SPONSORSHIP OPPORTUNITIES Step up to the plate and support your local Giants! fortmcmurraygiants.ca FORT MCMURRAY GIANTS A HIGH PLAINS BASEBALL ORGANIZATION The Fort McMurray Giants are the newest addition to the Western Major Baseball League (see page 3) and are dedicated to delivering elite level baseball in the city of Fort McMurray located in the Regional Municipality of Wood Buffalo (RMWB). The expansion of the league provides a unique opportunity to show off the beauty of our region and provide a quality summer experience for the players. Players will discover the friendliness of our community, the vibrancy of our cultures, and the beauty of our northern Boreal forest. The outcome of the franchise will generate positive exposure for Industry, Wood Buffalo, and Fort McMurray. The vision behind the Giants is to develop youth in sport in the RMWB, showcase our state of the art facilities at the newly built Shell Place, Home of the Giants, and provide quality family entertainment in the summer. The Giants are dedicated to working with Fort McMurray Minor Baseball Association to offer young athletes the opportunity to combine their pursuit of academic and athletic goals at the collegiate and professional level. 2 FORT MCMURRAY GIANTS SPONSORSHIP OPPORTUNITIES WESTERN MAJOR BASEBALL LEAGUE (WMBL) & MAJOR BASEBALL LEAGUE (MLB) The Western Major Baseball The WMBL consists of 12 teams who are looking for summer League (WMBL) is a collegiate across major cities within Alberta playing time and exposure to summer baseball league with and Saskatchewan with the most professional scouts. In fact, its predecessors dating back to recent expansion in Northern pro scouts have compared 1948. The WMBL is a wood bat Alberta. Members include this league to the Single A league along the lines of such Edmonton, Lethbridge, Okotoks, professional level and have American collegiate circuits as Medicine Hat, Swift Current, drafted over twenty players the Cape Cod League, the New Moose Jaw, Regina, Saskatoon, to the MLB. The tradition England Collegiate Baseball Melville, Yorkton, Weyburn, of showcasing top college League, the Coastal Plain Brooks, and now, Fort McMurray! prospects from both sides of League, the Northwoods League, the border has continued with the Horizon Air Summer Series, Each team consists of 27 players several former WMBL players the Pacific International League from acclaimed colleges and being drafted by Major League and the West Coast League. universities in North America Baseball every year: Player WMBL Team MLB Team Jerry Adair Oklahoma State Baltimore Orioles Ted Bosfield Pitched against WMBL Competition Red Sox, Angels, Royals, Indians Nelson Briles Calgary St. Louis Cardinals Don Buford Edmonton Eskimos Baltimore Orioles, Chicago White Sox Tug McGraw Lethbridge Mets, Phillies Sean Wooten Swift Current Indians Anaheim Angels Grant Richardson Okotoks Dogs Milwaukee Brewers Phil Sokbow Yorkton Cardinals Los Angeles Dodgers Ken Faulkner Lethbridge Bulls Seattle Mariners Craig Herm Lethbridge Bulls Seattle Mariners Jim Henderson Okotoks Dawgs Montreal Expos, Chicago Whit Sox John Hurd Okotoks Dawgs Montreal Expos, Chicago White Sox Andrew Alberts Saskatoon Yellowjackets Milwaukee Brewers Kyler Newby Okotoks Dawgs Arizona Diamondbacks, St. Louis Cardinals Adam Burton Okotoks Dawgs Arizona Diamondbacks, St. Louis Cardinals James Avery Okotoks Dawgs Minnesota Twins Tyler Klippenstein Okotoks Dawgs Oakland Athletics Matt Ircandia Okotoks Dawgs San Francisco Giants Luis Roberts Okotoks Dawgs New York Mets 3 FORT MCMURRAY GIANTS THE BEST IN CLASS The reality of our team is that the Fort McMurray Giants will not only be the best in Canada, but the best in North America! In order to do so, quality players require quality coaches. That’s why High Plains Baseball has recruited a top knotch coaching staff to deliver excellence and success in summer collegiate history. PLAYER ROSTER COACHING STAFF Ray McIntire, Manager Pitchers McIntire comes to Fort McMurray from Name Position Hometown College the University of Nevada, where he Curtis Bafus RHP Woodinville, WA Washington State University posted a 41-15 record and captured the Ryan Dunn RHP Fort McMurray, AB University of Calgary school’s first-ever Mountain West title Isaac Mullin LHP North Bend, WA Washington State University with a 22-6 mark in league play. The Nikolas Cardinal RHP Bonnyville, AB Mesa Community College Wolf Pack was ranked in the top 25 for Regan Gillis RHP Fort McMurray, AB Thompson River University much of the season and totaled a 13-1 record in series of at least three games. Brandon Desjardins RHP Calgary, AB Spokane Falls Community College The 41 overall wins ranked second in Cody Carrol RHP Elliston, MT University of Northern Colorado program history. Catchers Kellen Camus, Pitching Coach Name Position Hometown College Camus comes to Fort McMurray from Brennan Kaleiwahea Catcher Lacey, WA Washington State University the Washington State University Scottie Graham Catcher Seattle, WA University of New Mexico where he pitched right handed for the Washington State Cougars. During his Joshua Iannetti Catcher Fort McMurray, AB Thompson River University Junior year, he earned a 3-2 record with three saves and a 3.67 ERA. Camus Infield pitched his team to victory against Ivy Name Position Hometown College League School, Brown University, as well as Stanford and Arizona. Outfield Mike Riley, Coach Mikey Riley joined the San José State Name Position Hometown College baseball staff as an administrative Dan Reese RF Casper, WY University of Northern Colorado assistant in fall 2013. Riley also assists Matt McPherson CF Fort McMurray, AB University of Calgary the baseball program’s fundraising Dugan Shirer CF Chehalis, WA Washington State University efforts with the Diamond Club and Chase Hager LF Davenport, IA Iowa Western Community College helps facilitate the Spartans’ summer baseball camps. 4 FORT MCMURRAY GIANTS SPONSORSHIP OPPORTUNITIES MEET THE LOCAL PLAYERS Reagan Gillis Reagan attended Father Patrick Mercredi High School and the Trapper Baseball Academy. He was also a member of the Fort McMurray Minor Baseball Association. Today, Reagan is furthering his education at Thompson Rivers University and has joined the Wolf Pack Baseball Team. Matthew McPherson Matthew attended Father Mercredi Baseball Academy and started playing with the Fort McMurray Minor Baseball Association in 2002. Matthew is currently studying science, math and art at the University of Calgary, and playing for the Dinos. Ryan Dunn Ryan attended Father Patrick Mercredi Baseball Academy in Fort McMurray from 2009 to 2015. He was a member of the Fort McMurray Minor Baseball Association from 2004 to 2015 and has played a variety of positions throughout his baseball career. Ryan is currently studying Engineering at the University of Calgary, where he pitches and plays third base for the Dinos. Joshua (Boomer) Iannetti Joshua attended Father Patrick Mercredi High School and attended the Trappers Baseball Academy and Fort McMurray Minor Baseball Winter Ball Program. Today, Josh is living in Fort McMurray preparing for post- secondary education at Thompson Rivers University. He will be studying Business Management and Marketing while playing collegiate baseball. 5 WORLD CLASS VENUE SHELL PLACE The Giants will play at Shell Place, the 2015 expansion at MacDoanld Island Park, in a 1,725 seat baseball stadium. Teams from Alberta and Saskatchewan will travel to Fort McMurray to compete at the nation’s largest recreational center. Attracting fans throughout Northern Alberta, the Fort McMurray Giants at Shell Place will be the hub for summer sports and entertainment. HISTORY OF SPORTS & ENTERTAINMENT AT SHELL PLACE • Immediately upon opening its doors, and during the 2015 “Year of Sport”, Shell Place hosted “Northern Kickoff,” a season-opening exhibition game between the Edmonton Eskimos and the Saskatchewan Roughriders. This was the first major sporting event held at the new facility as well as the most northern Canadian Football League (CFL) game in history! • In a last-minute addition to the 2015 schedule, the Toronto Argonauts also hosted a regular season home game against the Eskimos at Shell Place on June 27 of the same year. • The North American Soccer League also hosted two regular season games at Shell Place during the 2015 NASL season. • On May 25, 2016 the Fort McMurray Giants will be the first WMBL team to compete in this state of the art facility! 6 FORT MCMURRAY GIANTS SPONSORSHIP OPPORTUNITIES THE FORT MCMURRAY GIANTS AND THE SPORT STRATEGIC PLAN FOR WOOD BUFFALO The Regional Municipality of Wood Buffalo has experienced unprecedented growth over the past fifteen years in the development of sport. The RMWB has hosted a number of summer and winter multi- sporting events, showcasing our diverse resources and infrastructure to stage international and domestic competition. The goals of Giants are strongly aligned with the Fort McMurray and Wood Buffalo Region Sport Strategic Plan. Building off of the momentum from 2015 and the “Year of Sport”, the Giants are going to further enhance sport tourism to help bring Wood Buffalo to North America. The Giants are also offering the community a unique experience to help build capacity of this new franchise and strengthen community ties, predominantly for families and youth. GOALS OF THE GIANTS: • To enhance sport tourism to change the landscape for Wood Buffalo • To encourage residents to engage in sport and recreation to create a better way of life • To strengthen community ties by attracting businesses, families and youth • To provide a quality product to deliver great entertainment in the summertime • To encourage young athletes to realize their potential within their sport • To promote athleticism in accordance with post-secondary education and higher learning • To promote values within sport: respect, fair play, diversity, team work • To redistribute resources to non-profit organizations in the community • To engage all stakeholders in the region to help make this team a success! In addition, the Fort McMurray Giants will work closely with the Fort McMurray Minor Baseball Association to serve as role models and provide mentorship to younger athletes.