15U Legionaires hit hot streak at perfect time
By Dave Flaherty/The Oshawa Express
The 15U Oshawa Legionaires are charging into the Elite Baseball League of Ontario playoffs as winners of 13 of their last 15 games.
The tremendous hot streak over the last three-quarters of the season afforded the Legionaires a 15-5 record, best for second in the 16U division.
Head coach Jamie May says the team has been firing on all cylinders.
“We are definitely playing the best baseball we have all year. We are looking pretty good going into the playoffs,” he says.
May says the team’s defence, offence and pitching have all contributed to the recent success.
In his view, his hitters have vastly improved their approach at the plate as time has gone on.
“At the beginning and the middle of the season, we were not being patient, we were basically swinging at every pitch. Now we are looking for a certain pitch in a certain zone and the hitters are willing to take a couple strikes to see a better pitch later.”
On the mound, May is pleased with his team’s depth.
“We have nine guys who have thrown more than 10 innings, which is one of our unique features,” he says.
Defensively, May stated the teams communication has improved on the field and they are buying into what the coaches have been stressing all year.
The EBLO playoffs are being hosted in Oshawa this year and kick off Aug. 25.
On the strength of their second place finish, the Legionaires have been pooled with the Mississauga, Brampton and Toronto.
While May has always maintained that first place Etobicoke is the team to beat in the division, the Legionaires are not taking any of their opponents lightly.
“That’s the good thing about the league, pretty much any team can win anytime,” May notes. “We’ve lost to teams that don’t look as good as us on paper.”
The Legionaires will be playing all their playoffs games at Kinsmen Stadium, which May says creates an advantage for them, although he’s not sure how impactful it will really be.
“Little things like having our own music and announcing – they are not the biggest thing but it definitely makes it more enjoyable,” May says.
Regardless of their performance at the EBLO playoffs, the team will then head to the OBA championships along with their seven division rivals and teams from London and Tecumseh.