The British Columbia Premier Baseball League, commonly referred to as the BCPBL or the PBL, is a competitive youth baseball

Baseball

Baseball is a bat-and-ball sport played between two teams of nine players each. The aim is to score runs by hitting a thrown ball with a bat and touching a series of four bases arranged at the corners of a ninety-foot diamond...

 league consisting of 13 teams located throughout British Columbia

British Columbia

British Columbia is the westernmost of Canada's provinces and is known for its natural beauty, as reflected in its Latin motto, Splendor sine occasu . Its name was chosen by Queen Victoria in 1858...

, Canada

Canada

Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...

. Over the years, the BCPBL has served as a talent pipeline for Major League Baseball

Major League Baseball

Major League Baseball is the highest level of professional baseball in the United States and Canada, consisting of teams that play in the National League and the American League...

 as numerous BCPBL players have been selected in the Major League Baseball entry draft.

League history

Known as the Island Premier Baseball League when it was founded in 1995, the league originally included only five teams, all from Vancouver Island

Vancouver Island

Vancouver Island is a large island in British Columbia, Canada. It is one of several North American locations named after George Vancouver, the British Royal Navy officer who explored the Pacific Northwest coast of North America between 1791 and 1794...

: Victoria Investors, Victoria Selects, Mid-Island Canadians, Nanaimo Pirates and the Parksville Royals. Although these five teams had been playing exhibition games against teams from the Lower Mainland

Lower Mainland

The Lower Mainland is a name commonly applied to the region surrounding and including Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada. As of 2007, 2,524,113 people live in the region; sixteen of the province's thirty most populous municipalities are located there.While the term Lower Mainland has been...

, only in 1999 did the league officially expand to include six new teams: North Shore Twins, Vancouver Mounties, Coquitlam Reds, North Delta Blue Jays, White Rock Tritons, and Abbotsford Cardinals.

In 2000, the league expanded once again by adding two more teams: the Whalley Chiefs and Penticton. Later that year, the league changed its name to the British Columbia Premier Baseball league to reflect its new membership.

In 2009, the PBL would again expand, by bringing a team back to Vancouver known as the Vancouver Cannons. In 2010, the PBL board has granted a second PBL franchise to Victoria, known as the Victoria Eagles. Also the team formerly known as the Kelowna Cubs became known as the Okanogan Athletics in the 2010 season.

Teams

Teams	City	Home Field	Founded
Abbotsford Cardinals Abbotsford Cardinals The Abbotsford Cardinals are a baseball team located in Abbotsford, British ColumbiaThe Cardinals were founded and joined the British Columbia Premier Baseball League in 1999...	Abbotsford Abbotsford, British Columbia Abbotsford is a Canadian city located in the Lower Mainland of British Columbia, adjacent to Greater Vancouver. It is the fifth largest municipality in British Columbia, home to 123,864 people . Its Census Metropolitan Area, which includes the District of Mission, is the 23rd largest in Canada,...	Delair Park	1998
Coquitlam Reds Coquitlam Reds The Coquitlam Reds are a youth baseball team located in the city of Coquitlam, British Columbia. The team was founded in 1977, and joined the B.C. Premier Baseball League in 1999....	Coquitlam	Mundy Park Mundy Park Mundy Park at , is the largest park in Coquitlam, British Columbia. The park has many walking trails that pass the park's two lakes - Mundy Lake and Lost Lake. There are also sports fields, a lacrosse box, an outdoor swimming pool, disc golf area, picnic area, and playground.The Coquitlam Reds of...	1977
Fraser Valley Chiefs	Surrey Surrey, British Columbia Surrey is a city in the province of British Columbia, Canada. It is a member municipality of Metro Vancouver, the governing body of the Greater Vancouver Regional District...	Whalley Park	2000
Okanagan Athletics	Kelowna Kelowna Kelowna is a city on Okanagan Lake in the Okanagan Valley, in the southern interior of British Columbia, Canada. Its name derives from a Okanagan language term for "grizzly bear"...	Elks Stadium	2004
Langley Blaze Langley Blaze The Langley Blaze are a youth baseball team located in the city of Langley, British Columbia.Doug Mathieson is the founder and manager of the Blaze. The team was founded in 1993, and joined the B.C. Premier Baseball League in 1999. The team plays their home games at Mcleod Athletic Park, although...	Langley Langley, British Columbia (city) The City of Langley is a municipality in Metro Vancouver. It lies directly east of the City of Surrey, adjacent to Cloverdale, and surrounded on the north, east and south by Township of Langley.-History:...	Macleod Athletic Park	1999
Nanaimo Pirates	Nanaimo	Serauxmen Stadium	1995
North Delta Blue Jays North Delta Blue Jays The North Delta Blue Jays, are a Canadian youth baseball team located in the city of Delta, British Columbia. The team was founded in 1995, and joined the B.C. Premier Baseball League in 1999. The team plays their home games at Mackie Park....	Delta Delta, British Columbia Delta is a district municipality in British Columbia, and forms part of Metro Vancouver. Located south of Richmond, it is bordered by the Fraser River to the north, the United States to the south and the city of Surrey to the east...	Mackie Park	1995
North Shore Twins	North Vancouver	Parkgate Park	1999
Parksville Royals	Parksville Parksville, British Columbia -Demographics:Parksville had a population of 10,993 people in 2006, which was an increase of 6.5% from the 2001 census count. The median household income in 2006 for Parksville was $55,524, which is below the British Columbia provincial average of $62,346....	Royals Field	1995
Vancouver Cannons	New Westminster	Queen's Park	2009
Victoria Eagles	Victoria Victoria, British Columbia Victoria is the capital city of British Columbia, Canada and is located on the southern tip of Vancouver Island off Canada's Pacific coast. The city has a population of about 78,000 within the metropolitan area of Greater Victoria, which has a population of 360,063, the 15th most populous Canadian...	Lambrick Park	2010
Victoria Mariners	Victoria	Henderson Field	1995
White Rock Tritons White Rock Tritons The White Rock Tritons are a youth baseball team located in the city of South Surrey, British Columbia. Although most of the Tritons players are from the White Rock and South Surrey communities, the team also attracts talent from other areas around the Lower Mainland such as Delta, Ladner and...	Surrey	South Surrey Athletic Park South Surrey Athletic Park South Surrey Athletic Park is a popular recreational park in the White Rock/South Surrey community. The park is bound by 18th avenue to the south, 148th street to the east, 24th avenue to the North and Sunnyside Urban Acres Forest to the west....	1993

Notable alumni

Multiple well known ballplayers have played in the league:

• Ryan Dempster
  Ryan Dempster
  Ryan Scott Dempster is a Major League Baseball starting pitcher for the Chicago Cubs. Dempster bats and throws right-handed. He has been both a starter and a reliever in his career.-Professional career:...
  
  (North Shore Twins)
• Jeff Francis
  Jeff Francis
  Jeffrey William Francis is a Canadian professional baseball pitcher who is a free agent.-Early life:...
  
  (North Delta Blue Jays)
• Taylor Green
  Taylor Green
  Taylor Green is a Major League Baseball third baseman for the Milwaukee Brewers.-College:...
  
  
• Rich Harden
  Rich Harden
  James Richard Harden is a Canadian professional baseball pitcher.-Early years:Harden attended Claremont Secondary School in Victoria, British Columbia. He was drafted by the Seattle Mariners in the 38th round of the 1999 Major League Baseball Draft...
  
  (Victoria Mariners)
• Brett Lawrie
  Brett Lawrie
  Brett R. Lawrie is a Canadian professional baseball third baseman with the Toronto Blue Jays of Major League Baseball. He was traded to the Blue Jays from the Milwaukee Brewers on December 5, 2010 in a deal for starting pitcher Shaun Marcum...
  
  (Langley Blaze)
• Adam Loewen
  Adam Loewen
  Adam Alexander Loewen is a Canadian professional baseball outfielder and infielder for the New York Mets of Major League Baseball. He bats and throws left-handed...
  
  (Fraser Valley Chiefs)
• Scott Mathieson
  Scott Mathieson
  Scott William Mathieson is a Canadian professional baseball pitcher who is a free agent....
  
  (Langley Blaze)
• Justin Morneau
  Justin Morneau
  Justin Ernest George Morneau is a Canadian Major League Baseball first baseman for the Minnesota Twins. At 6 feet 4 inches and 225 lbs, Morneau was originally drafted as a catcher by the Twins in 1999. He converted to first base in the minor leagues and made his MLB debut in 2003...
  
  (North Delta Blue Jays)
• Aaron Myette
  Aaron Myette
  Aaron Kenneth Myette is a former Major League Baseball Canadian right-handed pitcher....
  
  
• Kevin Nicholson
• Michael Saunders
  Michael Saunders
  Michael Edward Saunders is a Canadian Major League Baseball left fielder for the Seattle Mariners. He is a left-handed hitting, right-handed throwing outfielder...
  
  (Victoria Mariners)
• Rene Tosoni
  Rene Tosoni
  Rene Michael Tosoni is an outfielder for the Minnesota Twins. He is six feet tall and weighs 194 lbs. He bats left-handed, yet plays his position right-handed.-Amateur career:...
  
  

Many well known ex-BCPBL players have gone on to have successful minor league baseball

Minor league baseball

Minor league baseball is a hierarchy of professional baseball leagues in the Americas that compete at levels below Major League Baseball and provide opportunities for player development. All of the minor leagues are operated as independent businesses...

 careers:

• Cole Armstrong
  Cole Armstrong
  Melville Cole Armstrong is a professional baseball catcher, who has played in international competition with the Canada national baseball team.-Minor League Career:...
  
  
• Shawn Bowman
  Shawn Bowman
  Shawn Douglas Bain Bowman is a Canadian professional baseball player. A third-baseman. He bats and throws right-handed.-Early life:...
  
  
• Leon Boyd
  Leon Boyd
  Leon Boyd is a Canadian-born Dutch baseball player currently playing for DOOR Neptunus in the Honkbal Hoofdklasse. He is most often recognized for his accomplishments for the Dutch national team at the 2009 World Baseball Classic.-B.C...
  
  
• Bryan Dumesnil
  Bryan Dumesnil
  Bryan William Dumesnil is a pitcher with the independent Southern Maryland Blue Crabs.Dumesnil was a member of the Nanaimo Pirates of the B.C...
  
  

• Vince Perkins
  Vince Perkins
  Mark Vincent Perkins is a minor league baseball pitcher currently in the Toronto Blue Jays organization. He played for the Canada national baseball team in the 2006 and 2009 World Baseball Classics....
  
  
• Jimmy Van Ostrand
  Jimmy Van Ostrand
  James O. Van Ostrand is a Canadian baseball outfielder. He currently plays for the Corpus Christi Hooks, the AA affiliate of the Houston Astros....
  
  

Past champions

{| class="wikitable" style="font-size: 95%; width: 68%"
|-
! Year
! Champion
! Runner Up
! Most Valuable Player
|-
| 2001
| White Rock Tritons
| Abbotsford Cardinals
|
|-
| 2002
| Nanaimo Pirates
| White Rock Tritons
| Tyler Williams (North Delta Blue Jays)
|-
| 2003
| White Rock Tritons
| Langley Blaze
| Devon Franklin (White Rock Tritons)
|-
| 2004
| Victoria Mariners
| Coquitlam Reds
| Michael Saunders (Victoria Mariners) and
Shawn Schaefer (Coquitlam Reds)
|-
| 2005
| Langley Blaze
| North Delta Blue Jays
|
|-
| 2006
| Langley Blaze
| Fraser Valley Chiefs
| Alex White (North Delta Blue Jays)
|-
| 2007
| North Shore Twins
| Nanaimo Pirates
| Sam Armstrong (Coquitlam Reds)
|-
| 2008
| North Shore Twins
| Langley Blaze
| Oscar Rodriguez (Coquitlam Reds)
|-
| 2009
| North Shore Twins
| Fraser Valley Chiefs
| Zak Miller (Langley Blaze)
|-
| 2010
| Victoria Mariners
| North Delta Blue Jays
| Adam Cessford (Victoria Mariners)
|-
| 2011
| Langley Blaze
| Coquitlam Reds
| Kevin Biro (Parksville Royals)
|-