Yorkton U13 AAA Cardinals’ coach Mark Schendel is praising the effort of the team at the Western Canada baseball championship.
Yorkton travelled to Chilliwack, B.C., for the tournament, held Aug. 15-17. While the Cardinals went 0-4 and finished eighth, Schendel noted the Cardinals were in the lead at the midway point in three of the four games they played.
“Unfortunately, we were unable to close out any of those ball games. That’s a credit and a testament to the opposition that we played. Any opportunities that they got to extend an inning, or if we did some self-inflicted mistakes ourselves, they were quick to exploit.”
Two teams from each of the four Western Canadian provinces were at the tournament. The Moose Jaw Canucks, who defeated Yorkton in the provincial final, were the other Saskatchewan team.
Yorkton opened the tournament with a 13-7 loss to the Parkland Twins from Alberta. Their next game was a 15-2 loss to the Comba Sun Devils from Kelowna, B.C., who went on to win the tournament. The Cardinals fell 7-6 to the Winnipeg South Wolves in their final round-robin game and lost 14-5 to the YQL Sluggers out of Lethbridge, Alta., in the seventh-place game.
Schendel said the Sun Devils were a “loaded” ball club.
“They have lots of talent. They’re outstanding on the mound. They make plays defensively. They’re very polished defensively, and of course, they just do a great job up at the plate as well,” said Schendel.
He believes the experience will be great for the players and it will help them with their development.
“You’re playing some high-calibre baseball clubs. The pitching is different. The fielding by our opposition is different. There’s a reason why they’re here, and that’s going to make them better ball players going forward when you face a pitcher with maybe more velocity, or when you have that shortstop get to a ball deep in the hole and make a play on you. It’s just going to make you a better ball player.”
In a tournament like Westerns, the smallest miscues are magnified, he said. But Schendel added he is proud of the team and the consistency they show with a good attitude, effort and sportsmanship.
The young athletes were never too high or too low, he said, and there was never finger pointing if something went wrong.
“I give them a lot of credit. We’re a ball club and we always talk about being a ‘we’ guy rather than a ‘me’ guy, and again those kids, they were that way going through our tournament this past weekend,” said Schendel.
“Even though when it comes to the wins and losses, we didn’t get the outcomes that we wanted, our kids always played for each other, and I’m really proud of that,” said Schendel.
He also praised the host committee. Weather conditions were not ideal, he said. It rained throughout the day on Aug. 14, and so organizers had to make some quick decisions. Both of the Cardinals’ games on Aug. 16 were in Richmond, B.C.
Just three of the 11 players on this year’s team are eligible to return in 2026. The other players will move up to U15 baseball next season. Schendel said they have been together since February with winter workouts, and they have had an opportunity to do a lot of things.
“I enjoyed every moment with these kids since we started with winter workouts in February. I’d do another ball game with them any day of the week, twice on Saturdays and Sundays.”
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