By Fares Kaff

Canadian Baseball Network

TORONTO -- Tournament 12’s intention to showcase young Canadian talent has given Quebec a springboard in baseball, says a leading coach in the province.

As the 2018 edition of the youth scouting showcase sponsored by the Toronto Blue Jays wound down to its final day, Quebec’s top youngsters found themselves in familiar territory — the playoffs.

Quebec won the tournament in 2014, and finished second last season. The club secured a semi-final berth this year, with a 3-0 record in round robin play. It took a no-hitter by Team Alberta’s Brayden Cust to end this year’s run.

T12’s main goal is to showcase the best and brightest of young Canadian ball players, and that opportunity is one that head coach Maxime Hockhoussen appreciates.

“It’s obviously huge with all the scouts here and, the way we play I really think will open doors (for young Quebecers),” he said, following his team’s third and final round robin game. “Being on the big stage in Toronto obviously is a huge bonus and I really think those doors are going to blow open soon.”

As a result of the opportunities presented by T12, Quebec alumni have started progressing into the next levels of baseball, both college and the pros.

Charles Leblanc (Laval, Que.), member of the 2013 squad has had a break out season with the Down East Wood Ducks, the high-A affiliate of the Texas Rangers. Leblanc has set careers highs in home runs (10), runs batted in (72), and in batting average (.274).

Not to be ignored is Edouard Julien (Quebec City, Que.). The infielder just set a school record for runs batted in by a freshman at Auburn (72), and was a member of the 2017 Quebec squad.

“That just shows that this tournament is really a springboard,” said Hockhoussen, standing near third base between games. “We gather the 20 best players in the province and give them the opportunity.

“We already have a couple players on this year’s team that were the subject of really good discussions so it’ll be really interesting”

One of those players may well be outfielder Nicolas Tremblay, 17, who echoed his coach’s statements on the importance of this tournament and showcasing their talent.

“I think baseball in Quebec is progressing further and further and if we continue to do well, specifically at tournaments like T12 we’re really able to show people how good we are,” he said following his team’s victory on Sunday morning.

Tremblay is considered one of the top prospects here, after his performance at the tournament in 2017 earned him an invitation to the Canadian junior team’s fall camp.

“The more we do this and the more this keeps up, it’s only a matter of time until we start seeing (Quebec) guys in the majors, I’d say,” he said.

A name that has special importance in both Quebec and Toronto is Vladimir Guerrero Jr.

The Montreal-born Blue Jays prospect has been the subject of endless media hype over the last 12 months, and that has certainly reached La Belle Province.

“I mean we all have great memories of his father, whether it be my generation or the one before mine,” Hockhoussen said. “So I definitely think that the hype is a positive thing, it brings in a lot of really good publicity for the sport.

“We all saw his walk off in pre-season (at the Olympic Stadium in Montreal) and I think with how young he is and how quickly he’s rising, he’s going to be a positive influence.”

Vlad has the spotlight and is undoubtedly one of the most promising prospects in all of baseball and his ability has started to show a path opening up for players from Quebec.

“He’s born in Montreal, and with guys like him and Abraham Toro-Hernandez (an infielder at double-A Corpus Christie, in the Houston Astros’ organization) who could potentially be in the majors soon, it’ll be huge,” Tremblay said.

“I really think we could see more people playing baseball and it’ll be a source of motivation for us to push harder when we see guys we know or guys we played against making it in the big leagues.”