Kindersley Stallions kicking aside baseball competitors

By Jordan Parker

The Kindersley Stallions have returned to the Fertile Valley Baseball League this year, but haven’t missed a single beat.

They sit second in the league with a 6-1-1 record as of Thursday, June 29, 2023, behind only the 7-1 Oyen Eagles.

“We’re playing really well. We’ve moved back to the league, and we’re just having good ball games. We had some tough but good games against Oyen. We won one and lost one,” says player Kyle Donaldson.

“I definitely think Oyen has always been a big rival for us. Even before we left the league for a year, they were a tough team. I hope we meet in the finals, as that would be a good series.”

Though the team may not have begun the 2023 season with a spring in their step, things are going their way now.

“We tied our first game against the Kindersley Cubs, and things just kind of got off slow. After that, it ramped up and we never went back. But our team always kind of starts slow,” he said.

“No one really jumps in fully at first, and we ease into it. After that, we ramped it up, and we did the full transfer from concentrating on hockey in the winter to getting into baseball.”

He says the team is really beginning to come together and play as a central unit, and he’s seeing progress for their development.

“We’re meshing really well. There are a couple new faces, and a few guys back who haven’t played in a while. Some gave it a shot because we were short a few numbers,” he said.

“It’s nice to see the guys participate, get out and enjoy the sport. When we moved North we lost some guys, so some have also come and gotten back where we left off.”

Just last week, the team showed how well they could come together, as they came back from a huge deficit to beat the Rosetown Angels 10-9.

“It was quite a game. We were down 9-3 in the bottom of the sixth. We rallied for five runs, and in the bottom of the 7th, Wyatt Sawchuk hit a triple. It was an amazing sight,” he said.

“We weren’t sure we could end up in the position to win that game, but it’s good to see that in the face of adversity, we can bear down and get the win.”

While the team suffered some huge losses to the roster due to injury last year, they’ve had better luck so far.

“The couple guys we really needed to fill things out came out of retirement. We’ve been healthy too. Last year we had some injuries during provincials, while things were down to-the-wire,” he said. “It hurt us at the time, and it’s nice to have variables you can change the line-up with from time-to-time.”

As the season ticks along, Donaldson can say he’s truly thankful for one thing.

“I’m just so appreciative the league, teams and guys welcomed the Stallions back. We were absent for a while, and let back in with no hesitation. It’s a good feeling,” he said.