November 7, 2023

Part 1 - Xavier the bat boy

By Melissa Verge

Canadian Baseball Network

Excitement swirls around the infield of Shell Place in Fort McMurray, Alta. like the dirt on a windy day.

It’s supposed to be short sleeved, but the maroon jersey, with “BADGERS” across the front in white lettering, is so big on Xavier Maccagno it’s more like three quarter sleeved. Probably because it’s meant for someone triple his age. There’s no time to manufacture another one for the smiley six-year-old, a last minute addition to the London Badgers 18U dugout. It’s game time.

A base hit, an error, a home run, a missed opportunity - they all hit harder when you’re closing in on a shot to win it all. It’s an intense environment for a young kid, but on the field with the rest of his team is just where Maccagno (Fort McMurray, Alta.) belongs.

A victory, and the Badgers bring a gold medal home to Ontario for the second year in a row at Baseball Canada’s 2018 18U National Championships. A loss, and it’s going to be a long flight back home (except for Maccagno, it’s a bit shorter commute, just a drive home with dad.) This is it, the World Series of youth baseball in Canada. And Maccagno is right there with the team, ready to see it through.

He’s a faithful supporter through it all, especially when players hit a rough spot.

“So like when someone was feeling down I would be like right beside them and say, ‘it’s okay,’” Maccagno said.

* * *

He was an unexpectedly important move, just like Davis Schneider was for the Toronto Blue Jays. Schneider was promoted from triple-A Buffalo. Maccagno promoted from T-ball. Except Maccagno can’t field for the Badgers. He can’t hit for them.

Age is a cruel factor no matter what end of it you’re on.

He’s capable of hitting a baseball - he has two strong years under his belt. It started with a line drive off a tee and a run down the third base line, chased by his dad back the right way, but it’s been all up since. He’s got a lot to bring to a ball team, even one with players three times his age.

Originally he was a flag carrier during opening ceremonies for London, and that was that.

But Mike Lumley, Badgers coach, pops the question. “Will you be our bat boy?” is something along the lines of what he proposes. Maccagno says yes. And that’s where his bat boy career begins, in his hometown of Fort McMurray on a summer day in 2018.

It’s off to a promising start - the Badgers win their first game of the tournament against New Brunswick 9-1. Connor Ambrogio (Dorchester, Ont.) gained the win pitching 5 2/3 innings, allowing one unearned run and fanning five. Will Pollard (London, Ont.) had three hits, including a double, while Judd Walker (Mitchell, Ont.) had a pair of hits, knocking in four runs.

That same day, the Badgers take on Saskatchewan in the afternoon, and beat the prairie province 5-3. Zack Gazendam (Tillsonburg, Ont.) registered the win, pitching a solid five innings and allowing three runs, while fanning two. Alex Pettipiece (Dorchester, Ont.) singled in a pair of runs, while Brendan Johnston (St. Thomas, Ont.) tripled.

It’s all baseball for the kid at the championships, which is exactly how he likes it. It’s what his life revolves around, said his dad, Leland Maccagno.

“If he’s not playing baseball, he’s watching something about baseball, [or] he talks [about] baseball,” he said.

* * *

Next came a 5-3 loss to Quebec with Gabriel Archambault (Laval, Que.) picking up the win with five innings. Pollard homered and drove in three.

Then, a four-run sixth gave London a 6-5 win over British Columbia. Walker hit a grand slam with one out to score Xavier Jamieson (Plympton-Wyoming, Ont.), Johnston, who both had singled and John Geddes (London, Ont.), who had walked. Rushil Bhat (London, Ont.) picked up the victory.

Ambrogio and Alberta’s Ryan Marples (St. Albert, Alta.) hooked up in the semi final -- each allowing five hits -- as London scored a 1-0 win when Walker reached on an error, was bunted to second, stole third and scored on a fly ball delivered by Zane Livingston (Lucknow, Ont.). Ambrogio struck out nine.

Originally, Maccagno was taken off the field as the team started to approach the gold medal game, “so they could get the job done,” his dad said.

For the final game against Etobicoke, he’s actually in the stands. But he’s spotted up there, and taken down to the field to his rightful spot in the Badgers’ dugout with the rest of the team.

“They hauled him down and were like ‘no you’re our good luck charm, you’re here,’” the father said.

It looked promising for the Badgers, going into the seventh with a four-run lead. But as Yogi Berra used to say, “It ain’t over till it’s over.” Etobicoke got three runs in the seventh inning to come within one run of tying it up. The Badgers held on for a 5-4 victory to win gold.

Geddes had three hits and knocked in a run, while Jackson VanBakel, Isaiah Smith, and Pollard, had a pair of knocks each. For Etobicoke, Cameron Hahnfeld (Georgetown, Ont.) had two hits and Robert Magee (Etobicoke, Ont.) drove in two runs.

Gazendam pitched 6 1/3 innings, allowing four runs for the win while Mason Newell (St. Thomas, Ont.) recorded the final two outs for the save. Lucas MacPherson (Mississauga, Ont.) and Steven Hospital (Oakville, Ont.) pitched for Etobicoke.

* * *

On the field to receive his gold medal with the rest of the 18U national champions was the proud six-year-old. In the after photo, he’s about the same height as some of the players when they are kneeling.

Four years later, a No. 5 London Badgers jersey is still hung up in the now 11-year-old’s closet in Fort McMurray, a forever memento of his first nationals.

But instead of signifying just a nostalgic moment in his past, it’s a symbol of where it all started for the kid.

Why stop at just one?

There were more to come … stay tuned.