“Martin revived a team that was going to the wall, with an atmosphere and culture in decline. He achieved his main objectives and fully deserves his award,” says Lucas Villeneuve, who was also decorated Saturday as “rookie position player of the year.”
Whether you completely agree with this analysis or not, the results were undoubtedly there. The Warriors won the BFL CANADA Mid-Season Tournament and finished the regular season in first place in the Central division. Their win rate increased from 41.9% to 58.5% in the space of a year.
The Granby club was certainly eliminated by the Dukes of Longueuil in the quarter-final, but not before giving the eventual LBJEQ champions a lot of trouble. All things considered, Bérubé has exceeded all expectations with a group that has not yet reached full maturity.
“I really liked his management during the matches. He brought a lot of feedback and good advice. It was very rare that I had doubts on the ground,” says Villeneuve.
Like his manager, Lucas Villeneuve did not steal the prize given to him on Saturday. It’s not trivial to hit .400 and produce 26 points in your first campaign at the elite junior level.
“Honestly, it was well beyond the objectives that I had set for myself before the season,” admits the 18-year-old from Beloeil, who notably played on the second cushion.
“I just tried to keep it simple, remember that I didn’t have a ton of pressure on my shoulders as a rookie.”
The most impressive thing is that Villeneuve maintained such offensive standards while holding his own on the mound. He had a 4.42 earned run average in 44 1/3 innings, the second highest total on his team.
“I plan to continue doing both, because I feel good throwing. But it’s hard on the body and requires twice as much concentration, so I may have to reduce the pace in the future.”
Around fifteen trophies were presented by the LBJEQ authorities on Saturday. First baseman Samuel Tremblay had already been named the playoffs’ most valuable player after the Dukes’ triumph was confirmed. Louka Daoust (Repentigny) and Nicolas Tremblay (Saint-Eustache) were respectively honored as offensive player of the year and pitcher of the year, while Anthony Clavet (Charlesbourg) is considered the best professional prospect.
The Brulotte circuit repechage is traditionally held at the beginning of spring. That of the LBMQ will therefore certainly come sooner. The Senior Warriors will be ones to watch, who currently hold seven picks, including first overall.
