The Lethbridge Bulls are ready for their opening week, kicking off the season Friday with a match up against the Medicine Hat Mavericks.
Head Coach of the Bulls, Chance Wheatley, says there’s early season excitement with the team getting to know each other, there’s some faces from last year but also some new players looking to take the field.
A big focus this year, according to Wheatley, is bringing in as much pitching as possible, especially with the injuries from last year.
“The biggest thing this year, our biggest focus, is bringing in as much pitching as possible. We had a lot of injuries last year and weren’t able to fill those holes on the mound and that was our focus this summer and I think we did a good job,” says Wheatley.
The pitching issues from last year, is something the team learned from. Wheatley says the players come in every year and the goal is to keep everyone healthy but sometimes that just doesn’t work out. This years focus is spreading out the innings as much as possible and keep the players fresh.
Right handed pitcher, Devin Benavides, is glad to be back and his goal is to stay healthy after suffering a muscle strain on his forearm last year. After missing playoffs last year, Benavides says the goal this year is simple; hit the ball and throw some strikes.
President and General Manager of the Lethbridge Bulls, Kevin Kvame, says team built on some of the strengths from last year, like a strong infield and core players in the outfield. He’s excited about the outfield and the pitchers the Bulls bought in, adding that they’ll give some depth on mound for the season.
The current rooster for the Bulls has some locals as well as some Americans, and Lorien Johansen, Guest Services and Admin with the bulls, says they’re still looking for billet families for four of the players. Residents interested in housing a player can contact Johansen at 403-320-2025 or email [email protected]. Those who become a billet family will get some financial assistance of $750 for the year as well as two season tickets per player.
The Bulls take on the Medicine Hat Mavericks at Spitz Stadium on Friday, May 26th at 7:05 p.m., ticket info at bullsbaseball.com