Betts: Canadians prepare to take next step on the Road to Omaha
Ontario Blue Jays grad Matthew Brown (Carlisle, Ont.), far right, will pitch for the Oklahoma State Cowboys in the NCAA baseball tournament. Photo: Oklahoma State Athletics
May 29, 2025
By Matt Betts
Canadian Baseball Network
Thirty-five Canadians representing six provinces are on the rosters of 17 different schools taking part in the NCAA baseball tournament.
Ontario leads the way with 19, followed by BC’s seven, Alberta’s three, Quebec’s three, Manitoba’s two and Nova Scotia’s one.
Compared to previous years, the 35 is down from 51 in 2024 but up from 29 in 2023.
Now, let’s take a look at who’s there, where they’ll be playing and how they arrived.
Athens Regional
Oklahoma State Cowboys (28-23)
Despite what appears to be a pedestrian 28-23 overall record, Oklahoma State’s 15-12 Big 12 Conference mark and key wins over Louisville, Mississippi State, Kansas State, Arizona, Dallas Baptist, Cincinnati and Arizona State gets them in.
The Cowboys are the only team in the Athens Regional with a Canadian.
Freshman right-hander Matthew Brown (Carlisle, Ont.) has made quite the impression in his first season, posting a 3.13 ERA in 13 appearances, one of which was a start. He’s held opposing hitters to a .226 batting average against.
Oklahoma State is joined by host Georgia, Duke and Binghamton.
Game 1: vs. Duke
Auburn Regional
Stetson Hatters (40-20)
Stetson is making their fifth appearance in the regionals since 2011 and their path this year was…unorthodox?
With the final game of the Atlantic Sun Conference tournament unable to be played because of weather, the Hatters were named co-champions with Florida Gulf Coast but earned the automatic bid thanks to a higher RPI.
They’ve been without one of their key players, Yohann Dessureault (Trois-Rivières, Que.), for all but two games due to a hamstring injury.
On the mound, they feature right-hander Turner Spoljaric (Lisle, Ont.). While Spoljaric has a 5.96 ERA over 25 2/3 innings, he’s not new to big moments as he started a Super Regional game back in 2023 for the University of Oregon.
The Hatters will see host Auburn, North Carolina State and Central Connecticut State in Alabama.
Game 1: vs. NC State
Austin Regional
Kansas State Wildcats (31-24)
Another Big 12 team makes their way into the tournament.
Eye-catching wins on the Wildcats resume include ones over Arkansas, TCU, Nebraska, West Virginia and Cincinnati.
Right-handers Ethan Giesbrecht (Altona, Man.) and Scott Rienguette (Sudbury, Ont.) are both on the roster but haven’t appeared in a game this season.
They’ll be the only team outside the Lone Star state in this regional as they’re joined by host Texas, the University of Texas at San Antonio and Houston Christian.
Game 1: vs. UTSA
Baton Rouge Regional
Dallas Baptist Patriots (40-16)
Dallas Baptist has been one of the most impressive mid-major programs over the past decade, having made a regional every year since 2014 aside from the COVID-cancelled 2020 campaign.
Their success once there has been limited, having advanced to the Super Regionals just once in that span in 2021.
Right-hander Micah Bucknam (Abbotsford, BC) makes his return to Baton Rouge after winning a College World Series with the LSU Tigers in 2023 alongside Pittsburgh Pirates ace Paul Skenes. This season, he owns a 6-1 record with a 4.37 ERA and is second on the team in innings pitched with 59 2/3.
Outfielder Tom Poole (Calgary, Alta.) supplies significant power. He’s hit .336 with a 1.094 OPS and is a sneaky 8-for-8 in stolen base attempts. He missed roughly a month late in the season which limited him to 37 games.
Lefty Liam Watt (Burlington, Ont.) comes in with 18 appearances and a 5.75 ERA over 36 innings.
The Patriots join hosts LSU, Rhode Island and Arkansas at Little Rock.
Game 1: vs. Rhode Island
Great Lake Canadians alum Riley Silva (Cambridge, Ont.) batted .292 in 53 games for the Nebraska Cornhuskers this season. Photo: Nebraska Athletics
Chapel Hill Regional
Nebraska Huskers (32-27)
For the second straight season, the University of Nebraska won the Big Ten Conference tournament to punch their ticket to a regional.
It was a bit of a rollercoaster year for the Huskers as they started as the 24th ranked team in the country and made it as high as No. 23 before finishing the regular season 28-27.
They come in red-hot, though, after winning their final five Big Ten regular season series and running the table in the conference tournament.
Outfielder Riley Silva (Cambridge, Ont.) stroked six hits and drove in a pair of runs to lead his team to the championship last week. On the season, he’s hitting .292 with a 1.000 fielding percentage in 53 games.
Southpaw Caleb Clark (Orillia, Ont.) has pitched exclusively out of the bullpen, making 19 appearances with a 3.71 ERA and 16 strikeouts in 17 innings.
Colin Cymbalista (Pickering, Ont.) has appeared in 15 games with four starts. He’s fielding a perfect 1.000.
Nebraska lines up with host North Carolina, Oklahoma and Holy Cross.
Game 1: vs. Oklahoma
Clemson Regional
West Virginia Mountaineers (41-14)
If any team is ready to hit the road, it’s West Virginia after putting together a 23-5 record away from Morgantown this season.
Outfielder Sam White (Aurora, Ont.) sits second on the team with a .353 average to go along with a .932 OPS.
Freshman Jorge Valdes (Milton, Ont.) has played in 37 games but has yet to make a start. Defensively, he has a 1.000 fielding percentage.
Host Clemson, Kentucky and USC Upstate round out the regional.
Game 1: vs. Kentucky
Kentucky Wildcats (29-24)
The record may not be eye-popping, which includes 13-17 mark in the Southeastern Conference, but the SEC is arguably the hardest path to take.
A sweep of Oklahoma and taking two of three from Tennessee helped their cause.
Catcher Raphael Pelletier (Mascouche, Que.), who transferred from Kansas State, is the lone Canuck on the roster. He’s hit .123 with 15 RBIs in 21 games.
The Wildcats will hope for the same Canadian magic they received from Tampa Bay Rays infield prospect Émilien Pitre (Repentigny, Que.) last season when they made a run to the College World Series.
Game 1: vs. West Virginia
USC Upstate (36-23)
The Big South Conference champions come into the regionals as the clear underdog.
Utilityman Wylie Waters (Vancouver, BC) has been a force all season, hitting .268 with 12 home runs and an .894 OPS in 52 games.
Right-hander Reece Hemmerling (Beaumont, Alta.) has toed the rubber 13 times, throwing 16 2/3 innings with an 8.10 ERA.
Game 1: vs. Clemson
Ontario Blue Jays alum Brendan Lawson (Toronto, Ont.) has batted .301 and collected 57 RBIs with the Florida Gators. Photo: Gators
Conway Regional
Florida Gators (38-20)
Florida hit a rough patch in SEC play mid-season, getting swept by Tennessee, Georgia, dropping two of three to Ole Miss and then being swept by Vanderbilt over four straight weekend but rebounded nicely and didn’t lose a conference series the rest of the way from April 10 on.
Freshman infielder Brendan Lawson (Toronto, Ont.) has come as advertised after bypassing last year’s draft to make his way to Gainesville. He’s currently hitting .301 with nine home runs and 57 RBIs, which is good for second on the team.
Florida draws Coastal Carolina, East Carolina and Fairfield in their regional.
Game 1: vs. East Carolina
Fairfield Stags (37-17)
Fairfield won the Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference, defeating Rider 7-6 in 10 innings in the championship game.
Right-hander Matthew Grabmann (Dartmouth, N.S.) has been a key piece in the Stags’ bullpen. Over 21 appearances, only one which was a start, he’s 6-3 with a 4.91 ERA. The Oregon transfer was teammates with Turner Spoljaric during their past postseason runs.
The Stags other Canadian hurler, Bo Buckley (Petrolia, Ont.), has yet to make an appearance.
Game 1: vs. Coastal Carolina
Fayetteville Regional
Arkansas Razorbacks (43-13)
Arkansas has been a power all season long and outfielder Charles Davalan (Montreal, Que.) has been a big part of it.
Arguably the best Canadian hitter in all of Division I baseball, Davalan is second on the Razorbacks with a .352 average. He’s also hit 13 home runs with a 1.006 OPS in 56 games, 55 starts.
If that’s not enough, he’s also got it done with the leather, fielding at a 1.000 clip.
Arkansas welcomes Kansas, Creighton and North Dakota State.
Game 1: vs. North Dakota State
Creighton Bluejays (41-14)
Three Canadians are members of this Bluejays team.
Creighton won the Big East Conference tournament by beating St. John’s, Xavier and Connecticut, with the latter two being potential regional teams that fell just short in the selection process.
Right-hander Jack Pineau (Thunder, Bay, Ont.) is 3-0 in nine starts with a 5.71 ERA over 34 2/3 innings.
Right-hander Anthony Unga (Oakville, Ont.), a freshman, has pitched in 12 games, throwing 10 1/3 innings to the tune of an 8.71 ERA.
The third Canadian right-hander, John McDonald (Mississauga, Ont.), has appeared in two games and has a 5.40 ERA.
London Badgers grad Logan Knight (London, Ont.) has made 14 starts for North Dakota State this year. Photo: North Dakota Athletics
North Dakota State (20-32)
Every year it seems a team surprises to make their way into the tournament.
This year, it’s North Dakota State as they limped to a 17-31 regular season record, only to win three of four in The Summit League championship to claim the title.
And no team in the regionals has more Canadians than the Bison’s seven.
Right-hander Logan Knight (London, Ont.) was named to the All-Championship team after throwing a complete game shutout in a 4-0 win over Oral Roberts. In 14 starts, he’s 4-6 with a 4.68 ERA.
Freshman outfielder Dante Smith (Ajax, Ont.) is hitting .303 with 11 stolen bases and a .988 fielding percentage in 41 games.
Dual man Tate Martin (Vancouver, BC) has a .224 average while appearing in three games, making two starts on the mound.
Right-hander Matt Sargeant (Ancaster, Ont.) has thrown 14 1/3 innings with an 8.79 ERA. Four of his seven appearances have been starts.
Catcher Bennett Reiter (St. Andrews, Man.) has played in eight games with a .143 average.
Right-hander Seth Thompson (Calgary, Alta.) has been summoned from the bullpen six times, while right-hander Ethan Swaby (Toronto, Ont.) has yet to appear in a game.
Game 1: vs. Arkansas
Hattiesburg Regional
Columbia Lions (29-17)
The Ivy League winning Columbia Lions make their way south to Mississippi.
When they get there, right-handed pitcher and infielder Griffin Palfrey (Vancouver, BC) will look to lead the way to an upset.
Palfrey’s played in 46 games as a position player and is hitting .263 with six home runs and 44 RBIs.
As a pitcher, he’s 1-1 in nine appearances with a 7.98 ERA and 17 strikeouts over 14 2/3 innings.
Also in the Hattiesburg Regional is host Southern Mississippi, Alabama and Miami (Fla.).
Game 1: vs. Southern Mississippi
Knoxville Regional
Miami (Ohio) RedHawks (35-21)
Miami (Ohio) swept their way through the Mid-American Conference tournament with a pair of wins over Toledo and one against Kent State to earn their way to Tennessee for the Knoxville Regional.
Left-hander Hayden Cuthbertson (Ladner, BC) has been relied upon heavily on the mound for the RedHawks. Of his 18 appearances, 10 have been starts and he’s worked to a 7.56 ERA with 43 strikeouts in 41 2/3 innings.
Their other Canuck comes on the position player side in outfielder Jake Vrlak (Vancouver, BC). Vrlak has played in 11 games and is hitting .214.
Host Tennessee, Wake Forest and Cincinnati await.
Game 1: vs. Tennessee
Great Lake Canadians grad Blake Jacklin (St. Jacobs, Ont.) has batted .337 and has 15 stolen bases for East Tennessee State this season. Photo: East Tennesse State Athletics
Nashville Regional
East Tennessee State Buccaneers (41-15)
East Tennessee State doesn’t have to travel far, just 284 miles across the state of Tennessee, for their regional.
The winners of the Southern Conference are led in part by outfielder Blake Jacklin (St. Jacobs, Ont.) who’s posted a .337 average, good for second on the team. He also has five home runs, a .910 OPS and 15 stolen bases.
Host Vanderbilt, Louisville and Wright State are in the Music City vying for a spot in the Super Regionals.
Game 1: vs. Louisville
Wright State (38-19)
Head coach Alex Sogard, brother of former Toronto Blue Jay Eric, has won four Horizon League championships in his time with the school.
The most famous Canadian he’s had in that time is Milwaukee Brewer Tyler Black (Toronto, Ont.)
And he has another Canuck this year in freshman infielder Zach Cavanagh (Chilliwack, BC) but he hasn’t played in a game yet this season.
Game 1: vs. Vanderbilt