Grabmann and Spoljaric compete in Baseball Factory All-America Game
Okotoks Dawgs right-hander Matt Grabmann (Dartmouth, N.S.) and Toronto Mets right-hander Turner Spoljaric (Lisle, Ont.) competed in the Baseball Factory All-America Game at Kauffman Stadium in Kansas City over the weekend. Both have also pitched for the Junior National Team. Photo: Baseball Canada
September 27, 2021
Baseball Canada
OTTAWA – Junior National Team pitchers Matt Grabmann (Dartmouth, N.S.) and Turner Spoljaric (Lisle, Ont.) competed in the Baseball Factory All-America Game at Kauffman Stadium in Kansas City over the weekend among some of the top high school baseball players in North America.
Both players represented Canada earlier this month in Florida in the seven-game Friendship Series against the United States’ 18U National Team.
Spoljaric was written up by Baseball America's Carlos Collazo as one of 13 players that caught his eye during the contest.
In 2020, former Junior National Team hurlers Mitch Bratt (Newmarket, Ont.) and Calvin Ziegler (Heidelberg, Ont.) took part in the contest and last July were selected in the 2021 Major League Baseball Draft with Ziegler taken by the New York Mets (2nd round) while Bratt was chosen by the Texas Rangers (5th round).
Prior to 2020, the contest was known as the Under Armour All-America game and featured some of the top Canadian high school prospects including the late Jake Eliopoulos (2008), Kellin Deglan and Evan Rutckyj (2009), Skylar Janisse (2010), Ryan Kellogg and Gareth Morgan (2011), Josh Naylor and Demi Orimoloye (2014), Andy Yerzy (2015), Adam Hall (2016), Denzel Clarke and Bo Naylor (2017), Cesar Valero (2018) and Theo Millas (2019).
All are graduates of Baseball Canada’s Junior National Team program.