Riverdogs hope strong tournament record shows up in Canada Day Classic

Holding their own is what the Riverdogs hope to do this weekend for the Canada Day Classic at Norbrock Stadium. They want to be competitive in their four round-robin games and give themselves a chance to play for something on Monday.

“Coming into this weekend, based on the teams that are there, I think we can do the same,” Wandler noted. “I think we can hold our own and I think we can take a couple of them down, and if we do that we’ll be in the playoffs come Monday.”

Despite the early-season struggles, it doesn’t matter when the Canada Day Classic comes along.

“The fact that we bring such a diverse number of teams, the way we have such a beautiful park here at Norbrock, and the way all the other teams show up and they’re like ‘holy, this is unreal,’ especially when you get to play an out-of-town team that maybe has never played under the lights. It’s just an amazing feeling,” said Riverdogs Grade 12 player Gray Baker, who’s playing in his third Canada Day Classic.

Wandler says the Canada Day Classic is the one tournament all the players looking forward to every season.

“For the guys this is the highlight of the season,” he said. “It’s going into its 18th year. There’s a really solid tradition here. We don’t play at Norbrock often at all, so for the guys to be in the stadium, to get to play under the lights, it’s just a great baseball atmosphere. There’s an excitement in the air.”

The Riverdogs haven’t won the tournament since the first year, but with a good tournament record this year, including a win at a tournament during the May long weekend in Kamloops, the players are hoping it translates into this Canada Day Classic.

“We swept one already, so I don’t see why we can’t do it again,” noted Baker. “We’ve definitely beat some tough teams in all three years [Baker has played in it], had some pretty interesting wins. Baseball’s one of those games where every day you show up and there’s going to be a completely different game, and that’s why we play the game.”

The Riverdogs open the Canada Day Classic on Friday night at 7 p.m. against the Edmonton Padres. Below is the rest of their schedule during the long weekend:

Saturday, June 30
Kamloops Riverdogs vs. Reed Deer Braves – 3 p.m. @ Norbrock Stadium
Kamloops Riverdogs vs. North Fraser Nationals – 8:30 p.m. @ Norbrock Stadium

Sunday, July 1
Kamloops Riverdogs vs. North Island Cubs – 6 p.m. @ Norbrock Stadium

by Chad Klassen

Riverdogs hope strong tournament record shows up in Canada Day Classic

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