Pegg: CNE Lions tourney going strong in 63rd year

Letters From Ron

By Ron Pegg

Baseball Ontario Life Member

We always love our time at the Canadian National Exhibition. We must really enjoy it. We have only missed it once in over 60 years. That was because we were in New Brunswick at the Canada Games where our son Rob was the bat boy for Team Ontario’s junior team.

We were there this year primarily to attend the Lions Peewee Tournament. The tournament is 63 years old. It has 32 teams. It also has a tournament within a tournament where eight teams from smaller centres in Ontario compete for a championship. The winning team of this smaller towns division then enters the quarterfinals of the 32-team tournament.

At this year’s tournament Simcoe won its division and played Oakville. Simcoe defeated Oakville 7-6 before losing out in the semi-final against the Mississauga North Tigers.

My wife Cathy was honoured on her birthday by throwing out the first pitch in the game where Simcoe won the championship. Led by the game’s announcer the team and fans sang Happy Birthday.

I joined the committee for this tournament in 1976. I still remember attending my first meeting. I was in complete awe to be in the company of this outstanding group of leaders. I had previously coached three peewee teams from Newmarket and one from Elmgrove, - near Alliston. Elmgrove is still the smallest community, - and probably always will be, to ever play in the tournament.

My Dad and Mom usually took us to the Ex as young children. I was always in awe that Dr. McKelvey from our village in Beeton always had a sticker on his car at the time of the Ex, which gave him free entrance to the Ex as a director.

I was even in more awe when I discovered that Beeton’s Kate Aitken known on her radio broadcast as “Here’s Mrs A” developed much of the women’s program of the Exhibition. For many years, her radio program was broadcast daily from the Ex during the days that the Ex was happening.

Although most of the events that I used to go to as a child have disappeared, I am still excited when I know it is time to go to the Ex.

With the baseball, there is always some exciting side happenings. This year, - a man in his mid 40s approached me. He was a parent of one of the players from Halton Hills (Georgetown). He asked me if I had a son by the name of Rob who attended the baseball school at Michigan State in Lansing when he was about 10 years old. My answer was yes.

Rob and this man were roommates at that camp over 30 years ago, - their only contact.

This year’s awards included: Tournament Champions: Richmond Hill Phoenix winners of the CNE-Pat Martin Trophy.

Tournament Finalists: Niagara Falls Falcons winners of the Ron Burke Trophy.

Trophies: Tournament MVP: Alex Di Giancinto, Richmond Hill, winner of the Hank Sinclair Trophy.

Final Game MVP: Di Giancinto, Richmond Hill, winner of the Bill McBratney award,

Top Player on Finalist Team: Haydon Cupolo, Niagara Falls, winner of the Ray and The Babe Award.

Defensive Player on Final Day: SS Reed Goodfello, Richmond Hill and 2B Parker McLean, Richmond Hill winner of The Fence People Award.

Tournament Top Pitcher: Darren Lowe, North Toronto A’s, winner of the Sam Shefsky award)

100% Award: Di Giancinto, Richmond Hill, winner of the The Mort Greenberg Award.

Early Round Award: David De Stefano, Vaughan Vikings, winner of the Howie Wilson Award.