In his rookie season with the Parksville Royals senior baseball team, Anson McGorman has made quite an impression on the mound.
The young pitcher tossed 54.2 innings and struck out 69 batters for the Royals in the B.C. Premier Baseball League last season and it has drawn the attention of many coaches.
It has landed McGorman a number of invitations to play in different provincial teams as well as in the prestigious Tournament 12, a showcase event that features the best Canadian amateur players with college eligibility.
“I am so surprised to get so many invitations to play this season,” said McGorman. “It’s been awesome so far and exciting.”
The 15-year-old, whose fastball has been clocked at 88 miles per hour, was invited to play for Team BC at the 17U BIGS Seeds Baseball Canada Cup that took place in Regina Aug. 7-11.
McGorman, who also enjoys playing shortstop and has a batting average of .329, also got the golden chance to impress in front of some 150 college and pro scouts at the 2019 PBR Future Games at Lake Point in Cartersville, Ga., near Atlanta. The event featured the top 2021 and 2022 baseball talents in North America.
“It was nice to make some friends there from so many players from all over Canada and the United States,” said McGorman. “I think it is one of my favourites this summer. All the guys were so fun to be around with. I had the chance to show off what I can do in front of so many scouts. It was such an amazing experience down there.”
As well, McGorman was invited by B.c. provincial champions North Delta Blue Jays to play with the team as one of their roster pickups at the 18U Canadian Championships in London, Ont. The team finished with the bronze medals.
More good news kept coming for the Ballenas Secondary student, as McGorman was selected to participate in Tournament 12 in Toronto Sept. 14-18.
It is put on by the Blue Jays Baseball Academy sponsored by the Toronto Blue Jays.
The academy, along with Hall of Famer Roberto Alomar, will host this year’s Tournament 12 to be held at Rogers Centre.
“That’s so insane,” said McGorman, when he learned he was selected. “I didn’t think it was going to happen. It’s a huge compliment. I am so stoked. I just can’t wait for it.”
All the different opportunities that McGorman experienced this summer he attributes to the extra work he put in during the off-season.
“I worked really hard during winter and I kind of bumped up my pitching speed by like 10 mph and that got a lot of attention,” said McGorman. “I also worked on my hitting and it helped me become decent at bat.”
McGorman will be Grade 11 this coming school year.
He will make another signficant sacrifice as he will attend Vauxhall Jets Academy in Alberta.
“It’s far from home but the school has a good baseball program,” said McGorman. “Coaches want me to go there because it’s going to help my game improve.”
McGorman hopes to be back in Parksville next summer to play for the Royals again.