The dugout boss for the St. Albert Cardinals is confident the midget AAA team has the right stuff to improve on last year’s losing record.
The Cardinals finished 7-25 for ninth place in the Norwest league and at provincials they were shut out twice while going 0-4 in their pool.
“We’ve got a team of very enthusiastic and very aspiring kids. These guys have the will to succeed,” said head coach C.J. Jayasekera. “I’m just super excited about the group of people and the group of parents that we have on board.”
Seven players are back from the disappointing season.
“It was a real developmental year with a lot of young guys getting in their reps,” said catcher/third baseman Nate Coffin. “I wished we could’ve had a better record but that’s just the way it goes sometimes.”
Last year’s roster was already finalized when Jayasekera arrived in St. Albert from New Zealand in late April to coach the Cardinals. It was his second coaching stint in the province after serving as the bench defensive coach for the Okotoks Junior Dawgs in 2008. He has been involved in the sport for only nine years.
“It definitely does help to be part of the evaluation process to pick the kids,” said Jayasekera, 31. “The best part was I was able to be here in the offseason to get to know the kids and follow them and work with them in terms of what they want. It also gave me a chance to put a face to the program a little bit.”
The technical director for the St. Albert Minor Baseball Association credits the fall and winter ball programs for getting a head start on player evaluations for the upcoming season.
“This year we got to put some seeds down in the offseason. It helped promote our program a little bit and I guess that’s why we’ve had a few kids outside of St. Albert come and work out too. It gave some of those kids who probably haven’t had the opportunity, a chance to work with some of our coaches,” Jayasekera said. “It certainly gave us a chance to see some of these kids and help them develop and speak to them about what they want to work on in terms of their weaknesses. It gave us a chance to build a team and if we can put everyone together we can do some good stuff.”
Sunday’s practice was the second outdoor session for the Cardinals after the team was selected during last week’s evaluations.
“I can really see the camaraderie starting to build,” Jayasekera said.
The Cardinals fly in to action this weekend with doubleheaders Saturday against Foothills White and Sunday against Foothills Red at Legion Memorial Park. Game times are 11 a.m. and 2:30 p.m.
Last year the Cardinals lost six straight before notching their first win during a 2-9 showing in May.
“Hopefully we don’t start like last year. We had five arm injuries before we even started,” Jayasekera said.
There is no shortage of pitchers this year with 10 possible starters on the 15-player roster.
“Our pitchers are looking real strong. A lot of guys are throwing in the 80s, which is nice. The first years coming up are getting up there too,” said Coffin, 18.
The overage player is entering his fourth year with the Cardinals.
“It’s going to be a good year hopefully. We’ve got a lot of returnees, which is going to help. A lot of guys have seen this level of ball before. We’ve also got some good rookies that are coming up now too,” Coffin said. “We’re going to be a pretty balanced team this year. Defence is going to be better than it was last year. Hitting is going to be a little better too.”
Coffin was the Cardinals’ main offensive threat last year with a team-leading 27 hits in 75 at-bats. He had seven doubles, three triples, two home runs, 18 RBIs and 15 stolen bases in 30 games. He batted .360 and struck out 15 times. He was also charged with 16 errors.
The St. Albert Catholic High School graduate is primed for another big season at the plate.
“During the offseason and in preseason I made a couple of adjustments that I feel has helped me a lot, like getting my foot down earlier while batting. Hopefully it carries over into this year too and I have another good year,” said the Leduc Riggers’ junior B hockey player.
