‘Gamer’ has pro dreams

Hey there, time traveller!
This article was published 09/06/2011 (5300 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

The St. Boniface Legionaires appear to be languishing in mediocrity this year. Still, the defending Manitoba Junior Baseball League champions, (4-4-1), shouldn’t be taken lightly. At least not if shortstop Daniel Worb has anything to say about it.

“We’re struggling as a team (behind Altona Bisons, Elmwood Giants and Pembina Valley Orioles), but personally I’m doing really well, said Worb, who prior to Wednesday night’s game against the St. James A’s, was hitting .469 with 15 hits, six stolen bases, four RBI and an on-base percentage of .530.

“I also pitch (mainly as a closer),” he added. “I’ve pitched 10 and two thirds innings with eight strikeouts, a 0.66 earned run average, one win, one save and I’ve allowed only one earned run.”

During the spring season, Worb plays for the University of North Dakota Fighting Sioux in the NCAA Division 1.

“I’ll be a junior at UND this upcoming year,” said the 20-year-old. “The year before UND, I played at Southwestern Junior College in Iowa.”

Prior to university, Worb attended high school at the Vauxhall Academy of Baseball in Alberta, where his head coach Les McTavish wrote in his 2008 professional evaluation report, “Daniel does a really nice job at second base. His range is slightly above average but his hands and release are way above average. Daniel stays in his legs and follows his throw well.

Daniel has good feet around second base, with a quick easy release on double play balls. Daniel comes in on the ball well and seems to read hops pretty well. Overall, Daniel has good actions as a second baseman and can play on the other side of the infield if needed.”

Making it to the Major Leagues is the dream of just about every young player. Worb is no different. “I chose to go to the States because of baseball, and education too. There is no chance to play Div. 1 NCAA baseball in Canada, and I obviously have dreams of making it to professional. Division 1 is a stepping stone to making that dream come true.”

Worb has already experienced fame on the diamond. In 2009 he was selected from Jewish Canadian players across the country to represent Canada in Israel at the Maccabiah Games, where they picked up a silver medal after losing to the United States.

Last year, he was a member of a MJBL all-star team that won the province’s first Canadian junior baseball championship since the Legionaires did it in 1982.

They beat Trois-Rivières 6-4 for the gold medal.

Both the Maccabiah Games and winning the Canadian championship stand out as highlights of his baseball career so far. “They are both on different levels,” he explained. “On the baseball level, nothing can ever come close to winning a national championship. On a personal level, however, nothing will ever top that one month in Israel with my family and team. For me it was pretty special. Just to be considered to be a part of Team Canada and my faith.”

“Daniel just needs to find a consistency with his swing and if it does he will be a very good college player,” McTavish’s assessment went on. “Daniel plays the game very hard and will leave everything on the field.

He can be labelled as a “gamer” due to his ability to scrap and battle throughout a ball game. Daniel is an average runner and if this improves he will be a very good student-athlete.”

Worb says being a Canadian makes it a lot tougher to be noticed south of the border. “I think it depends on the body type. If you are a prototypical 6-foot-4 pitcher, you will probably be noticed. But if you are like me, smaller in stature (5-11, 185 lbs.), you have to do a little bit of everything.”

allan.besson@freepress.mb.ca