The Coulter team almost did not play the year of 1968. Before the season it seemed there were not enough players. But a trio of “recruits” from nearby Elva helped keep Coulter in the South West League. To earn a spot in League play-offs, the Coulter team had to win their final game, which they managed to do. This was the first of a series of dramatic must win games. They had win-or-go-home victories against both Goodlands and Waskada in League play-offs. Provincial play-offs featured sudden death triumphs over Elgin and Sundown. This put Coulter in the five game Provincial Final against the very good Thompson Reds team assembled by Red Sangster. Coulter was beaten handily in the two games in Thompson and then in the first of the games at home. This was the end of the season for the Coulter Red Sox. But what a season!

The Springfield Braves were a rural junior AA team that played out of Dugald in the Winnipeg Junior Baseball League. During the five years from 2008 through 2012, the Braves made the league final every year. They won the League championship in 2008, 2009, and 2011. In 2008 and 2009, they were awarded the Provincial Junior title by virtue of winning their league. In 2011, they defeated the Westman Diamond Dogs for the Provincial Crown.

The Carillon Sultans played their home games in Friedensfeld. For the most part, the players were local products of the Carillon junior team, and the majority of the players continued their involvement in Carillon baseball long after their playing days. The Sultans competed in the Winnipeg Senior League, which became very strong after the Redboine League folded in 1998. The Sultans won the league championships in 1998, 1999, 2001, and 2002. In 1999, they also won silver at the Western Canadian AA Championships.

The Brandon Cloverleafs had a team in the Manitoba Senior Baseball League (MSBL) for every one of its 55 years. Among Brandon’s strongest teams was the one it put on the field between 2006 and 2012. In these seven years, the club won two MSBL pennants and five League and Provincial Championships. At Nationals, they represented Manitoba very well by winning a silver medal in 2007, and a fourth place finish in both 2010 and 2011. The Cloverleafs were also Baseball Manitoba’s High Performance Team of the Year in 2007.

Members of the Sager family of Morden have been for many years leaders of baseball and fastball in South Central Manitoba. Father Howie was a long time player, coach, and executive best known for chairing for 20 years the Morden Committee that ran the Elks July 1 minor ball tournament. His wife Oddney worked alongside Howie as a coach and administrator in minor baseball. Oldest son Steve had an outstanding career as an all star third baseman and pitcher in Junior and Senior ball. Since 2006, Steve has coached minor, high school, and Senior teams, and won silver medals at Nationals or Westerns. Son Wayne was a talented left-handed pitcher and power hitter in Junior and Senior ball. As a coach he reached the pinnacle of success by winning gold at 1995 Westerns with the Carman Goldeyes Juniors. Daughter Jennifer may have been the most talented ball player in the Sager family. She had limited opportunities to play baseball, so opted for fastball and she excelled. She competed in five Junior Canadian championships. She went to university in Duluth, Minnesota and was named team MVP every year she played. She is now a distinguished coach and clinician.

Paul Edmonds was born in Winnipeg, Manitoba on September 26, 1966. Edmonds was the voice of the Winnipeg Goldeyes for 19 years. He also spent one season in Alberta. During his 20 year career as a broadcaster, he worked over 2000 games. He missed only one game in his career, and it was for the birth of his son. During his broadcasts, Edmonds consistently promoted amateur baseball in Manitoba. He also donated his time and talents to be Master of Ceremonies at baseball events, such as banquets and press conferences. His dedication and energy were massively beneficial to baseball in Manitoba. Later in his career, Edmonds became the voice of the Winnipeg Jets on the radio.

Bob Senff was born in Winnipeg, Manitoba on April 2, 1947. Senff moved to Virden in 1971, and in 1980 he became an umpire. Over the next 30 years, he was a highly respected umpire in western Manitoba. He worked primarily in the Manitoba Senior Baseball League (MSBL), but for two years he also handled games in the Prairie League of Professional Baseball. On top of this, he would regularly umpire at Provincials, Westerns, and Nationals. He even umpired at the first Women’s National Championship held in St. James. Senff served in administrative positions such as Umpire Assigner, Umpire-in-Chief of the MSBL, and as a member of the Disciplinary Committee of Baseball Manitoba. He especially remembers umpiring a senior game in which his two sons played against each other, and a time in the Prairie League where he sang both the Canadian and American national anthems.

Harold Lindsay was born in Hamiota, Manitoba on August 19, 1920. Lindsay was unique in that he excelled as a pitcher in both baseball and softball. Prior to the second World War, he pitched for his hometown Hamiota, as well as for Reston, Virden, and Belleview. During the War, he pitched fastball for an excellent Hamiota team before enlisting. During his service, Lindsay pitched for baseball and softball teams in the places he was stationed, such as Calgary, Alberta, and New Brunswick. In fact, in the Maritimes, Lindsay was voted the best pitcher to ever play both baseball and softball. After the War, he pitched baseball primarily, especially for Hamiota, but also for tournament teams or selected teams. His given name of “Harold” was seldom used. Everyone knew him as the two-sport chucker, Chuck Lindsay.

Randy Robertson was born in Hamiota, Manitoba on June 7, 1966. Early in his career, Robertson was a top player. He was on teams that won provincial championships at the beaver, bantam, and midget levels. His Souris team won a silver medal at Western Canadians in 1979, and Robertson was the all-star catcher for the tournament. In 1982, while in the midget league, he was selected to attend and elite development camp in Edmonton. In 1984, Robertson was selected to attend a try-out for the Team Canada youth team, though he did not end up making the cut. In the Manitoba Senior Baseball League (MSBL), his career only lasted from 1984-89, but his lifetime batting average was .352. Furthermore, his 25 stolen bases in one season set a league record that was still standing when the league dispended, never to be beaten. Robertson was also a part of the Hamiota Red Sox team that won three MSBL pennants and one championship within the span of just a few years. In Hamiota, Robertson coached minor ball from 1985 through 1988, and he also ran a camp for elite youth players.

Jon Robbins was born in Winnipeg, Manitoba on November 10, 1981. Early in the 21st century, Robbins was one of Manitoba’s dominate right-handed pitchers. In junior baseball, in 2001, he helped pitch the Carillon junior team, representing Manitoba, to the gold medal at Western Canadians. The next year at the Junior Nationals held in Newfoundland, Robbins was named the tournament’s top right-handed pitcher. During this tournament, he led Manitoba to a bronze medal. In 2003, Robbins moved to senior ball and was selected as Rookie of the Year in the Winnipeg Senior League. He played nine years in this league, leading St. James Athletics to two league titles. Robbins was also named an all-star four times, and was selected twice as the league’s top pitcher.