CBL Releases 2003 Schedule
Published on March 17, 2003 under Canadian Baseball League (CanBL) News Release
Vancouver, B.C. â March 17, 2003 â The Canadian Baseball League has announced that the Montreal Royales will play their inaugural season as a Road Team. The Royales will play their nine home series in various host cities across Canada. The team will practice in Montreal, make promotional appearances there and will take steps to integrate into the local community. The league will also televise as many Royales games as possible so fans can watch the team during its inaugural season.
"Despite our best efforts, to date we have not been able to secure a venue for the Royales within the city of Montreal," said CBL chairman Tony Riviera. "We made a significant offer to play in Olympic Stadium, and were turned down even though the Expos cut their home schedule by 22 dates. There is no doubt given the Expos schedule, there are plenty of available dates to accommodate the Royales.
"As well we offered to remodel and upgrade both Parc Lafontaine and Claude Robillard Stadium. Both offers were turned down. It is sad the fans in Montreal will not be able to see their team at home this season. We hope something can be worked out by the start of our playoffs. It would not be a good situation for the Montreal fans if their team is playing for the Canadian National Championship, the Jenkins Cup, on national television, without a home park. We have had tremendous support from the baseball fans in Montreal, and our goal is to bring the Royales home in 2004," continued Mr. Riviera.
Showcase Series to bring the CBL to communities across Canada
The CBL is pleased to announce the league's 2003 schedule will include several barnstorming series that will bring the Canadian Baseball League to cities across Canada. The Showcase Series will consist of neutral site league games that will take place in non-league cities across Canada.
The first two Showcase Series include the Trois-Rivieres Saints and Montreal Royales at Sherbrooke, Quebec (May 29 â June 1), and the Kelowna Heat versus the Saskatoon Legends in Moose Jaw, Saskatchewan (July 24-27). Other series will be announced as they are confirmed.
"The Showcase Series is a great opportunity for us to expose fans across Canada to the CBL experience," said CBL chairman Tony Riviera, "it allows us to build relationships with both other cities and new fans as we move towards expanding the number of teams in 2004."
CBL releases schedule
The Canadian Baseball League has released its schedule for 2003. "Overall, we're happy with how it turned out," said CBL president & CEO Charlton Lui. "The cities have been great, particularly those that had to accommodate multiple user groups," continued Mr. Lui.
The 2003 CBL schedule is now available on the Canadian Baseball League website, www.canadianbaseballleague.com.
About the Canadian Baseball League
The Canadian Baseball League is a new international professional baseball league offering high caliber baseball to cities across Canada beginning in May 2003. The CBL's Commissioner of Baseball is Ferguson Jenkins, Canada's only member of the Baseball Hall of Fame in Cooperstown, N.Y. For more information please visit the official website of the Canadian Baseball League at www.canadianbaseballleague.com.
Canadian Baseball League Stories from March 17, 2003
- CBL Releases 2003 Schedule - CanBL
The opinions expressed in this release are those of the organization issuing it, and do not necessarily reflect the thoughts or opinions of OurSports Central or its staff.
