Alberta Dugout Stories: The Podcast

Episode 262: Introducing Saskatchewan Dugout Stories

We have an announcement to make: we are expanding and have officially launched Saskatchewan Dugout Stories. To mark the occasion, Dugout Stories co-founder Ian Wilson joins us for a bit of context behind our decision and what he's most excited for. Then we get a "state of the game" conversation with Baseball Sask's Greg Brons.

Episode 261: Buck Martinez, Scott Belford & Scott Mitchell

We're doing things just a little differently this week. With just two weeks left until pitchers and catchers report in MLB, we thought we'd take a look at the expectations of Canada's team, the Toronto Blue Jays, through the lens of three people with ties to Alberta. Sportsnet broadcast and former MLB catcher Buck Martinez was here recently as part of the Blue Jays Academy National Coaches Clinic, Scott Belford is an Alberta comedian who hosts the Walkoff Podcast, and TSN baseball reporter Scott Mitchell is a former Alberta sports journalist who also used to be a substitute on Joe and Ian's slo-pitch team.

Episode 260: Recapping the Blue Jays Academy National Coaches Clinic

Dozens of coaches spent last weekend at Webber Academy, just outside of Calgary, for the Blue Jays Academy National Coaches Clinic. They learned about how they can get the most out of their teams through drills, practices and even game-planning with several high-profile guest speakers including former Blue Jays Pat Borders, Devon White, Buck Martinez and Ernie Whitt (who we chatted with on Episode #258), as well as Baseball Canada Women’s National Team and Vancouver Canadians coach Ashley Stephenson and former MLB hurler and Webber Academy senior director of baseball operations Chris Reitsma. On this episode, we hear from Reitsma, Stephenson, White and Borders.
2:40 - Chris Reitsma
14:05 - Ashley Stephenson
24:17 - Devon White
30:03 - Pat Borders

Episode 259: Baseball Canada CEO Jason Dickson

This one isn't just for our listeners in Alberta. Baseball Canada released its 2023-2028 Strategic Plan in November, and while it might not mean a lot to some, there are a lot of interesting pieces to it, including how the organization plans to grow the sport across the country, evaluating the possibility of a 15U and 23U National Team, and the potential of an Academy National Championship. CEO Jason Dickson joins us to talk about it all, plus we chat about his playing career which included time with the Edmonton Trappers. He also has an Alberta connection for his answer to "which player made you thing 'oh no' on the mound?"

Episode 258: Ernie Whitt & The Blue Jays Academy National Coaches Clinic

Welcome to the first episode of the 2024 season! While we've seen Old Man Winter return with a vengeance, it's easy to start dreaming about the upcoming summer baseball season. It actually starts with the preparation being done by coaches, aided this year by Blue Jays Academy bringing its annual National Coaches Clinic to Webber Academy in Calgary from January 19-21. TJ Burton from the Blue Jays joins us to set the stage for the event and what people can expect, then we get a bit of a preview of the festivities with long-time Baseball Canada head coach and former MLB catcher Ernie Whitt.

2024 Podcast Season Announcement

Greetings and salutations, friends! We hope 2024 is off to a great start for you and yours. It's that time of year again where we get things set up for the upcoming year, and we're excited to announce that the first episode of the 2024 season of Alberta Dugout Stories: The Podcast will arrive on Thursday, January 11. We also have some big plans for this year after a record-setting 2023 when it comes to web visits and podcast downloads. Thank YOU so much for all of your support!

Episode 257: Matt Coutney & Tristan Peters

We started the year with two pros (Damiano Palmegiani and Adam Macko), so why not finish the 2023 season with two more, in the form of Wetaskiwin's Matt Coutney and Manitoba's Tristan Peters. Coutney, who attended St. FX Academy and Old Dominion University, just wrapped up his first full pro season in the Los Angeles Angels system, while Peters, who went to Dawgs Academy and Southern Illinois University, spent the year with the Tampa Bay Rays Double-A affiliate.
1:41 - Matt Coutney
24:06 - Tristan Peters

Episode 256: Zoe Hicks

Zoe Hicks laughs when you ask her about where she’s from. Among her answers: Manitoba, Saskatchewan, Red Deer, Austria, Calgary, back to Manitoba, then off to US college and has now spent the last couple of winters back in Calgary. This last summer was a whirlwind though, as she played first base for Canada at the Women’s Softball World Cup, then third base at the Women’s Baseball World Cup, culminating with being named the Women’s National Team MVP. She’s had a fascinating journey in the game, not to mention a childhood full of dancing and recently working for the Los Angeles Dodgers. We recently sat down for a candid and amazingly energetic conversation.

Episode 255: 2023 Baseball Alberta Awards

It was a celebration fit for every Alberta community from Acme to Youngstown and from border to border to border to border. Baseball Alberta held its annual general meeting and awards banquet last weekend in Edmonton to talk about the year that was, look ahead to the upcoming year, and of course, hand out some hardware. We sit down with 18U 'AAA' Players of the Year Matthew Murray and Corbin Lochhead, Women's Open Player of the Year Tyra Stanich, new Baseball Alberta Life Member Ron Van Keulen and Baseball Alberta executive director Danielle Moffat to recap the festivities.
2:28 - Matthew Murray
7:02 - Corbin Lochhead
12:33 - Tyra Stanich
18:19 - Ron Van Keulen
23:38 - Danielle Moffat

Episode 254: The Soroka Swap, Baseball Hall Ballots & Heartfelt Stories

What a week it was for Alberta's baseball scene, which started on the night our last episode dropped. For those who might have missed it, Calgary's Michael Soroka was involved in a blockbuster deal between the Atlanta Braves and Chicago White Sox. Our Ian Wilson stops by for some analysis and thoughts on the trade, as well as Alberta's connections to the latest National Baseball Hall of Fame and Museum ballot, and his personal story of community and connection with Brooks Bombers slugger Eric Rataczak.

Episode 253: Joe Young

We recap what has been a busy couple of weeks on the local baseball scene, including Matt Lloyd being named Baseball Canada's Men's National Team Most Valuable Player, Fort McMurray being named hosts for more national tournaments, a local look at the Arizona Fall League and a multitude of college commitments. Then we get to our guest, and the mere mention of Joe Young brings back a lot of memories for baseball scouts and insiders from the early-1990s. The 6-foot-4, 210 pound righthander made life miserable for men’s league athletes in Fort McMurray when he was just 14. In 1991, he won gold with Canada at the World Youth Baseball Championships, a team that featured Jason Dickson and Stubby Clapp among others. Two years later, Young was drafted in the third round of the MLB Draft by the Toronto Blue Jays, embarking on a six-year pro career that included the 1993 and 1994 seasons with the Medicine Hat Blue Jays. He played with and against some of the best young talent who later went onto become MLB players including Chris Carpenter, Roy Halladay and Michael Young, before retiring, coming back to the St. Paul area, where he is still involved in baseball and hockey. We sat down earlier this week to talk about his journey, including a chance encounter with ball player and future Hockey Hall of Famer Jarome Iginla.

Episode 252: Levi Moon

It was only supposed to be a one-year deal to try playing baseball internationally. Yet, here we are, six years later, and Levi Moon is still traveling the world playing the game he loves. The Red Deer product has had a fascinating journey in the game, starting at home before becoming part of the first Badlands Academy team in Oyen. He went onto play at Niagara Community College, but injuries forced him to stay closer to home, finding a spot with Prairie Baseball Academy. It was on the advice of head coach Todd Hubka and some of his former teammates that he try his luck across the ocean. The former Moose Jaw Miller Express utilityman has now played baseball in Germany, Austria, Australia and has spent the past couple of seasons in Sweden. The 27-year-old has quite the story and has quite the stories to tell, from his dad Cam’s sports influence as a play-by-play announcer for the Red Deer Rebels and now the Edmonton Oilers, to becoming a bit of a travel junkie.