Verge: Getting cut hurt Braeden, but he was Biggar in long run -- Updated

Ontario Royals OF Braeden Biggar (Georgetown, Ont.) is now a big bat for Dordt Defenders.

March 21, 2025

By Melissa Verge

Canadian Baseball Network

The dismissal could have devastated him.

Braeden Biggar’s career could’ve ended right there after a botched high school tryout at the Historic Fairgrounds in Georgetown. He swung and missed at almost every ball he saw during a soft-toss session.

Instead, of seeing his diamond dreams end with the Grade 10 tryout -- one he today describes as “awful” and “the worst [tryout ever]” -- it motivated Biggar. He didn’t want to give up the sport because of one failed, nerve-filled appearance.

Biggar (Georgetown, Ont.) picked up his bat and glove, and tried again. After all the game is all about perseverance. That dedication and motivation has powered Biggar through to where he is today. He made the Grade 11 team at Christ the King High School the next year, then time at Prairie State College in Illinois. Now, he is an outfielder for the Dordt University Defenders.

“I was like ‘okay, that wasn’t me,’” Biggar said of that Grade 10 tryout. “[I was like] ‘I don’t know what happened that day, but I’m going to come back next year better and prove myself.’”

That’s exactly what he did. He certainly didn’t put away his glove or bat, and he didn’t give up. He practiced with his dad, Jeff Biggar, who would hit him fly balls and threw him batting practice at the field near their house. The dedication he had then was evident, his dad said.

“Braeden always had it in his mind to strive for the best ball that he could get to, and he never gave up through all the different hurdles,” he said.

Ontario Royals alum Braeden Biggar (Georgetown, Ont.) at bat for Dordt University. Photo supplied.

The younger Biggar now has 17 hits, including six doubles, a triple, a homer and 12 RBIs, while hitting .246 for Dordt, 25 games into the 2025 season. He has scored 15 runs, owns an .806 OPS and is 8-for-10 on the base paths.

At Prairie State, he showed off his speed, stealing 13 bases, with 13 extra-base hits, hitting .298 and earning a berth on the Skyway All-Conference team along with academic all-region honours.

Ontario Royals alum Braeden Biggar (Georgetown, Ont.) has 13 stolen bases for Dordt University this season. Photo supplied.

The coach who cut him back in Grade 10 has followed his journey from afar, not forgetting the player who fulfilled his goal of playing college ball in the States.

In fact, it’s a story that’s always stuck out to Scott Van de Valk.

“It’s one of my favourite stories of all college ballplayers,” Van de Valk said, because of how unique and inspirational it is.

“Looking back, the challenges he faced making the team were more nerves than ability,” Van de Valk said.

When he was named to the roster his Grade 11 year, it was clear just what a strong player he was.

“He had the bat to ball skill, he had a little bit of power,” Van de Valk said. “And then you start asking about him, ‘oh, he can run? oh, he can play the outfield? And before you know it, he was a mainstay.’”

Van de Valk wasn’t sure where Biggar was this spring until he opened his phone to find a video clip of Biggar hitting a home run out to left. After watching footage of Biggar crushing a home run, and looking at his numbers, his former coach was impressed.

Biggar saw what wanted to achieve in baseball, and he went for it, never giving up even when the odds were against him.

The athlete succeeded because of one person, Van de Valk said.

“He’s really excelled through his own drive and passion for the game,” Van de Valk said. “I hope he’s very proud.”