Blue Jays booming popularity boosts local baseball enrolment numbers

CTV’s Krista Simpson talks to baseball organizations who are experiencing a surge in demand.

Even months after a heartbreaking loss, the Toronto Blue Jays’ World Series run is still inspiring the next generation of athletes.

“We’ve seen in the last few years with the success of the Blue Jays, our numbers have gone up pretty steadily,” Brady Hall, president of Waterloo Minor Baseball, told CTV News on Wednesday.

Registration for Kitchener-Waterloo House League Baseball opened in January and it was immediately clear, the love for the sport remains at a fever-pitch.

“This year we set a record, I think, for sign-ups. In four hours, we were 100 per cent booked with all of our players,” Hall explained.

More than 400 people also put their name on a wait list in hopes of spots opening up. In the meantime, the organization is looking for ways to expand their program and let more people step up to the plate.

“It’s a very individual game, but you have to be part of a team in order for it to work. You’re out in the sun hanging with your friends. There’s really nothing better,” Hall said.

The Blue Jays’ impact is also being felt in Guelph.

Clark Heimbecker plays for the Ontario Blue Jays in the Canadian Premier Baseball League. He’s also a junior instructor at an indoor baseball facility known as The War Room.

Heimbecker said he’s seeing more interest in the sport, but not everyone who walks through the doors necessarily wants to be the next Vladdy Guerrero Jr.

“It’s not so much just wanting to be the best, it’s everyone wanting to come out to try their best, to be on a team and have fun,” Heimbecker said.

The War Room opened in October and offers training space for high level athletes and newcomers alike.

“We have a number of different options, be that just coming in and renting a lane, throwing a ball around, hitting a ball, we obviously have instructors that can do one on one instruction. We also have more structured programs,” Bruce Ysselstein, co-owner of The War Room, said.

One of those programs is a summer camp. The War Room has received so many inquires about the camp that they decided to open registration earlier than planned.“We saw a lot of parents jumping at the chance. We still do have spots available certainly and we’ll continue to expand that as the need arises,” Ysselstein said.

Heimbecker is happy to welcome more people into the sport.

“Baseball is a super big community game. It’s a game where people come together to play on a team. I would say over my years of playing baseball, I’ve been in many, I would say families, and it’s been an absolute pleasure to be a part of and meet so many people in this game,” Heimbecker reflected.