A week after their SPBL 18U counterparts captured their provincial title, the East Central 15U AAA Dodgers will be off to provincials for their tournament run for glory. In their opening game on Friday night, they’ll be looking for a bit of revenge as they start off against the Saskatoon Expos.  

The Dodgers dropped their final pair of regular season games on Sunday to the Expos. Saskatoon opened up an early 2 run lead in the first, and while the Dodgers chipped away throughout the game, they came out on the short end 6 to 4.  

In game two, the Expos once again struck with a single run in the opening inning, erased by a Jarret Rude double that tied the game. The Expos went to work in the 3rd and 7th innings, scoring three runs in each, to secure a 7-2 victory. 

The provincial tournament, scheduled for Saskatoon’s Nutana diamonds, is an 8-team, 2-pool affair similar to the SPBL 18U format. The first game for the Dodgers, against the Expos, goes at 2 pm. On Saturday, the Dodgers take on the Saskatoon Astros at 9 am, followed by match up against the Swift Current 57’s at 3 pm. The top two teams out of each pool will head on to the semi-finals on Sunday.  

His team is excited at the prospect of a return to provincials, says head coach Derek Rude. 

“They work all year for this. I think we started back in March, training in the gym, so there’s a lot of work and preparation before this weekend. So the boys are really excited.” 

Once again, the excitement of provincial baseball will be on the field this weekend in Saskatoon with our own 15U AAA Dodgers.