The Prince Albert Royals 18U squad are getting set for their first home game of the season when they welcome the Regina White Sox to Andy Zwack Field on Saturday afternoon. After starting the year on the road, coach Pat Robin says it will be nice to finally enjoy the luxury of a home crowd.
“I think everybody is excited,” Robin said. “The boys and the parents are looking forward to it. We got an email from the coach in Regina asking what the weather is going to be like and we have some parents coming in tonight and staying at hotels. Everyone is excited to get going.”
The Royals had just one game this week to prepare for Saturday’s game. They played an exhibition game against the Prince Albert senior men’s team on Monday night. Despite not having any extra time to practice throughout the week, Robin thinks his team benefited from that game against the older guys.
“Right now these guys realize that they’re jockeying for positions,” he said. “Last game we got some really good pitching which was good to see. It was a good experience for them, and that’s what they need. They need that time on the mound to get that confidence up.”
In their second game of the season against Assiniboia, errors played a large role in their blowout loss. This time around against Regina, Robin knows that his group will need to sharpen up their defensive play, and is confident that they can do so.
“We can’t give up a lot of errors in a game, because you obviously won’t win,” he explained. “If we limit our errors, we’ll be competitive. I told the boys if we pitch how we have and make contact like we did against the senior team, we’ll be competitive in every game. Our bats have to be there too. We need to generate runs and get on base to win a game. But if our pitching and our defence is good at this level, then we’ll be able to stay in games.
“When we play strong teams, they’re going to put the ball in play, and we’re going to have to make plays. I’ve moved some kids around already defensively, and hopefully the kids will grow and improve.”
After their game on Saturday, the Royals travel to North Battleford on Sunday for a double header. Their following game will be a game at home once again against North Battleford on Wednesday night.
@kyle_kosowan • sports@paherald.sk.ca