American Legion “AA” State Tournament begins Wednesday in Medicine Hat

Up next is the Missoula Mavericks taking on the Great Falls Chargers at 4 p.m.

An opening ceremony will then take place at 6 p.m. before the host Moose Monarchs first game that evening at 7 p.m. against the top seeded Helena Senators.

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Courtesy/Medicine Hat Big League Baseball

The winner of the tournament will move on to the North Western Regionals hosted in Billings, Montana.

On the line will be a spot at the American Legion Baseball World Series in Shelby, North Carolina during the second week of August.

Teams in the AA division are made up of players from high schools that have a total combined enrollment of 5,000 or less students, and is the highest level for youth baseball in Montana.

Lovell McDonnell is well known in the Medicine Hat baseball circles and has been involved with the Moose Monarchs since the teams first season in 1985.

McDonnell said he still really enjoys being a part of the organization, and is looking forward to hosting the tournament for the first time since 2010.

“It is a big job to get it all put together, but we do know in advance that it’s our turn because it’s done on a rotation. So we were actually supposed to host it a few years earlier, but COVID interfered with that,” McDonnell said.

“We’ve been preparing for it for a couple of years and now it’s time to actually put the event on.”

This is only the third time the event has been in Medicine Hat with the first time being in 1996.

McDonnell said that if you want to run an event, you need to have top-notch facilities like Athletic Park.

“I’ve always been a big pusher behind that. Let’s try to have good ball fields and good everything in Medicine Hat. So that will entice teams to come here,” McDonnell said.

“It’ll make people want to select your community to run an event. If you don’t have good facilities, you’re not going to do very well in the bidding process.”

McDonnell said there is an agreement with the Mavericks for the use of the park for the duration of the tournament.

“They will operate the concession as they do for their home games,” McDonnell said.

“Most of those teams that are coming here would have been here last year or the year before in their four league games,” he added.

“They’re aware of what kind of park they’re coming to and they’ll be enthused about that as well.”

McDonnell said for those used to watching the Mavericks, they’ll notice those college players are a few years older and a little more polished.

“Where at our level it’s high school age players that are working their way towards that level, going on to college somewhere and then playing at something like the Mavericks level for summer college baseball,” McDonnell said.

“Our level is a little bit behind that, but if you’re talking about 16, 17, 18 year olds, it’s a very good level of baseball.”

Moose Monarchs head coach Lyall Foran said although the team has struggled to win this year, it’s not a good indication of the level of play the team is capable of.

“Many of the teams have said to us as a coaching staff that we’re a team that other programs are worried about playing or having to face off with in the state tournament,” Foran said.

“In particular, we have three very dominant arms. And in any given day at the state tournament, those arms could shut down a team very readily.”

The three pitchers Foran said the Moose Monarchs have that can take over a game are Kaleb Bozak, Ayden Anderson and Ryler Staarup.

“Kaleb Bozak has been a fantastic pitcher for us on the mound. He went to Vauxhall Academy and just been very, very steady for us and very reliable on the mound,” Foran said.

“He’s a guy that teams know that if they have to face off against him, they’re going to be with their hands full,” he added.

“Aydan Anderson has been just a rock for us on the mound. He’s a guy that we know if it’s relief or a starting position, he’s been just extraordinary for us.”

Starrup joined the team late in the season, returning home after playing at a baseball academy in Okotoks during the school year.

Foran said that when they have one of those guys on the mound, the team just acts a little bit differently.

“They know that we’re going to be competitive and all it takes is a few hits to get ourselves into a good situation,” Foran said.

“A lot of the games have been very close and that’s American Legion baseball. They’re tight scoring games and pitching, defense is paramount,” he added.

“I’m looking forward to it and especially with the energy and the enthusiasm that comes from being in a state tournament and a little bit of that atmosphere, it’s exciting to see what our guys are going to be capable of.”

After a 24 game regular season, and over 40 games over the months of June and July, the Moose Monarchs will look to extend the season.

“Every inning counts, every pitch is important and that extra little bit of motivation playing in front of your hometown crowd,” Foran said.

“I’m looking forward to seeing what the hometown crowd can bring for us and the amount of enthusiasm and energy that they’re going to bring. And hopefully, we can walk away with some wins and provide them with some exciting baseball here.”

by Jesse Gill

American Legion “AA” State Tournament begins Wednesday in Medicine Hat

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