North Dufferin Baseball League - EST. 1930

Season begins

Mansfield Cubs first baseman Owen Van Delon stretches to catch a thrown ball to make an out against Brandon Bruno of the Richmond Hill Phoenix during a junior division contest in Mansfield on May 5, 2024. (David Anderson photo)

May 6, 2024

The crack of the bat could be heard around the area over the weekend as the North Dufferin Baseball League 2024 season officially got underway.

On Saturday, a lone game was held in Midland with the Owen Sound Baysox visiting the Mariners. Owen Sound captured their first win of the season with a 4-3 victory.

Owen Sound was to play the Bolton Brewers in a double-header on Sunday, but those games were postponed due to field conditions in Bolton.

The weather did not stop two other senior division games as the Clarksburg Blues visited the Ivy Rangers and Barrie Angels travelled to the Lisle Astros. Ivy won 4-0 over Clarksburg while the Barrie and Lisle contest was a back and forth game with the Astros scoring a run in the seventh inning to capture their first win with a 7-6 score.

Meanwhile, the Mansfield Cubs in the junior division took a 10-0 decision over the new entry Richmond Hill Phoenix. That game played in Mansfield brought the weekend to a close.

NDBL recognizes 2023 winners

The North Dufferin Baseball League hosted an awards ceremony March 10 to present 2023 season awards. Pictured after receiving their awards are, from back left, Peter Kinghan, Jesse McIntyre, Nathan Lennox, Kirk Gibson, Chris Fafalios, Daniel Morningstar, Anson Dupuis, Ben Nicholson, Nic Guthrie, Nick Hodgson, Brett Chater. Front row from left, Brad Petch, Fraser Trivett, Donovan Winch, Whyatt Winkel, Ben Barzo. (David Anderson photo)

March 12, 2024

Players, coaches, and fans attended the North Dufferin Baseball League 2023 regular season awards event on March 10 in Lisle.

In the senior division, Kirk Gibson of the Owen Sound Baysox won the batting and best on base percentage awards. With 57 at bats and 31 hits, Gibson managed a .544 batting average along with a .643 on base percentage. His teammate Bryan Post tied with Bolton Brewers’ Brett Chater for the most home runs with 6 a piece.

Chris Fafalois of the Bolton Brewers scored the most runs crossing the plate 26 times.

The best pitcher was Nick Hodgson of the New Lowell Knights and his coach Peter Kinghan picked up the coach of the year award.

Creemore Padres' Anson Dupuis was named the most valuable player, Nathan Lennox of the Clarksburg Blues was selected as the most sportsmanlike player and Daniel Morningstar of the Clearview Orioles was voted the best catcher.

In the junior division, Whyatt Winkel of the Orillia Royals took top place in the batting and on base category. His 34 at bats with 18 hits resulted in a .529 batting average and an on base percentage of .673. His teammate Ben Barzo scored 28 runs to top that category.

A third Royals' player won the best pitching title as Wyatt Thompson took home his second-straight title after a stellar 2023 season.

Fraser Trivett of the Georgina Bulldogs won the most home runs award, hitting out 4 in the season, and was also named the most valuable player. The most sportsmanlike player award went to Jayden Akins of the Barrie Baycats.

Following the awards, league membership met for the annual general meeting. The Clearview Orioles requested a leave of absence for the year bringing the senior division down to 11 teams. The juniors have added Richmond Hill, but lost Georgina, keeping the division to seven teams.