Starting in September 2024, the Limoilou Titans will have a baseball team that will join the ranks of the college circuit which brought together six teams last year.
This is a first in the Quebec region. Between 2009 and 2011, the St. Lawrence Lions offered a training structure, but did not play in a league.
“It was a great training structure, but there was no official team and the guys didn’t play in a league,” explains the coordinator and coach of the new Titans team Dominik Walsh. It was difficult to recruit. By joining Limoilou, you democratize the offer by joining a French-speaking institution. We couldn’t pass up such an opportunity.”
The Titans will become the 7th team in a little-known circuit. “We have two missions,” emphasizes Walsh. We want to build the best possible team and contribute to the development of the circuit. We want the circuit to be present everywhere in Quebec.”
Void to fill
Walsh believes that the arrival of a collegiate team in Quebec fills a void and is intended to complement the LBJEQ. “There are plenty of players who develop late and who miss out on the structure of the Baseball Academy of Canada (ABC). At 17, guys like David Glaude, Mathieu Sirois, Vincent Ruel and Pierre-Olivier Boucher were not ready for the ABC which only has 40 players and they continued their development and had a very good career.
“The 17-18 year old players needed a welcoming place,” added Walsh. The American college option remains in place. Maybe the guys will leave a little later. It will be on a case-by-case basis.”
The Titans will begin their activities in mid-September when the LBJEQ playoffs are over. “At 17 and 18 years old, it’s important that young people play as many games as possible,” says Walsh. For the first season, we are talking about a schedule of 20 games and a training camp in Florida in March during the break for around ten more games. We will therefore go from zero games to 30.
Easy choice
The project has been in the works of the Canonniers de Québec for some time. “Limoilou was a natural choice and we didn’t look elsewhere when we saw their interest,” explains Walsh. The proximity of the Quebec campus to the Canac stadium played a role in the balance. We will play our local games at Henri-Casault Park and Canac Stadium before the dome is installed.”
The Titans have yet to play a game, but expansion plans are already in the air. “We’re going to start in a modest way, but a tour in the Eastern United States at the end of October could be added in the medium term,” says Walsh. As for a university team in Laval, that is part of the scenarios for the future.
Drumondville and Édouard-Montpetit are the two strongest programs according to Walsh, who wants to draw inspiration from what is being done in Central Quebec to lay the foundations for the Titans.
2024-01-23 17:35:34
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