History

History of the WCBA

The Western Canada Baseball Association came about through the efforts of Bob Lacoursiere and Dave Shury. Beginning in 1963, Saskatchewan held interprovincial Beaver and Bantam playoffs with Manitoba, and Midget and Juvenile playoffs with Alberta. These playoffs led to the formalization of the Western Canada Baseball Association.

Lacoursiere called a meeting in Yorkton, Saskatchewan on Sunday, March 7, 1965. The meeting was attended by Doug Bridges of Govan, Director of the Saskatchewan Baseball Association; Andy Zwack of Prince Albert, President of the Saskatchewan Umpires Association; Fred Lupal of Edmonton, President of the Alberta Baseball Association; and Rob (Monty) Montague of Rivers, President of the Manitoba Minor Baseball Association. Jack Wilkie and Glen Tuck of Regina, from the Saskatchewan government’s Continuing Education Branch, were also present.

That summer, four playoffs were held in the three Prairie Provinces. Bob Lacoursiere of North Battleford was elected President and Dave Shury of North Battleford was named Secretary-Treasurer of the newly formed WCBA. The inaugural Directors were Fred Lupal of Edmonton, Rob (Monty) Montague of Rivers, Manitoba, Matt Volk of Edmonton, and Chuck H. Brown of Rivers, Manitoba.

The trophies that existed for interprovincial play were maintained, as were the winners that had been named in 1963 and 1964.

Key Historical Milestones

1966
The annual meeting was held in North Battleford, at which time British Columbia joined. Montague moved up to Vice-President. Lacoursiere remained President, while Shury remained Secretary-Treasurer. The Directors were Bob Colliar of North Battleford, Andy Zwack of Prince Albert, Chuck Brown of Rivers, Don Bridgeman of Oak River, Manitoba, Angus Murray of Edmonton, Bill McMaster of Edmonton, John Main of New Westminster, and Dennis Dixon of Burnaby, British Columbia.

1967
At North Battleford, Lacoursiere and Shury stepped down due to commitments with the CFAB. As no one stepped forward to administer the WCBA, a CFAB committee administered the Western Canada playoffs from 1968 to 1975.

1975
Al Wilson of Edmonton was elected President of the WCBA.

1976
At Vancouver, Bob Colliar of North Battleford was elected President and Andy Zwack of Prince Albert was elected Secretary/Treasurer.

1977
At Regina, the Western Canada Baseball Association Constitution was ratified.

1987
At Regina, Baseball Canada established British Columbia as a separate region with its own VP. The WCBA introduced the Prairie Regional Championships for Midget, Bison, Junior, and Senior, with winners advancing to the National Championship. WCBA Championships were held for Beaver, Bantam, and Intermediate teams, including B.C. A rotating system was put in place for selecting a Vice-President. Clint Fystro of Peace River, Alberta was elected President.

1988
Earl Berard of Kindersley, Saskatchewan was elected President and Jim Baba of Saskatoon was elected Secretary/Treasurer.

1989
Wally Footz, President of Baseball Alberta, designed the official WCBA logo.

1990
President Earl Berard; Secretary/Treasurer Jim Baba.

1991
President Earl Berard; Secretary/Treasurer Jim Baba.

1992
At Whistler, British Columbia, Art Berard of Lumsden, Saskatchewan was elected President and Wally Footz of Edmonton was elected Secretary/Treasurer.

1993
A pilot program was introduced for Tier II playoffs for Pee Wee, Bantam, and Midget, held in Kindersley, Saskatchewan.

1994
At Regina, Berard and Footz were both re-elected. Tier II playoffs were again held in Kindersley and, after proving successful, were incorporated as a regular program starting in 1995. Dave Olsen of Manitoba was named an Honorary Life Member.

1996
Art Berard and Wally Footz were both re-elected President and Secretary/Treasurer respectively. Swift Current, Saskatchewan was awarded Tier II Championships for 1997 and 1998, and Leduc, Alberta for 1999 and 2000.

1997
At Banff, Alberta, all Championship-winning teams received a Keeper Plaque.

1998
At Regina, Art Berard was re-elected President and Wally Footz re-elected Secretary/Treasurer. The WCBA became a Life Member of the Saskatchewan Baseball Hall of Fame and the Manitoba Hall of Fame. The retired WCBA trophies were housed at both locations.

1999
At Winnipeg, WCBA categories were renamed. Intermediate became Senior AA, and Tier II became AA Minor. Ray Carter of British Columbia and Joe Wiwchar of Manitoba were named Honorary Life Members.

2000
At Kelowna, British Columbia, Art Berard and Wally Footz were re-elected as President and Secretary/Treasurer respectively for a fifth consecutive two-year term. Lumsden, Saskatchewan hosted the inaugural girls Western Canada Championship in the Pee Wee and Bantam categories.

2001
At Winnipeg, Manitoba, the WCBA hosted 10 Championships for the first time ever.

2002
At Edmonton, Art Berard and Wally Footz were re-elected as President and Secretary/Treasurer respectively for another two-year term. Ontario and Quebec Bantam girls competed in WCBA Championships in Rutland, British Columbia.

2003
At Quebec City, Wally Footz of Alberta was named an Honorary Life Member.

2004
At Victoria, British Columbia, Art Berard and Wally Footz were elected President and Secretary/Treasurer respectively for a seventh consecutive term.

Effective in 2005, Pee Wee, Bantam, and Midget teams would be awarded bronze medals for third place.

2005
At Regina, Saskatchewan, a decision was made to suspend scheduling the Senior AAA Championships. Art Berard was named an Honorary Life Member.

2006
At Halifax, Nova Scotia, a decision was approved to eliminate bronze medals. Art Berard and Wally Footz were re-elected as President and Secretary/Treasurer for another two-year term.

2007
At Edmonton, Alberta, hosting of the Midget Girls Championship in 2008 was approved.

2008
At Toronto, Ontario, Life Member Dave Shury, one of the founders of the WCBA, passed away in October. Art Berard and Wally Footz were re-elected as President and Secretary/Treasurer respectively.

2009
At St. John’s, Newfoundland and Labrador, the first joint Championship with a Baseball Canada Regional was held in Red Deer, Alberta, known as the Western Canada/Baseball Canada Pee Wee AAA Regional Championship.

2010
At Richmond, British Columbia, the Pee Wee 13U AAA Regional was approved to have a bronze medal game to stay consistent with Baseball Canada Championships. Wally Footz retired as Secretary/Treasurer after 18 years. Art Berard and Brian Trollope were elected President and Secretary/Treasurer respectively.

2011
At Winnipeg, Manitoba, there was discussion about creating a new Junior/Men’s Division for ages 18–24. Jim Baba was inducted as a Life Member. The Handbook was updated to work with Baseball Canada procedures.

2012
At Quebec City, Quebec, long-time President Art Berard passed away during the 2012 season. Ken Sharpe of Minnedosa was elected interim President until the AGM. Ken Sharpe and Brian Trollope were elected President and Secretary/Treasurer respectively. The Junior/Men’s Division was not adopted.

2013
At Halifax, Nova Scotia, it was decided that the Pee Wee 13U Girls division would become a full event for 2014.

2014
At Charlottetown, Prince Edward Island, Ball Charts became a sponsor, and Morgan de Peña and Al Kinley of Manitoba became Lifetime Members.

2015
At Saskatoon, Saskatchewan, Pee Wee Girls became a 14U invitational event. A pilot project to use a Master Chef in Junior was initiated.

2016
At Fredericton, New Brunswick, Terry Butler was elected President. The Master Chef project was expanded to all divisions on a trial basis.

2017
At Hamilton, Ontario, the Master Chef pilot was accepted for all divisions except 13U. No chef was required for Senior. 13U still required a chef, and an Ontario 13U Girls team was invited to participate in that event.

2018
At Ottawa, Ontario.

2019
At Ste. Anne, Quebec.

2020
Virtual AGM due to COVID-19. The 21U category was moved to 22U to follow Baseball Canada.

2021
Virtual AGM. A new coaching requirement was introduced. The Handbook was updated to reflect gender-neutral language.

2022
At Edmonton, Alberta, a decision was taken to change the 15U AA bat rule to minus five.

2023
At St. John’s, Newfoundland and Labrador, a decision was made to make 13U AAA a WCBA event only. Smoke protocol discussion was also held.

2024
At Halifax, Nova Scotia, a decision was made to contract a Competitions Coordinator. Discussion also took place around the possibility of realigning the hosting rotation for Championships.