St. Marys – A new step in the Canadian Baseball Hall of Fame & Museum's programming will be launched this coming Saturday, as their two new All-Star teams begin play in the Premier Baseball League of Ontario.

Both the 16 & under squad and the 18 & unders begin league play against London, with the older team hosting the Badgers on St. Marys Cement Company Field with a doubleheader beginning at 11am, and then the 16's come home to host London at the same time, same place on Sunday.

Besides St. Marys and London, the PBLO's other 11 other teams hail from Toronto, Hamilton, Ottawa and Quebec.  The rosters of both Hall of Fame teams will be finalized this week, and while no local players are currently on either team, there are a pair of openings on both teams that the coaching staff would like to see filled by a St. Marys area athlete.

The field manager of the older team will be Shawn Lynn, a former college standout who was drafted both out of high school as well as university.  His assistant coach will be Francis Cubos.

The younger squad will be managed by former Intercounty All-Star Mick Kozlowski, who will be assisted by Greg Gillies, Jim Redfern, Brad Clarke and Jake Sawatzky.

"This is a natural step in the evolution of the Hall, especially now that we have three outstanding baseball fields on our site but no local baseball beyond the Bantam level," said Hall president & CEO Tom Valcke.  "Given that we are the new kids on the block and competing against Ontario's major cities, we may not win as often as we like, but having seen these fine athletes prepare over the winter, I am confident that they are going to play the game the way it is meant to be played and that there will be no lack of hustle."

The Hall's participation in the PBLO as well as the National Amateur Baseball Federation (based out of the USA) will bring approximately 70 teams to St. Marys this summer, which will give a welcome boost to tourism in the area.

Regarding the absence of a local player on the teams, general manager Bill Maksinuk emphasized that "the image of the PBLO is such that players are mistakenly thinking they have to be of the top calibre to play, and while the 18 & under team will have players who will be driving in from a few hours away, for the 16 & under team we are more committed to bringing players from the immediate area together and developing them into a quality unit.  We have some strong 14-year-olds even trying out and we're excited with their potential.  If a player with athletic ability from the St. Marys area is interested, there is absolutely nothing to lose by coming to a tryout and seeing if there is a fit."

ST MARYS – 26 April 2005

June 24 – 9th Annual Celebrity Golf Classic

June 25 – 2005 Induction Ceremony

2005 SUMMER CAMPS for Boys & Girls

* Week-long camps (drop off Sunday, pick-up Saturday), including accommodation & meals
        * Focus on baseball FUNdamentals, swimming, soccer & tennis, trip to SkyDome
        * Social Justice and Cultural Awareness programs incorporated
        * Baseball Celebrities to take part