After a break over the past couple years, the biggest amateur baseball tournament in Canada is back at Rogers Centre in Toronto this week, and St. Albert athlete Keenan Parker is there.
The Bellerose Composite High School senior was selected to the ninth annual Canadian Futures Showcase hosted by the Toronto Blue Jays Baseball Academy, where rising amateur talent with draft and college eligibility show what they’re made of to MLB scouts and college recruiters.
Now 17, Parker and about 170 other players were chosen from among the top players around Canada.
Six teams were selected through open tryouts and in-person evaluations, run nationally over the spring and summer, to compete tournament-style in Toronto.
On Scout Day, each team had a one-hour slot to showcase players’ skills, like batting, throwing and fielding.
The players have been guaranteed four games, then a prospects game between top performers and a home-run derby will conclude the weekend.
The annual event gives many young players a first break in their athletic and academic careers.
Over the past decade, 117 former Canadian Futures Showcase participants have been drafted by Major League Baseball organizations. More than 600 have received college scholarships, according to the Blue Jays website.
Of course, Parker hopes the exposure may help generate some offers to play at the college level. But the experience itself is something of a home run.
“Being able to play at Rogers Centre, not many kids are able to do this. The majority of coaches are ex-major leaguers, so just having the experience is really good,” he said via phone interview from Toronto.
In the summer, Keenan plays first and third base for the 18U AAA Cardinals.
With a batting average of running around .390, he was player of the year for the league, which includes Calgary and Edmonton.
The Cardinals were the youngest team in the league this year, losing in the semifinals. Then Parker was picked up by the league’s winning team, the Parkland Twins of Spruce Grove and Stony Plain, to play in the nationals, where they faced some very strong pitchers, but got to play in the consolation game.
“Nothing’s better than succeeding in the sport you enjoy the most, and connecting with friends and being able to win as a team,” he said.
Although he enjoys volleyball and basketball, Parker has developed a laser focus on baseball with a demanding training and travel schedule.
“My dad and other family members play, so I grew up watching and playing,” he said.
“It’s probably the sport that brings me the most joy. It’s the sport I wanted to get better at, and the sport I want to play at the college level,” he said.
The son of Travis and Krista Parker of St. Albert does miss golf.
“Golf messes with your swing — that’s how you pop up. It’s a totally different swing,” he said.
Between school, weight training, working on the grounds crew for the St. Albert field, and teaching himself guitar, his schedule is busy.
Parker’s found advice from his family on perseverance to be helpful.
“Never giving up, no matter how hard the situation may be," he said. "As long as you do your best, positive things will come out of it.”
Inspired by many TV police procedurals over the years, Parker is leaning toward a career in forensics and criminology.
“Helping out people is always good,” he said.
