It is opening weekend for the Western Canadian Baseball League and the Swift Current 57’s will open their season with a home-and-home against the Weyburn Beavers. 

There will be a new look to the team this year with veteran coaches Jason Veyna, Ruddy Estrella and Shawn Lee in the dugout, and a number of players coming to southwest Saskatchewan from all parts of Canada, the United States and beyond, including outfielder Donovan Borg from St. Clair, Michigan. 

“I didn’t have much of a summer planned during my season,” Borg said. “I met one of Brody Alexandre’s friends on my team and I was telling him I wanted to play somewhere cool. He said the WCBL is awesome, so we connected and here I am... being from Michigan, I can always see Canada across the Detroit River, so I’ve always been a little curious and now here I am and it’s awesome.” 

Pitcher Jaylen Gutierrez comes to Swift Current from his home just five minutes away from Yankee Stadium in the Bronx, New York. 

“I’ve never been to Canada before, so this is my first time really out of the U.S.,” he said. “I got the opportunity to play here through Coach Veyna, he invited me out here to play.” 

Pitcher Kenny Jinks will be returning for his third season with the 57’s after graduating from Wheeling University in West Virgina, and will get the start for the season opener on Saturday in Weyburn. 

“We have one returnee from my first year and then another from last year, so we have a lot of new faces and kids from good schools,” he said. 

Swift Current’s Brody Alexandre is one of those returning players as he returns home for his third season with the 57’s after finishing his sophomore season at Trinidad State. 

“I’m excited for the fresh start and the new look with the team and I’m excited to see what we can do this year,” Brody said. 

The team is having an open house at Mitchell Field from 6:00 to 8:00 p.m. tonight where fans can meet the players and watch them take part in a home run derby. Admission is free with a donation of a non-perishable food item. 

The home opener between the 57’s and Beavers is on Sunday afternoon at 4:00 p.m. from Mitchell Field.