WELLAND - Team Ontario wins the gold against a tough Team Alberta in the final game of the 2022 Canada Summer Games baseball competition. This will be their seventh Canada Games gold medal in history and first since 2005. They finish the competition with six wins and three losses in a wild roller coaster journey to victory. They started the competition with an even 2-1 record before losing two games in a row and faltering to a 2-3 record on the third day of round robin play. After a big bounce back win against Team Nova Scotia 14-4, Team O would not look back and win four in row, including a quarter final game against Team Québec, a Semi-Final game aginst Team Saskatchewan, and the gold medal game against a scorching hot Team Alberta.
Preston Barr (St. Joachim, ON) was electric during the Canada Games competition finishing with a .696 batting average and a 1.504 OPS producing 15 RBIs, the most ever in Canada Summer Games history, breaking the record previously set by Eric Hartman (St. Albert, AB) who finished the competition with 13.
Barr was a wonder on both sides of the diamond as he also toed the mound for Team Ontario in the quarter final game against Québec, going toe to toe against the strikeout king Elliott Cadieux-Lanoue (Saint-Pie, QC) to punch their ticket to Semi-Final. The right-hander worked a total of six innings of no earned runs and only three hits allowed, giving Ontario a much needed outing in one of the toughest match ups of the tournament. It was not a surprise to see Barr come through for Team O in the last at bat of the competition where he would hit a walk-off single (on mercy rule) against Team Alberta to crown Ontario with the gold.
As for Alberta this would be their second Silver Medal in Canada Games History improving from their Bronze finish in 2017. The defending champions, Team Saskatchewan, would also secure their second ever Bronze Medal in the competition.
