May 13, 2019

By Kavan Young

Ottawa Champions

OTTAWA – The Ottawa Champions have named Phillippe Aumont (Gatineau, Que.) as their opening day starting pitcher.

Aumont, 30, last played for the Champions during the 2017 season when he went 5-8 in 17 games with a 4.51 ERA and 103 strikeouts. He rejoined the team this season as both a player and the team’s pitching coach.

“It’s always an honour to take the ball on opening day,” said Aumont. “I think Sebastien has trust in me to go out there and set the tone right away. I surely want to go out and get him a win on Day 1. I’m really excited to get this year going and I think Sebastien did a great job of bringing the right guys to Ottawa to compete for another championship.”

The right-hander spent last season with the Detroit Tigers organization, splitting time between their triple-A affiliate, the Toledo Mud Heads and their double-A affiliate, the Erie SeaWolves.

Originally drafted in the first round (11th overall) of the MLB June Amateur Draft by the Seattle Mariners, Aumont spent four seasons with the Philadelphia Phillies between 2012 and 2015 before signing with the Champions in 2017.

“Phil is the most experienced guy we have,” said rookie manager Sebastien Boucher. “He’s a leader out there and can take control of the game. He has some dominant stuff. Being a local product, he seems to be the right guy to launch our 2019 season.”

The 6-foot-7, 255-pound ace threw a no-hitter in June 2017 against the Dominican Republic national team, the only no-hitter in Champions franchise history.

The Champions open their regular season on Friday with a four-game series against the New Jersey Jackals.