Field of Dreams

By Dave Leaderhouse

More than 30 years ago there was a motion picture called “Field of Dreams.” In that movie Kevin Costner built a world-class ball diamond amongst a cornfield with the hopes that he could attract legendary players from the past to play a game so that he could fulfill a dream and enjoy the game he grew up loving.

While not following that script exactly, a local group of ball enthusiasts have gone down a similar road and in just over two months their dream will be fulfilled when the 2025 World Baseball Softball Congress’s men’s softball championship will be staged at Max Power Ball Park located at Prime Ministers’ Park in Prince Albert.

“In October, 2014, a group of us got together and said ‘what would it look like to host a world championship?’” says tournament chair Ian Litzenberger. “There were six of us and we all thought it was a real possibility.”

From there the group submitted a bid to the WBSC knowing full well that major upgrades to the present facilities would be required in order to meet specific standards set out to host world-class championships.

Litzenberger took on the role as chair of Project Triple Play which raised thousands of dollars and resulted in the Prime Ministers’ Park fields getting a major face-lift including the Max Power Ball Park that has permanent seating for several hundred fans. With bleachers added the facility can accommodate several thousand.

“It’s amazing what we have in this city,” says Litzenberger. “Everyone comes together to support things like this and whenever we need something they always step forward.”

The first dream for this group was realized in 2018 when the city hosted the world junior men’s championship. With that event being a resounding success plans were then launched to go a step further and bring in the best men’s teams from around the world.

The covid epidemic delayed those plans for several years, but once everything got back on track the WBSC had just one condition for Prince Albert to host another world event and that was one of the three regional qualifiers leading up to the 2025 championship also had to be held in the city.

That was held last summer and while the level of play was very good, what fans can expect this year is nothing like anything else they will ever see as all eight teams vying for the world title would be at the Olympics if softball was still a sport in that quadrennial competition.

“We’ve held so many tournaments at different levels we are known to host good tournaments,” says Litzenberger. “We always look to do something a little extra.”

In addition to the 20-plus ball games scheduled for July 8-13 there will also be a family fun zone, fireworks, an entertainment stage and food vendors. The budget is around $1 million to host the event so Litzenberger hopes that the community continues to rally around the event and show their support.

“Would we like to have more ticket sales – absolutely, but with the weather changing maybe more people will start planning ahead,” notes Litzenberger. “We still need some more volunteers and if anyone wants to provide sponsorship they are always welcome.”

Dreams do come true and with the work being done by more than 30 committee members what could possibly be the biggest and best softball dream ever staged in Prince Albert is just over two months away from becoming a reality.

Anyone interested in providing financial support can contact Litzenberger at 306-961-4750. To volunteer, Dovona West can be reached at 306-290-5671 and for tickets go to the WBSC website: www.wbscmensworldcup.com.