Steering the ship
Ellsworth pinch-hitting as coach of national junior men’s team
Jeff Ellsworth has a wealth of international softball experience as a player. He’s about to get his first taste as a head coach.
The St. Lawrence native will lead the national junior men’s team at the World Baseball Softball Confederation world championship beginning Sunday in Midland, Mich. Tom Doucette was the team’s head coach, but he had to return home to Middle Musquodoboit, N.S., on Monday for personal reasons.
“It’s really big shoes to fill because Tommy is definitely one of the best of all time as far as Canada coaches,” Ellsworth said Wednesday. Ellsworth was an assistant coach responsible for the hitters while Cardigan native Mark Quinn is taking care of the pitchers. Saskatchewan’s Todd McCulloch is the third base coach and Quebec’s JeanYves Doucet is at first. Summerside’s Duke Cormier is the team leader.
Co-captain
Ellsworth was co-captain of the senior men’s program until retiring after winning the Pan American Games and International Softball Federation (ISF) world championship in 2015. Ellsworth was honoured to be considered for the head coaching position. “Softball Canada called me and asked if I would be interested in leading the ship, and I said, ‘no problem,’” he said. “I honestly didn’t expect it to happen this quick after my playing days, but everything happens for a reason.”
13 teams
The world championship will feature 13 teams in two pools. Canada is matched up with Israel, Japan, Mexico, New Zealand and South Africa. The top four in each pool advance to the playoffs. Canada finished seventh at the last tournament in Whitehorse, Yukon, in 2014, with Argentina capturing gold. Ellsworth said the coaching staff has been preaching it’s just another tournament. “Putting on the Team Canada jersey sometimes can be overwhelming,” he said. “All week we’ve been just promoting it’s just another nine guys we’re going to war against.”
Exhibition play
The team, which includes Seacow Pond’s Avery Arsenault, went 2-2 during exhibition play in Ontario this week. The squad went 0-4 during a weekend tournament. Ellsworth said the team has been put in pressure situations against some top-level teams who have elite players from Canada’s 40-man player pool.
Arsenault played six of the eight games in Ontario. He is hitting .235 (4-for-17) with an on-base percentage of .421 and five runs batted in, including a grand slam off. He has played three games in centre field, two in left field and one at third base. His only error came at the hot corner.
“Avery is one of those versatile five-star players,” Ellsworth said. “He made a nice diving catch last night, went flat out.” Ellsworth and Arsenault’s father, Troy Ellsworth, are first cousins. Jeff Ellsworth has watched Arsenault growing up, and said he has the potential to make the 40-man player pool. And he’s not the only one. “Our program is in great shape,” he said. “We have 17 phenomenal athletes that I can’t wait to see where they are going to be in five or six or seven years.”