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“Get to know your PSO (Provincial Sport Office)” is a new feature on baseball.ca that will provide an informative look at each of the ten Provincial Baseball Organizations throughout Canada. The 2014 baseball season has already begun for some provinces, while others are still counting down the days until they can get on the field. Either way, baseball season is upon us so let’s take a closer look at the organizations that help bring baseball to communities across our country!

Nova Scotia

The facts…

Name of PSO: Baseball Nova Scotia
President: Barry Gillis
Executive Director: Brandon Guenette
Headquarters: Halifax
Phone #: 902-425-5454 x 355
Website: baseballnovascotia.com
Twitter: @baseball_ns
Established: 1986
Number of staff members: 1
Number of Board members: 17                
National Championship highlight: The 1985 Kentville Wildcats: First Nova Scotia baseball team to win a Senior National Championship when they hosted the tournament in their own community in August 1985. With 13 local players on the roster, the team rallied from a 6-0 deficit with 2 outs in the eighth inning against powerhouse Ontario to win the final, 7-6, in front of 4,500 hometown fans. It is possibly one of the greatest comeback stories in Nova Scotia Sport history.
Major Awards: Province of the Year (1989)
Annual Provincial championship events: 21
Most notable baseball player(s) to come out of province: Vince Horseman - One of only three Nova Scotians to have made it to the big leagues since the turn of the century. In his five years in the majors, spanning 1991 to 1995, Vince played in 141 games as a pitcher for Toronto, Oakland and Minnesota. His first season with the Oakland Athletics was his best. As a middle reliever Vince was 2-1 with a 2.49 earned run average in 58 games, helping the A’s win their division. Vince also spent 12 years in the minors with five of those at the AAA level. Vince is currently the pitching coach with the Class A Lansing (Michigan) Lugnuts, a Toronto Blue Jays affiliate; Steve Nelson - Highest ever draft pick from Nova Scotia (Cole Harbour), going in the 5th round to the Los Angeles Dodgers in 2001. He spent 5 years in the minors
Famous non-baseball alumni: Sidney Crosby played for the Cole Harbour Cardinals until he was 14 years old

Three things to watch for in 2014:

My First Pitch

My First Pitch is a program targeted at the development of pitchers entering the 11U division where pitching is introduced for first time.

“Baseball Nova Scotia will be aggressively pushing this program in 2014,” says Baseball Nova Scotia Executive Director, Brandon Guenette. “We’ve recognized that pitching is the biggest obstacle athletes this age may have to overcome, and this program will help immensely.

“Associations that have piloted the program have seen great success, and have been encouraging others to take it on.”

Challenger Baseball

Implemented by Baseball Canada in 2012, Challenger Baseball provides an opportunity for children with cognitive or physical disabilities to enjoy the thrill of playing baseball. Under the leadership of Randy Crouse in Antigonish, Challenger Baseball programs are growing across the province.

“Randy Crouse has been working tirelessly with Baseball Nova Scotia to ensure that Challenger Baseball is up and running with six communities in Nova Scotia already with programs,” explained Guenette. “Randy’s work also resulted in a $37,000 grant for Antigonish Challenger Baseball.”

21U Nationals

For the second consecutive year, Dartmouth, Nova Scotia will play host to the 21U Baseball Canada National Championship. The event will take place August 14-18.

“The organizing committee did a phenomenal job in 2013 and are looking to build on that success in 2014,” added Guenette.