvard
Bullpen: Denver Carter, Jordan Inkol, Nick Interisano, Peter Zytner, Marshall Kovacs
WATERLOO WARRIORS (9-9)
The Warriors got out of the gate red hot as they were putting up runs at a record pace. They looked like a sure thing for the postseason before they hit a midseason wall that knocked them back a few pegs.
Waterloo had to perform in the last few games to earn a spot in the postseason and did so in dramatic fashion against Queens by scoring six in the ninth to walk off the Gaels. Don Smith, Kyle Thalheimer, Michael Clouthier, and Kyle Balzereit have been a wrecking crew all season but they are going to need help from the rest of the lineup.
Stephen Gade has had a breakout season on the mound and Ryne Weppler has put together another solid campaign. A player to look out for in the playoffs is shortstop Eric Werner. It took a while for Werner to bounce back from an injury but look for him to be a spark plug either in the lineup or first man off the bench.
Predicted Starting Lineup:
2B – Don Smith
LF – Kyle Thalheimer
3B – Michael Clouthier
RF – Kyle Balzereit
C – Haydon Frieson
1B – Cody Engel
LF – Chris Bombino
SS – Josh Sabino
DH – Erik Werner
Key Reserves: Dan O’Connor, Alex Lojko
Starting Pitchers: Stephen Gade, Ryne Weppler, Jasper Henry, Ray Singh
Bullpen: Brandon Semus, Sam Goindi, Mitchell Busch, Austin Coles
TORONTO VARSITY BLUES (7-10-1)
The Varsity Blues had an interesting season. The biggest storyline has to be the fact that Toronto knew they were hosting so they could afford to start players all over the field in any game they wanted. The Blues might not have had the results they were looking for but are hoping for a deep team to peak at the right time and that time is now.
Gabriel Nakonechny led the team offensively in many categories. Kyle Bowers had a great regular season and will be counted on as a veteran presence in the playoffs. Brad Bedford and Tanner Young-Schultz need to step up this weekend for Toronto to have a chance.
On the mound they are led by Colin Edwards who put in another outstanding season. A player to watch out for is transfer Graham Tebbit who has been nursing an arm injury. He may be ready this weekend to give quality innings in a high pressure situation.
Predicted Starting Lineup:
SS – Roy Suzuki
CF – Brad Bedford
3B – Gabriel Nakonechny
C – Kyle Bowers
DH – Adam Odd
1B – Tanner Young-Schultz
LF – Andrew Mannone
2B – Marco Bandiera
RF – Brandon Hadfield
Key Reserves: Vijay Ramnarance, Sebastian Lech, Graham Tebbit, Grant Shantz
Starting Pitchers: Colin Edwards, Josh Graham, David Pham, Peter Nash
Bullpen: Adam Odd, Graham Tebbit, Matthew Chow