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Tuesday, December 29, 2009
METROS CHRISTMAS PARTY ANOTHER SUCCESS!
As has been the tradition for
25 years, the Metros Christmas party was, once again, a rousing success. The party, which took place on Saturday, December
19, at the home of GM Mark Walters, had roughly 28 people in attendence, and saw everyone enjoy some laughs, some
excellent food, and afforded the opportunity to reminisce or look ahead to the future. We've posted a few photos, that
were taken during the evening, to the bottom of our "Photo Page" (link to the left).
The highlight of the evening is always the awards ceremonies...and once again there were a lot of
laughs looking back at some of the things that happened during the '09 season. We also gave out our more serious year-end
"trophies", which recognized the players who were the best of the Metros, in various categories. Here are
the winners:
Most Valuable Player (voted
on by the team members) - Justin Czorny
Top Pitcher (voted on by team members) - Dustin
Turner
Top Rookie (determined statistically)
- Aaron Butler
Top Offensive Player (determined statistically) - Justin
Czorny
Top Defensive Player (determined
statistically/ evaluation) - Tim Collins
Most Improved Player (determined statistically)- Justin
Czorny
Coaches' Award for Leadership,
Heart and Desire, Teamwork, Sportsmanship, etc. (voted on by the coaching staff) - Andrew Sorochan.
These award winners have been added to the All-Time lists and are available for viewing here. Once again, thanks to everyone who made it to the party, thanks to Mom Walters for preparing the
fantastic meal, and thanks to everyone on the Metros who made 2009 a year to remember.
Talk to you in 2010...
Monday, December 21, 2009
WE WISH YOU A MERRY CHRISTMAS!
On this week of Christmas (we choose not to be politically
correct...this is Christmas, not one of the popular euphemisms), we thought we'd take a few column inches to wish you
all the brightest and merriest Christmas ever! Everyone in this great country of Canada has so much to be thankful
for...and this is a great time of year to remember that fact.
So, to bring
that to light, we thought we'd like to say "Merry Christmas, Happy New Year, and Seasons Greetings" to the following
people...you all mean so much to the St. Catharines Metros.
To the rest of the teams in Ontario and especially to those teams (players,
coaches, managers) in our own C.O.B.A. Major Baseball League. To our sponsors...our
door prize contributors, our silent gift donators...everyone that helps us to pay the bills. To
the fans, who come out every Thursday night from May to August to watch and support us. To all the Metros
players...please play safe over this Christmas break. Enjoy your time with friends and family, but we want to see you
all safe and sound come 2010.
To our Management team...Kerry and Mark. Ditto. To
the families of all the Metros...the wives, the girlfriends, the kids, the parents, the grand-parents, the brothers and sisters.
We owe you more than we can say! To the umpires who do such a great job at all of our games...both at home and
on the road.
To the all the guys and girls at the City of St. Catharines Parks Department
and especially, the guys who work so hard at Community Park. To the newspapers and radio
stations who promote our team and our games. To everyone associated with Senior baseball in Ontario...
...have the happiest,
merriest, and brightest of Christmases.
And be smart
over this holiday season! We want to be wishing you all "Merry Christmas" for many years to come.
By the way...two
things!
The Metros Christmas party was, once again, a success story. Held last Saturday, the
day was not good for everyone, and we had a few less players and their families than normal. But those who were
there were treated to a great meal, and lots of laughs. We also handed out our team "hardware" for 2009.
We'll unveil all the winners on next week's blog.
Finally...you have to check out our "Metros Christmas
Video" General Manager, Mark Walters, felt that to cap off the 25th Anniversary season of Metros baseball, he wanted
to do something a little special. So he assembled a couple of hundred pictures taken during the season, and created
a montage video, set to the music from "Rudy". It'll give all of the guys who weren't able to make the party
a chance to see it, and give everyone else a chance to see what our team is all about. We believe that this video puts
a positive spin on a disappointing season, something that is necessary at this happy time of year. Please scroll to
the bottom of this page, and enjoy.
And, once again, please have a great Christmas season...but stay safe.
We'll talk again next week. Merry Christmas!
Tuesday, December 15, 2009
METROS CHRISTMAS PARTY THIS WEEK!
The St. Catharines Metros are eagerly
looking forward to Saturday, as the 25th Metros Christmas Bash is "on tap"! This party (along with "Metromania"
in July) is one of the highlights of every baseball season with the St. Catharines club. Metros management has scoured
the records, and scorebooks and have come up with the "perfect gift" for each of the Metros players in attendence.
Oh, and we will also hand out the hardwear...the Metros' Year-end awards (the ones that we've built a tradition
with, and have been handing out for 25 years). The awards featured are Team M.V.P., and Top Pitcher (as voted on by
the players)...as well as statistic-driven awards for "Top Offensive Player", "Top Defensive Player", "Most
Improved Player", and "Top Rookie". Finally, the Coaching Staff will name their "Coaches Award"
winner, which goes annually to the player who most displays the "intangible qualities" (such as leadership, dedication,
heart and desire, and sportsmanship) that every team needs to be successful.
The party will be held at the
home of General Manager, Mark Walters (55 Ann St., in Thorold for you "Google Maps types"), and begins at about
4:00 PM. That's this coming Saturday (December 19th). We look forward to seeing everyone!
GETTING "SPRUCED UP" FOR CHRISTMAS
Did you noticed
that we've dressed up the website for Christmas? The little message at the top of this home page is just our way
of passing on "Best Wishes" at this festive time of year. Especially to the regular vistors to our website
each and every week. We'll be posting our Christmas "wishes and thank yous" story next week. Check
back for that.
Finally, we heard yesterday, that Roy Halladay is likely moving to Philadelphia, for the 2010 season,
and it got us to thinking about MLB pitchers. Is Halladay the best in the game? He's certainly one of them, but
our "Baseball Film Feature" makes the case for another pitcher that gets routinley overlooked in these types of
conversations. And it's strange that he does, because he has just accomplished something that only 8 pitchers in history
have done. Please, scroll to the bottom of the page to find out who we're talking about. It might surprise you!
Talk to you, next week.
Tuesday, December 8, 2009
HEARD IT THROUGH THE GRAPEVINE
Well, at this time of year, there's not a lot of "hard
news" to report in the Senior baseball ranks in Ontario. So we, like many people, get to talk gossip...some "stuff
we heard in the hallway" regarding Ontario baseball, as we head into the Christmas push.
Did you hear?...
1. There's probably going to be a "Hap" Walters Tournament next season, but it won't be in St. Catharines.
The City of St. Catharines has seen fit to deny the Metros the use of Alex MacKenzie Park for tournament games next season,
leaving the team with just two parks available in the area. After a "broken window" incident at last year's
tourney, the City succumbed to pressure from locals, and have said that no adult baseball will be played at MacKenzie
any more (after 77 years of Senior ball being played in that park). More details on the "revamped" Hap Walters
Tournament in the new year.
2. Rumour has it that Ken Johnson, the long-time treasurer of the C.O.B.A. Major
Baseball League will be stepping down from his post in the new year. The "octegenarian" who has a league division
and a trophy named after him, has decided to sit back and enjoy the summer. Bob Wood, the president of the Burlington
Brants organization, will take over Ken's duties in 2010.
3. We mentioned a couple of weeks ago that London
will be the site of next year's Elimination Tournament for the Seniors, and will be hosted by the Lakeside Lizards.
What we didn't mention is that the Senior Canadian Nationals will be in Dartmouth, N.S. in 2010! That will make two
years in a row that the tournament has been held in Nova Scotia.
4. The C.O.B.A. Major Baseball League
is working very hard at putting together a league "Hall of Fame". As you might imagine, when a league as old
as C.O.B.A. / Halton County decides to take on a project like this, there is a lot of ground to cover, regarding the
initial inductees. Some 85 years worth of ground! But the committee, headed by George Moore, Greg Cranker, and
Glenn Turner, are doing their research, and putting together their lists. The announcement of the first C.O.B.A. Major
League Hall-of-Fame inductees will be made sometime during the first half of 2010.
5. There
is talk of a new team joining the C.O.B.A. Major League next summer. While these are still "just rumours"
at this point, there is a strong indication that this potential new team will be joining the Johnson Division, enabling
the league to go back to a more manageable 27-game "balanced schedule". Look for an announcement regarding
this situation, come January.
6. Finally, we'll focus our attention to Major League Baseball for our last
item. This week is the "winter meetings" and usually this is the time of the year when rumours run rampant
about potential trades in MLB. It's a crazy time of year! So we thought, in keeping with our theme this week,
of truth, rumours and "stuff we heard in the hallway", we'd give you a great website to check out...to get the latest
gossip about who's going where in MLB. Check out "Rotoworld Player News" for all the latest. You want rumour, inuendo, and gossip? This is your "dream come true".
Talk to you next week.
10:19 am | link
Tuesday, December 1, 2009
METROS CHRISTMAS PARTY DATE NOW OFFICIAL
With the American Thanksgiving behind us, it usually means
that everyone's now looking ahead to Christmas. We're doing that at metrosbaseball.ca, as well. So, we're ready
to announce the date for our annual Metros Christmas Gala.
The
much-anticipated affair will be on Saturday, December 19...at the home of Metros GM, Mark Walters. We have already
forwarded more information, in the form of emails to the entire team. But for now, the date will be of use to you, so
you can make plans to be there.
Please respond to the emails, guys, so we know how much food to buy. In this
era of economic uncertainty, we can't afford any waste. Thanks, and we'll see you all on the 19th!
CHECK OUT THE NEW FILM FEATURE
Hey, have
you ever heard of Stephen Strasburg? If you haven't, you will soon! He is the subject of our newest entry on the
"Metros Film Feature" for the next couple of weeks. The first pick of the 2009 MLB entry draft, belongs to the Washington
Nationals, and there's talk that he could bypass the minor leagues altogether and start his career in D.C. Such is the
talent of Stephen Strasburg.
In 2008, his sophomore season in college, while pitching
for San Diego State University, Strasburg tossed 2 no-hitters, and had a game against Utah, in which he struck out 23 batters.
In 2009, he collected 13 wins in his first 14 games while registering at least 10 strike outs 12 times, including eight times
14 strikeouts or more. And he did not walk more than two batters in any appearance. Strasburg is widely
drawing rave reviews for his triple-digit fastball, which reaches up to 103 miles per hour. But he also throws a slider in
the 96-98 mph range which may be his best pitch. And he buckles batters' knees with a changeup around 80-82 mph.
To check out this well-made piece, just press "Play", and enjoy!
|
|
. The Niagara Metros are very pleased to have Cat's Caboose Dining Coach and Bar Car as their
corporate partner in 2011.
|
| Click on the logo to visit the Cat's Caboose website. |
Located in the heart of Old Glenridge,
Cat's Caboose is one of St.
Catharines' oldest and most established restaurants. The place for LIVE ENTERTAINMENT and GREAT FOOD.
. .
. Check out our Showcase Film for the period of February 13 to February 27.
Just scroll
to the bottom of this page and press "Play".
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| Click to visit the "St. Catharines Standard" Website. |
Thank You: To the St. Catharines Standard for allowing us to use pictures and articles throughout this website.
. .
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| Niagara Metros website reaches 100,000 hits on April 18, 2010. |
hits since December, 2004 Thanks for visiting 
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