More disappointing news, but it’s not the end of the world

The 2010 campaign looked to be one of great growth possibly for the Powerline Baseball League. And with Holden confirming they would enter the league last week, it appeared the PBL was destined for a 1967-like NHL expansion era.

That was until the “Earth-shattering” news out of Sherwood Park broke. Now news out of Camrose is grim as the Midget Cougars, who casually suggested they may enter the league last fall, are not as sure they will play in the PBL either.

“It is an option we have been considering,” said Cougars manager Dave Boreman, who of course runs Hockey Plus in Camrose as well if you’re looking for any ball equipment by the way. “It looks less likely now than it did in the fall. I want where we are playing nailed down in the next (couple) weeks.”

There is still a million-to-one long shot Sherwood Park could enter a team still, but it doesn’t look promising.

“I am trying to see if we can get more kids out and form a second team, but I am not hopeful at this point,” said Sherwood Park’s Director of Facilities Rick Bourne, who attended the PBL 2009 fall meeting to gather information for 2010.

So, best case scenario we have seven teams for the upcoming season, and that’s OK in my books. Despite hearing some rumours through someone’s second-cousin’s wife’s sister’s brother-in-law’s dad that the Camrose Roadrunners are still trying to gather enough players, we probably won’t know until the league meeting now if we still have seven teams come opening day. I also suspect League President Larry Lewsaw will do everything in his powers to make sure a team from Camrose plays in the league.

So after knowingly ruffling the feathers of a few Powerliners with some sensationalized headlines and cryptic blog posting (Sorry Axemen, but it’s always good to have some media-driven rivalries, no?), I figured I’d try and take a neutral stance on Sherwood Park’s decision to enter the North Central league instead of the PBL.

This is probably the right decision for them to play in the NCABL. We have made our mark in Sherwood Park, so hopefully if we stay respectful, we can maybe be part of the discussion in 2011 or 2012 if Bourne and others can convince more Midget players in the A/AA level to get interested in continuing the sport past their high school years. I see no reason why Sherwood Park couldn’t fill two teams at some point, with the “A” team playing with us in the PBL.

The discussions have been great so far, and it’s getting me psyched for ball season. Here’s hoping 2010 will be just as good as 2009 was – some big upsets, some great playoff games and another new champion, perhaps? We have 3 or 4 solid franchises and a 2 or 3 more that are on their way up and can challenge anyone on any given night. Let’s stay positive on what we have, not what we don’t have.

And, oh yeah, good luck to the Axemen and Dukes in the NCABL. Hopefully we can knock you off in a tournament along the way.

Posted on February 12, 2010 by Jason Buzzell