www.haltonbadgers.com

@ haltonbadgers 3 HELPING RAISE TOMORROW’S CHAMPIONS TODAY!!!

4 5 6 About the Halton Badgers Club Page 8 Mission Statement Page 9 Meet our Management Page 10 Baseball Operations Staff Page 11 Organizational Philiosophy Page 13 Season Breakdown Page 14 Off-Season Training Page 15 Spring and Summer Schedule Page 16 Academic Success Page 17

7 The Halton Badgers Baseball Club is a high performance program based in the Golden Horseshoe region of . Attracting players from Niagara to the GTA and all points north and in between, the goal is to provide each player with a structured baseball development program. The ideals of the program are rooted in an exceptional, fundamentally based, training experience with an opportunity to participate in some of the most competitive baseball tournaments in Canada and the United States.

The Halton Badgers will offer teams at 6 age groups in the 2021-22 season for play in the Fergie Jenkins Showcase League plus summer travel; 10u through 15u inclusive. The Badgers attract athletes with a passion, talent and a desire to improve. Players are surrounded with like-minded peers in an effort to bring out the best in each player. 8 Our mission is to provide top amateur baseball players the most comprehensive High Performance Baseball program in Canada. Using an instruction based player development first model, with competition and exposure to future opportunities also as key priorities, the Halton Badgers Baseball Club will deliver the highest level of coaching and training with a commitment to both individual and team progression. Utilizing traditional, time-tested baseball training methodology combined with latest and most state-of-the-art technology to benefit our players, the Halton Badgers offer a program that focuses on personal development for all of our players including their academic success, in addition to their baseball and athletic advancement. The program at all times, will be delivered in a respectful, safe, yet demanding and authoritative environment. 9

TIM DEACON CO-OWNER & DIRECTOR OF BASEBALL OPERATIONS

Coach Deacon co-founded the Halton Badgers Baseball Club in 2018. He has coached at various levels of baseball for over 10 years. Coach Deacon has been exposed to many top coaches and philosophies throughout North America during both his coaching and playing days and brings many of these influences to the Badgers program by emphasizing fundamentals while keeping his program simple and fun. Coach Deacon prides himself on hardwork and expects the same from his player. During his playing days, in addition to excelling as both a and position player collegiately at York University, he played internationally in Japan, leading an elite team from Canada while overseas.

CHRIS FULTON CO-OWNER & DIRECTOR OF BUSINESS OPERATIONS

Coach Fulton co-founded the Halton Badgers Baseball Club in 2018 along with Coach Deacon. He has been coaching since 2009 including many years of experience at the Rep level working with top players in the Golden Horsehoe. Coach Fulton’s philosophy includes emphasizing communication, work ethic and character skills that are to necessary to develop into productive players, good citizens and even better teammates. Coach Fulton loves coaching both baseball and softball as well as continuing to focus on making a stronger community of ballplayers in the area. Coach Fulton serves as the Director of Baseball Operations for the organization. 10 SEAN TRAVERS DIRECTOR OF PLAYER DEVELOPMENT

Coach Travers will enter his second year helping spearhead all instructional aspects of the Badgers program. Coach Travers has been coaching high performance players in Canada and the U.S. for over 20 years. The former owner of the Ontario Blue Jays, developed the program into a North America wide powerhouse for over a decade having coached and instructed over 80 players drafted by teams including 2 first round picks and multiple big league players as well as over 500 players who have gone on scholarship to U.S. colleges and universities. Coach Travers played at Texarkana College and Dallas Baptist University before playing professional baseball.

GREG BYRON PITCHING COORDINATOR

Coach Byron brings a wealth of experience as both a player and coach to the Halton Badgers. Having played college baseball in California and Kansas, where he was an All-American in 2008 while leading the KCAC conference and the entire country in ERA, Byron pitched professionally from 2009-2011 and was a member of Team Canada at the World Baseball Challenge also in 2011. Byron coached professionally in both the Minnesota Twins and St. Louis Cardinals organizations. He also coached for 6 seasons in the NCAA at the Division 1 level including with the University of Iowa Hawkeyes in the Big Ten Conference as well as the University of Central Arkansas Bears and Austin Peay State University in Tennessee. 11 RYAN ASIS HITTING AND INFIELD INSTRUCTOR

Coach Asis brings a wealth of experience as both a player and coach. He will focus on working with hitters and position players on the defensive side. He spent 3 years on the Coaching Staff for NCAA Division 1 school Canisius College. Prior to his coaching career, heplayed for two seasons at University of Arkansas – Fort Smith, before transferring to continue his collegiate career at Canisius College. He returned to play locally in the Intercounty Baseball League (IBL) where he is a former all-star and played for the Royals, Burlington Twins and . He is also a former Sessional Professor at Brock University in St. Catharines, where he instructed in their Sports Management program.

RICK OKIS ASSISTANT PITCHING COORDINATOR

Coach Okis has an extensive background in both professional and amateur baseball. A product of Hamilton, Coach Okis played for the Ontario Blue Jays and Michigan Bulls, earning a trip to the 1999 Connie Mack World Series in Farmington, New Mexico as a member of the Bulls. He played collegiately at Wayne State University in Detroit, Michigan where he received a scholarship for 4 years before returning to Ontario to play in the Intercounty Baseball League with the for two seasons before focusing on his career and education. Coach Okis brings helps create a positive environment for all players while bring a wealth of knowledge and experience to his instruction and coaching. 12 The Halton Badgers have a time tested and very specific philosophy in developing young baseball players. Led by Coaches Deacon and Fulton and the full Badgers coaching and instructional staff, key points of the Badgers Organizational Philosophy include:

1. YOU CONTROL YOUR ATTITUDE & EFFORT (player accountability)

2. BUILD GREAT BALLPLAYERS & EVEN BETTER PEOPLE (overall personal growth)

3. WE ARE A FAMILY (inclusive&welcoming in a nurturing, non-political environment)

4. CREATING POSITIVE LIFE EXPERIENCES & MEMORIES FOR ALL PLAYERS

5. WORK SMARTER, NOT HARDER (being smooth is fast, being fast is sloppy)

13 The Halton Badgers are pleased to offer a comprehensive year-round program. For the 2021-22 season the year will breakdown as follows:

August 2021 – September 2021: Tryouts for all age groups – please visit www.haltonbadgers.com for up-to-date details

October 2021 – December 2021: Fall Break to allow athletes to compete in other sports and/or train individually

January 2022 – April 2022 Indoor off-season training program in Burlington, Ontario

May 2022 – September 2022 Spring and Summer Schedule including tournaments in the Northern United States and league play in Fergie Jenkins Showcase League at various locations in 14 The Halton Badgers are proud to train at Fieldhouse Athletics, a 35,000 square foot, state-of-the-art indoor facility. Utilizing the space multiple times per week during the off-season with our top coaches instructors providing a comprehensive winter training program focused on all aspects of baseball as well as speed and agility and other age appropriate physical development.

15 The Halton Badgers play in one of Ontario’s longest standing Elite Baseball Leagues – the Fergie Jenkins Showcase League (FJSL) during the spring and part of the summer. In addition, during the summer months the Badgers teams travel to some of the most competitive tournaments in the United States. Teams may travel depending on age group to:

-New Era Classic in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania - Cap Classic in Lockport, New York

- Michigan Wolves Tournament in Farmington Hills, Michigan (and other nearby locations) - Perfect Game Showcase Tournament (15u) – Location to be Determined

With other tournaments and locations to potentially be added for the upcoming season as the Badgers strive to offer their players the most competitive gameplay experience.

Travel schedule is subject to government health and safety travel restrictions and will vary by age group and is subject to change at any time, for any reason 16 Development of our players off the field is a key pillar of the Halton Badgers program. Academic achievement and success is extraordinarily important for the overall growth of young athletes. Success in the classroom is emphasized at all age groups and the schedules are built with that in mind to ensure that players have every opportunity to complete their schoolwork. Continued emphasis and support to for our student-athlete’s continued development academically will be available as players progress through the Halton Badgers program.

The goal for many of our players and their families is to obtain an opportunity to pursue their post-secondary education while continuing to play baseball on scholarship at a U.S. college or university. Our staff will lead the players in their goal setting and providing the tools to reach their dream. 17

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