Elliott, Futures Day III: Baker, Montanaro, Ricketts, Wallace
Webber Wildcat OF Simon Baker (Cochrane, Alta.) with Dr. Neil Webber, founder of Webber Wildcats.
By Bob Elliott
Canadian Baseball Network
Question the most interesting question you were asked this week?
Answer: Well, Melissa Verge asked if I could help set up an interview with Aaron Hicks. I assumed she meant Jordan Hicks, the Blue Jays reliever. A day later, Verge filed her story on INF Aaron Hicks (Fredericton, NB) of the Fredericton Royals and the Muskoka Outlaws.
Webber Wildcats OF Simon Baker (Cochrane, Alta.)
OF Simon Baker
Team Royal
Hometown: Cochrane, Alta.
Current team: Webber Wildcats
Previous team: Calgary Bucks.
Who is the most influential person in your baseball life and why? “My mom Laurie-Ann an emergency room doctor at Rockyview General Hospital, Peter Lougheed Centre, the South Health Campus at Foothills Medical Centre (who knows? Maybe I met Dr. Baker ... I checked into the emergency room at Foothills Feb. 2, 2019 after speaking at the Okotoks Dawgs banquet -- it was a bad speech -- and was there for 16 days). My mother caught softball in Terrace, BC. I first tried catching in Little League, but didn’t like it. Mom would play catch with me. I don’t want to say mom forced me to play but I went from being a four sport guy -- hockey, basketball, volleyball and baseball -- to baseball.”
Greatest day on the ball field? “The first day with the Junior National Team at The Ballpark in the Palm Beaches (spring home of the Houston Astros and the Washington Nationals) last April ... to walk into that clubhouse and see a major-league clubhouse with my name over the locker. All the gear that they gave us. It was something special to be put the Canada uniform on and be with such great players like Myles Naylor (Mississauga, Ont.), Brendan Lawson (Toronto, Ont.) and Benito Bonilla (Halifax, NS). How did I do? I hit about .350. (He was 5-for-14, .357 ... which is a better memory than most major leaguers).”
Favourite player and why? “George Springer. I’m a Blue Jays fan. I try to emulate him when I play. I’ve hit a couple of lead-off home runs, but this year I mostly hit in the No. 2 hole.”
If not a pro player, what’s the next best job you’d want to have when you grow up? “I’m a big math and science guy, but I’d like to play college baseball.”
The most important life lesson you’ve learned playing ball? “Just go out there and DO IT. No matter how nervous you are. You go out and do it once it will be easier the second time. Do it again and it will easier the next time ... and you know what life will be easier.”
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Q: How does this year’s Canadian Futures Showcase compare to the 2022 event at Raymond Chabot Grant Thornton Stadium in Ottawa?
A: Well, most scouts would say heading into Saturday’s finale “it’s still early.” However, it is warmer, players continue to rave about the size and brightness of the Jumbotron and seeing their names on the board. The crowd from both the pro side and the college side in pure numbers would make this the best of nine previous events (Showcases/T-12s) we’ve been tracking.
Toronto Mets’ C Gianluca Montanario (Aurora, (Ont.)
Gianluca Montanaro
Team Black
Hometown: Aurora, Ont.
Current team: Toronto Mets.
Previous teams: Stouffville Yankees (trained with Rob Butler), Aurora Blue Jays, Newmarket Hawks.
Committed: Bossier Parish Community College.
C Gianluca Montanario (Aurora, (Ont.) presented the Canadian Premier League All-Star Game MVP award by Perfect Game’s Brian Sakowski, left and Jamie Romak, former Tip O’Neill Award winner, after Montanario went 3-for-4 with a triple and a pair of RBIs.
Who is the most influential person in your baseball life and why? “My mom (Loreena) a visual arts and English teacher in Markham and my dad (Mo), who works in IT for the York-Simcoe School Board. They both got me into baseball and have provided lots of support.”
Who is the most influential person in your baseball life besides your parents and why? “Rich Leitch (Whitby, Ont. a Toronto Mets coach). He helps me every day. He reaches out to schools for me. He treats me really well and has taught me to treat the game well. He has a ton of knowledge.”
Favourite player and why? “C Patrick Bailey, San Fransico Giants. He’s real crafty. He’s among the league leaders in framing the last time I looked. I think that he’s more of a catch-and-throw type guy. My catching is lacking, so that’s why I look up to him.”
If not a pro player, what’s the next best job you’d want to have when you grow up? “I’m good at math and have good marks (a 4.0) so maybe an engineer. You could take a lot of different routes, but probably a mechanical engineer.”
The most important life lesson you’ve learned playing ball? “Basically to have fun. You play better if you’re having fun. You’ll hit longer if you are having fun.”
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Q: How are coaches of these teams expected to make up the lineups when they don’t really know the players.
A: Am told that they are given the set lineups. But the coaches are able to pass on valuable tips and insight to the players.
Ontario Blue Jays C Brayden Ricketts (Brampton, Ont.)
C-1B Brayden Ricketts
Team Royal
Hometown: Brampton, Ont.
Current team: Ontario Blue Jays.
Previous teams: Junior National Team, Brampton Royals.
Who is the most influential person in your baseball life and why? “Both my mom (Lauren Huck) and my grandfather (Ed Huck). Mom is from Oakville and played softball at Niagara University. They both taught me the basics and got me into the game. They coached me from T-ball on up and then I got really serious at the 12U level. My grandfather lives in Collingwood and he’d teach me how to swing. We’d go and play in the park, play catch and take full swings. We’d play whiffle ball.”
Your greatest day on the ball field? “When we won the Canada Cup for Ontario with coach Jean-Gillies Larocque (Azilda, Ont.) in Regina, beating BC 11-8 thanks to four runs in the sixth. We went the year before and I didn’t do that well.
(He did well in the final going 3-for-4 with two RBIs. The rally began when Dante Smith (Ajax, Ont.) was hit by a pitch, Ryan Stalony (Mississauga, Ont.) tripled to tie the score and Ricketts followed with a triple.) “We went to the nationals once with coach Stan Wilson, Josiah Romeo (Caledon, Ont.), Stalony and I have been friends for years.”
Your favourite player and why? “Shohei Ohtani. He does everything so well. He is very impressive to watch. He excels at both, but if I had to pick one (aspect) I think he is a better hitter.”
If not a pro player, what’s the next best job you’d want to have when you grow up? “Probably working around baseball ... maybe as a hitting coach.”
What’s the most important life lesson you’ve learned playing ball? “How to work with failure. Not to get too high when things are good and not to get too low when things aren’t going well. Basically you get out of the game when you put into it.”
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Q: What team do you think will win?
A: They stopped declaring a winner last year. Players show their skills in front of college recruiters and pro scouts. And we’ll see who heads where in the upcoming months. The only winner will be the champion of Saturday’s home run derby. Myles Naylor (Mississauga, Ont.) won in Ottawa.
ABC’s RHP Jacob Wallace (Pincourt, Que.)
Jacob Wallace
Team Royal
Hometown: Pincourt, Que.
Current team: Academie Baseball Canada.
Previous team: Junior National Team, Lac-St-Louis Tigers.
Who is the most influential person in your baseball life and why? “My mom (Claudine Reid) has always been there for me. Anywhere I go my mom is always there. My mother is one of the reasons I have had success ... because she is a great influence. My mother always pushes me to do better and encourages me to practice. No, my mom has never caught my bullpen -- she wouldn’t.”
Who is the most influential person in your baseball life beside your mom and why? “My three pitching coaches I have had at the ABC: Marc-Antoine Berube (Trios Pistoles, Que.), Karl Gelinas (Laval, Que.) and Mathieu Dion (Granby, Que.). They have worked with me making me better for four years. On our trips inside the Sports Complex, Claude Robillard. Remi Lemay (Ste-Martine, Que.) and I are good friends and we work out together. One day Mathieu Dion showed up at my house at 5 AM. We worked out with the medicine balls and went to the 24-hour gym near my house.”
Greatest day on the ball field? “Pitching at Dodger Stadium in January at the Area Codes qualifier. I was named the MVP (two innings with four strikeouts and zero walks).”
Favourite player and why? “Marcus Stroman of the Chicago Cubs. I really like his mindset. His height doesn’t measure heart doesn’t fit me (Stroman is 5-foot-7, Wallace is 6-foot-3 ... ‘with cleats’ he says), but he is extremely competitive. I try to be like him.
If not a pro player, what’s the next best job you’d want to have when you grow up? “Maybe a coach, a pitching coach. I love baseball.”
The most important life lesson you’ve learned playing ball? “The harder you work the more you get. If you want something you have to go get it.”
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Numbers
17_ College recruiters and coaches on hand _ University of British Columbia (two), Canisius College, East Tennessee State, Georgetown University, Georgia State University, Gonzaga University, Kent State University, Long Beach State, Michigan University, Niagara University, Pepperdine University, Sacramento State University, Northern Kentucky, Western Kentucky, Utah University and Mary.
32 _ Pro scouts representing 19 teams on hand: Toronto Blue Jays (seven, including scouting director Shane Farrell, plus regional scouts Jamie Lehman (Brampton, Ont.), Adam Arnold (St. Thomas, Ont.), head Canadian scout Patrick Griffin (Oakville, Ont.), Demi Orimoloye (Orleans, Ont.), Jasmine Roy (Montreal, Que.), Cincinnati Reds (three), New York Mets (three), Chicago Cubs (two), Kansas City Royals (two), Texas Rangers (two), Arizona Diamondbacks, Atlanta Braves, Chicago White Sox, Cleveland Guardians, Detroit Tigers, Los Angeles Dodgers, Minnesota Twins, New York Yankees, Philadelphia Phillies, San Francisco Giants, San Diego Padres, Seattle Mariners and Tampa Bay Rays.