Latest news with #Warkentin
Winnipeg Free Press
07-05-2025
- Sport
- Winnipeg Free Press
Stellar reputation helps Goldeyes' reel in prospects
Matthew Warkentin didn't need much convincing to join the Winnipeg Goldeyes. The 28-year-old targeted the club as much as it did him. Warkentin, who grew up in Leamington, Ont., about 45 minutes east of Windsor, has kept tabs on Canadian teams in independent leagues since he turned pro in 2021. JOHN WOODS / FREE PRESS files Landen Bourassa will be the Winnipeg Goldeyes' starting pitcher on opening day against the Cleburne Railroaders. Earlier this spring, after being released from Rieleros De Aguascalientes of the Mexican Baseball League, he turned his attention to the American Association, and specifically the Goldeyes. It wasn't long before skipper Logan Watkins, who received a strong recommendation to look at the first baseman from Mexican League manager José Amado, came calling. 'I knew that I wanted to play at, most likely, the American Association, just because I think it's the best league, from everything I've heard from the guys,' Warkentin said after the Goldeyes' final dress rehearsal Tuesday afternoon against the Kansas City Monarchs in Missouri. 'I just know that the history of the Goldeyes is pretty— it goes back quite far.' It made for an easy recruitment for Watkins, who downplayed his role in helping Winnipeg remain an attractive destination for players. 'I mean, I'd say it's far less to do with me and more just the reputation the organization has. It's been one of the premier places in independent baseball for a long time, and that's absolutely outdated me,' said Watkins, who nearly guided the Fish from worst to first in his first full season as a professional manager. 'You have to give (GM) Andrew (Collier) and (owner) Sam (Katz) a lot of credit for keeping the reputation of this organization as high as it is.' Warkentin, who spent the last two summers playing for the Joliet Slammers of the Frontier League, joins a club that finished atop the West Division at 56-43 a year ago and backed up its top seeding all the way to the American Association championship series, where they ran into a buzzsaw in the Kane County Cougars. He is expected to provide some pop in a lineup that scraped by without much power last summer. The Goldeyes recorded a league-low 62 home runs, which limited their upside at the plate and put a lot of pressure on their starting pitchers. Fortunately, Watkins put together the best pitching staff in the league, which held opponents to a league-best 3.64 runs per game while allowing a league-low 816 hits. 'The Frontier League is definitely starting to produce a lot of players that translate really well to this league,' said Watkins. 'He had two really good years in the Frontier League, showed really good power numbers.' Defence has always come naturally to Warkentin, but an improved focus at the plate has paid dividends. The right-handed batter hit a combined 51 long balls over the last two years and led the circuit with 83 RBI last summer en route to being named the league's all-star first baseman. He also posted a .299 batting average in 2024. 'When you look at his numbers from previous seasons, (the home runs are) definitely the first thing that jumps out,' Watkins added. 'But then getting him here and watching him through spring, he's a really solid defensive-first baseman. He's not just a big guy over there, he's athletic, moves around, fills his position well. I think he'll be a big addition for us.' The real games begin for the Goldeyes Thursday in Cleburne, Texas, against the Railroaders (7 p.m.). Pitcher Landen Bourassa, one of the team's longest tenured players in his fifth season, has been told he will get the ball on opening day. It's the first time he's earned the first start. 'It's not a crazy thing or anything, because everybody's going to have their first starts and their first games,' said Bourassa, one of six Canadians and 13 returning players from last season. 'I think it's definitely a nod of confidence from Logan as the manager, and that means a lot. 'I think it doesn't matter really who's throwing, I guess, the mission is kind of the same, but I guess if they want me to take the ball first, then I guess it's my turn.' Following their four-game series in Texas, the Goldeyes head back to Missouri for a three-game set against the Monarchs before travelling to Lincoln, Neb., to face the Saltdogs for three contests. They will return for their first home game on May 20 against the Milwaukee Milkmen. Watkins knows it won't be easy for the Fish to reclaim their spot atop the West, despite returning nearly half of the roster from a year ago. The best collection of arms has been dismantled, with the most notable departure being the league's reigning Pitcher of the Year, Joey Matulovich, who retired earlier this year. The depth of this year's staff is also already being tested, as newcomers Aaron Shortridge and Marcel Renteria, two presumed starters, suffered season-ending injuries in their first spring throwing sessions. Meanwhile, Tyler Jans and Brady Rose, two young arms expected to be key contributors out of the bullpen, were injured before camp started and have not reported to the Goldeyes as they await more information on their future. 'The league, they should be finalizing roster cuts here in the next two days, so we'll be kind of on the lookout, looking to see if any guys come on waivers that we might claim, and we're kind of taking that day by day,' said Watkins. 'I'm not gonna lie, it's been a little bit of a tough-luck spring as far as injuries go, but that's part of the job.' Winnipeg Free Press | Newsletter Winnipeg Jets Game Days On Winnipeg Jets game days, hockey writers Mike McIntyre and Ken Wiebe send news, notes and quotes from the morning skate, as well as injury updates and lineup decisions. Arrives a few hours prior to puck drop. Sign up for The Warm-Up The most recent blow came last week when all-star infielder Dayson Croes signed with the MLB's San Francisco Giants. Ramón Bramasco will start most days at third base, while Ray-Patrick Didder and Andy Armstrong are used at shortstop and second base. Watkins, who was anticipating Croes' departure, remains optimistic about his bats. 'We still should have a really good defensive infield, and then, again, we'll see how everyone hits, but I still feel pretty good,' Watkins said. 'I mean, don't get me wrong, losing Dayson Croes is a huge loss, but we stacked the lineup, we feel like, with some bats that are going to be productive this year.' Joshua Frey-Sam Reporter Josh Frey-Sam reports on sports and business at the Free Press . Josh got his start at the paper in 2022, just weeks after graduating from the Creative Communications program at Red River College. He reports primarily on amateur teams and athletes in sports. Read more about Josh. Every piece of reporting Josh produces is reviewed by an editing team before it is posted online or published in print — part of the Free Press 's tradition, since 1872, of producing reliable independent journalism. Read more about Free Press 's history and mandate, and learn how our newsroom operates.
CBC
02-04-2025
- CBC
Impaired driver who ran stop sign sentenced to more than 4 years in prison for fatal collision
Family members of an 82-year-old woman from southern Manitoba wiped tears from their eyes and hugged each other inside a Winnipeg courtroom on Tuesday as the drunk driver responsible for causing her death was sentenced to four-and-a-half years in prison. Alexander Joseph Grogan from Stonewall, Man., sat silently in court with his hands clasped during his sentencing hearing before Manitoba provincial court Judge Keith Eyrikson after being convicted of impaired driving causing death and two counts of impaired driving causing bodily harm in the death of Marilyn Warkentin, 82. Court heard Grogan, who was 29 at the time of the collision on March 11, 2023, had drunk alcohol at a social event before he got into the driver's seat of his pickup truck and travelled southbound on Road 3 East with a passenger, 28. He blew through a stop sign without slowing down and collided with an eastbound SUV on Highway 415 containing three people from Teulon, Man., located about 55 kilometres north of Winnipeg. Warkentin, a passenger in the vehicle, died at the scene just southwest of Teulon. Warkentin's son, Terry Warkentin, who was driving the SUV, and her husband, Jacob Warkentin, were taken to hospital with non-life threatening injuries. Grogan and the passenger in his truck were not injured. "For whatever reason, Mr. Grogan blew straight through that stop sign and hit that car and deprived the Warkentin family of their matriarch, deprived the Warkentin family of a loving member, deprived not only Jacob and Terry of their peace of mind, but the extended family in total," Eyrikson said. He likened the impact of losing their loved one to an atomic bomb that has caused irreparable harm in their lives, and recalled how the family described their grief in the victim impact statements they made at a previous court hearing. An obituary posted online says Warkentin was a wife, mother, grandmother and great grandmother who loved to thrift, sew, crochet, work in the garden and read. Grogan was charged with four counts but two were stayed. He was tried on Aug. 13-14, 2024, on charges of driving impaired causing death and driving impaired causing bodily harm. No prior driving violations His lawyer, Matthew Gould, said Grogan invited a conviction, similar to pleading guilty but different in that pleading guilty entails formally admitting to the charges, making it hard to appeal. Court heard Grogan was driving 100 km/h in a 90 km/h zone and had a blood alcohol level of 0.02 over Manitoba's limit of 0.08. He had no prior driving violations under the Highway Traffic Act, no criminal record and was assessed as having a low risk to reoffend. Gould argued for a three-year sentence for impaired driving causing death, two years that would be served concurrently on charges of impaired driving causing bodily harm, and a two-year driving ban. Gould said he didn't believe a credible argument could be made for Grogan to receive a greater sentence because the aggravating factors in the case, including his blood alcohol level, his manner of driving and his driving history were not the most serious compared with other cases where drivers had double the blood alcohol limit and had been travelling at a higher speed. Crown attorney Brendan Roziere argued for a six-year sentence for impaired driving causing death with the same concurrent charges on causing bodily harm listed by the defence. "The court's ultimate task is to impose a fit and appropriate sentence that ensures that there's no free ride, that everything's being accounted for," Roziere said. Sending a message When Eyrikson delivered his decision in court, he said it was important for Grogan's sentence to send a message to deter people from drunk driving, speeding and going through stop signs or traffic lights. A message that this behaviour "will be treated with seriousness and that the community will look to know that people are not receiving slaps on the wrist," he said, adding that impaired driving is the leading criminal cause of death and injury in Canada. Court heard Grogan is a trained electrician who worked for the Canadian National Railway since 2017. While he chose not to speak in court, his pre-sentence report showed remorse, Eyrikson said. Grogan was joined by 17 members of his family, who sat teary-eyed, and had 101 letters of support, court heard. "Mr. Grogan, you have a very supportive family, there's no doubt about that," Eyrikson said. "They remain steadfastly behind you and wish that this had never happened." Eyrikson sentenced Grogan to four and half years in federal prison with a two-year concurrent sentence for causing bodily harm and a 10-year driving prohibition. He then turned to four Warkentin family members in court and two listening online. "While these words can't offer much, I hope at the end of the day, that this process can provide at least some peace," he said. "You all deserve to move past this."
