As unimaginable as it may seem to some, there was a time in Vancouver when baseball was bigger than hockey. The Canucks were not yet part of the NHL but Vancouver did have a successful baseball team that played out of Capilano Stadium (since renamed Nat Bailey Stadium). Nat Bailey has often been called "the prettiest little ball park in the World". It is in Hillcrest Park, in the shadow of "The Nat", that Little League Baseball was first played in BC.
One can only imagine what fantasies those first boys dreamt up as they stepped up to the plate and looked up to see the stadium next door. Many were certainly dreaming of hearing their own names announced over the loud speakers at Capilano Field, or perhaps at Wrigley, or maybe even at Yankee Stadium. In 1951, the community of Little Mountain in Vancouver was the first league outside of the US to be granted a charter by Little League. This year marks the 60th anniversary of Little League in BC. Appropriately enough, Metro Vancouver has been chosen as the site to host the 2011 Canadian Little League Championships. The tournament decides which team will advance to Williamsport, Pennsylvania, which team will get to represent Canada and live out every Little Leaguer's dream-to play in the Little League world Series.
In the early years of Little League in BC, the teams in our province were grouped in the Western Region and competed with teams from Washington, Oregon, Idaho, California, Colorado, New Mexico, Nevada, Arizona and Utah for a berth in the Little League World Series. From early on, BC's Little Leaguers proved to be strong competitors. In 1953, only two years after the program came to our province, the Jaycee Nationals from Little Mountain won the Regional Championship and became the first BC team ever to advance to the Little League World Series. Boys from BC continued to make appearances in the Western
Regional Tournament over the next decade- 1954 (New West), 1955 (Vancouver Moose), 1957 (New Westminster), and 1964 (Trail); however, Williamsport continued to elude our Little Leaguers.
In 1965, BC began to compete with other Canadian Little Leagues for the Canadian Title and for a berth in the Little League World Series (LLWS) as Team Canada. In that year, the first all-Canadian champion was crowned.
Western Canada was represented by East Trail, British Columbia. East Trail journeyed to face the Eastern Canada champions from Stoney Creek, Ontario. East Trail lost 4-0 to Stoney Creek, who moved on to Williamsport and recorded Canada's best-ever finish, second
lace, at the Little League World Series. wo years later, in 1967, Trail won the anadian Championship and secured Cs second ever spot in the Little League orld Series, but certainly not our last.
Over the 1970s and 1980s, BC teams began to show themselves to be strong contenders for the Canadian Title. Our province brought home the national crown no less than seven times in that period. Trail Little League teams were especially successful at the time, having won the Canadian Championship in 1976, 1980 and 1981. Former NHL player and now Vancouver area sports broadcaster and analyst, Ray Ferraro, played for Trail Little League when they travelled to Williamsport in 1976.
As strong as BC teams had shown themselves to be up to that point, it was not until the last two decades that the young boys and girls of our province began to assert what true powerhouses they were.
Six more Canadian Championships were captured in the 1990s. In 1990, Title. Jason Bay, future National League Rookie of the Year (2004), foreshadowed his future baseball success by playing for Trail in the LLWS. That year, BC had its best finish ever, falling to Taiwan in the finals of the International Pool. Taiwan went on to win the LLWS that year.
To date, teams From British Columbia hold 20 Canadian Championships since 1965. The province with the next most titles is Quebec, with 13 since 1958. Amazingly, BC also holds the record for the most consecutive Canadian titles with 6 (2005-2010). Teams from the Metro Vancouver area--Whalley, White Rock, Hastings, and Little Mountain, have won each of these most recent Championships.
Indeed, when it comes to our Little Leaguers, BC and Metro Vancouver have a lot to be proud of.
One question begs to be asked. What makes British Columbia such a force in Little League in Canada?
Some fans insist that it is our longer playing season. With our shorter, milder winters, our kids can start outdoor practices as early as March in some parts of the province. Others assert that British Columbians, because of our love of the outdoors, are simply more inclined to a sporting lifestyle than most other Canadians. While both these explanations may be true, the romantic in me wants to believe that the magic of Little League in BC lies in the park that started it all. Hillcrest Park, in the shadow of The Nat.
