'Life changing day': Top baseball prospects in Dorchester, Ont. showcase talent for scouts

The top teenage baseball players from Ontario and Quebec were in Dorchester, Ont. for the second annual CPBL Prospects Weekend.

Players born in 2005-2007 took part in a skills combine, and played a game in front of 16 college baseball coaches, as well as professional scouts and agents.

“I was just trying to show off my hitting tool and have fun,” said Jamie Moore, 16, a London high school student who attends St. Thomas Aquinas.

Moore plays for the Great Lake Canadians (GLC), based in southwestern Ontario, who play home games at Royal Field in Dorchester.

“For some kids this has been a life changing day,” said Jamie Romak, a former MLB player who co-owns the GLC. “We're able to drive schools from the states, college recruiters, major league scouts or some agents here as well.”

One of those scouts was Tyrus Barclay, a Port Lambton Ont. native, who is an assistant coach with the University of Mary, a Division Two school in North Dakota.

“You can earn a scholarship out of a day like this,” said Barclay. “You showcase a tool that a coach likes, or you play hard, a style that a coach likes, and next thing you know, you end up not having to pay for school.”

Barclay and his head coach at Mary are both Canadian.

The all-turf Royal Field in Dorchester, Ont. is one example of the improvements and investments in baseball in Canada over the past decade (Brent Lale/CTV News London) “We have 23 Canadians on our roster,” said Barclay. “We have a lot of guys from this league that have come to our university and had success and are having success, so it's a good event for us to be at to see the next group.”

For Romak and his fellow co-owners at GLC, Adam Stern and Chris Robinson, this type of showcase didn’t exist locally when they were growing up.

“This is an event that in the last two years we've really grown it,” said Romak who reached the major leagues, but spent the majority of his career in the minor leagues and in Korea.

“We think we're just scratching the surface. We think that collectively with the talent and the different age groups that are here, this is going to be a must see for every school in the country.”

The CPBL has produced major league players like Josh Naylor, Bo Naylor and Blue Jays closer Jordan Romano.

The creation of facilities like the all-turf Royal Field in Dorchester have taken Canadian baseball to the next level.

Coaches from 16 colleges, as well as professional scouts and agents were taking the CPBL Showcase in Dorchester, Ont. (Brent Lale/CTV News London)“What's happened in the last 10 to 15 years has been a massive investment of money into amateur baseball facilities, infrastructure, coaching staffs, program schedule,” said Romak. “Everything that goes into the development aspect of raising the bar of Canadian baseball has been done in an expedited fashion over the last decade. That's why you're seeing the depth of talent.”

He referenced Erik Cerantola, a former GLC who is in AAA with the Kansas City Royals organization, and Dylan O’Reilly from Sarnia, Ont. who is only 20 years old but has reached AA.

“It just speaks to the talent level of Canadian baseball, and it's our job to help get them out there,” added Romak.

Moore is just starting to look toward his post-secondary future, and hopes his showcase was good enough to impress those scouting in the stands behind the plate.

“Hopefully someone here like what they saw today,” he said.