Our History
Origin Story...
Baseball was being played in the St.Catharines (and Niagara) area before 1961, and the following is some history we managed to find via an article in the St.Catharines Museum, which was written by the late Jack Gatecliff (St.Catharines Standard Sports Editor) in 1962.
Key points from the article...
Eastend Midgets:
- Won Niagara District Championships in 1945-46-47 under Bill Yielding.
- Won Niagara District Championship in 1952 under Len Wismer, and Pierce Watson. Chester Warchol was a pitcher on this team.
Thompson Products Juveniles:
- Won Niagara District Championship in 1947. Some players on the team were: Bill Allan (pitcher), Stan Stocker (pitcher), Bill Popolillo, Francis McDonald, John Yielding.
- Won again in 1948, this time under Bill Yielding. Some players on that team were: Henry Sokolowski, Ed Plata, Ed Cadot, Henry Sort, Frank Martin, and Skip Teal.
Rather than having various groups pulling in opposite directions, there were a few individuals that decided to form a St.Catharines Minor Baseball Association, which according to Jack Gatecliff, was long overdue!
These "Founding Fathers" of St.Catharines Minor Baseball included:
- Bob Gatenby
- Dominic Senese
- Herb Rogers
- Jack Lennard
- Bill Martin
- Clair Newhouse
- Hope Nicholson
- Bill Yielding
- Ozzie Hill
- Fred Hinks
SCMBA Established in 1961...
In their first full year of existence in 1962 (SCMBA was officially created during 1961), SCMBA fielded 3 teams... one in Juvenile, and two in Midget. That year, they won the Niagara District Championships for Juvenile, and in Midget (with their "A" team). SCMBA looked to expand into Junior in 1963 (or at the latest, 1964). Thus, SCMBA initially was focused on the older divisions of play, while local Legion Baseball groups focused on the younger age groups.
SCMBA Today...
Fast forward to today.... SCMBA has expanded their divisions to incorporate those as young as 3 and 4 (Blast Ball), up to 18 (formerly known as Midget). Unfortunately, we currently do not offer divisions older than Midget, but we are always looking to expand whenever there is opportunity to do so. We currently offer various levels of play, including House League, Select, and Rep.
We are continually looking to bring a fun, family-focused baseball experience to more and more families!
We look forward to seeing you at the ball field!!
We are still looking for information to further complete Our History, and provide more insight as to the Legion programs during this time when SCMBA started to expand down into the younger divisions, as well as any additional information on the baseball programs existing in the area prior to 1945. If you have any information, or know where we can find some, please Contact Us.
