Â
ORIGINAL STORYÂ By Steve Rice, Stratford Beacon Herald
Don Scott of Stratford, shown wearing his Team Canada jersey, will pitch be pitching for the Scarborough Force at the Canadian men's fastball championships in Stratford next week.
In less than a week local sports fans will be treated to some of the country's top fastball teams and players as the Canadian men's championship takes place Aug. 27 through Sept. 1 at the Packham Road softball complex.
"It's obviously the marquee event of the summer for us and I think it's going to be exciting for fans with the area teams involved," said Matt Richards, championship chair and a director of the Lions Club which is bringing the tournament to Stratford.
"It's not a big tournament in terms of the number of teams, but it's the fan base for these teams that seems to travel everywhere with them and loves watching men's fastball that makes it fun."
The Shakespeare Falcons of the South Perth Men's Fastball League are the host team and will be joined by three other Ontario teams who qualified for the event: the Scarborough Force, Kitchener Cubs and Kitchener Outlaws.
The Force have a formidable pitching duo in Canadian national team members Andy Skelton of Scarborough and Don Scott of Stratford, who carried the Force to a fifth-place finish at the ISC world championships which wrapped up in Quad City, Iowa last Saturday.
Skelton is also an outstanding hitter who was named the second team all-star designated hitter at the worlds.
Scott, 39, helped lead Team Canada to Pan Am gold a year ago, and earlier this month led Scarborough to the senior/intermediate North American Fast Pitch Showcase title in Mitchell, getting the win as the Force defeated Wiarton in the final.
Skelton tossed a two-hitter with 11 strikeouts when the Force blanked the Kitchener Cubs 3-0 in the final of the OASA Great Lakes championship in New Dundee on the last weekend of July to qualify as Ontario's top team for next week's nationals.
Kitchener Outlaws qualified as the third Ontario team with their semifinal loss to the Cubs.
The defending champions are St. John's-based 3Cheers Pub, who became the first Newfoundland team to win the national title when they defeated Kitchener Twins 5-0 in the 2012 final.
A second Newfoundland entry, Nova Scotia, P.E.I. and Quebec round out the nine-team field.
It's the first time the nationals have been held in Stratford, and only the second time the city has been host to a Canadian fastball championship. Stratford Memorials, under the direction of president Murray Patterson, hosted the Canadian midget boys fastball championships at Packham in the summer of 2010.
Teams play a round-robin beginning Tuesday, with playoffs scheduled for Saturday and Sunday.
Rogers will provide TV coverage of the bronze-medal and gold-medal games on Sunday afternoon.
Among the special activities at the park will be an interactive display and information tent from Pan Am Games 2015 during the playoffs on Sat., Aug. 31
A one-day pass costs $12 while an all-event pass is $60. A ticket to the opening ceremonies barbecue next Tuesday is an additional $15.
The Lions Club will host another Canadian championship in 2014, the 16U girls nationals.
In conjunction with the tournaments, the Lions has or will provide "legacy improvements" to the park, including the purchase of moveable outfield fencing for all five diamonds, canopy covers for the dugouts and improvements to the clubhouse area.
