Neepawa Farmers optimistic about upcoming MSBL season

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Published on Thursday, May 7, 2015

File photo by Lanny Stewart

By Eoin Devereux

The Neepawa Banner

With the start of the Manitoba Senior Baseball League’s regular season only a few weeks away, the Neepawa Farmers are hoping to construct a roster that’s built for success. 

This upcoming season, the league will consist of four clubs; the Farmers, the Oak River Dodgers, the Brandon Marlins and the defending league champions the Brandon Cloverleafs. During the off season, the Reston Rockets informed the MSBL that they would not be returning for 2015.

Neepawa Farmers manager Mike Levandosky said the club will look to improve on the 3-17 record they had in 2014. Levandosky said those results were disappointing but noted that preparations are well underway to field a much more competitive team.

“We definitely are looking to improve on our record,” said Levandosky. “From what we had last year, I think we may only have two or three players not returning this year. We have several veterans who are returning and with the disbanding of the Reston Rockets in the off season, we are looking at potentially bringing in a player from Reston, maybe two. We also have a line on a couple of import players. They’re actually from the Dominican Republic but are currently playing ball in the United States. The paper work needs to be in order before they’re allowed to enter the country, but it is something that’s being worked on.”

Levandosky said the team’s potential combination of new players and veterans should provide a solid core to build off of.

“Our off-season efforts and our core lineup of local players should make it a good roster for the upcoming season,” said Levandosky. “Going forward, a veteran presence is nice to have and we’ll get that with returnees like Bryan White, Cam Tibbett and Robby Wilson and so many others. This team has a solid nucleus.”

Levandosky added that he hopes the community will continue to provide great support for the club in the stands.

“We had a lot of younger fans coming out to see the games which was nice to see. It’s very important to reach out to the younger people in the community and get them interested in the team. I remember when I was playing, you’d see a fair numbers of bodies in the stands, which was nice. Over the years, the numbers dwindled a bit, so it’s very important to engage with the younger people and keep the support for the Farmers and for the league strong,” said Levandosky.

The official schedule for 2015 will see the Farmers open up the year at home on Tuesday, May. 26 against Oak River.