International baseball opportunity

Brady Grove

Times Contributor

 

Dervin Tanton and his son Zach Tanton will be heading to Chicago with the Calgary PBF Redbirds U13 baseball team, representing Canada in the McHenry County Youth Sports Association (MCYSA) International Championships starting on July 22.
Tanton is the team’s co-coach, while Zach will play first base, pitcher and right field positions.
“We are down to our last couple of practices,” said Tanton. “Everyone is chomping at the bit.”
The Redbirds are a travel team, meaning they play at many different places, and are no strangers to playing south of the border.
The team has played in Montana a few times this year and will play in Las Vegas this fall. Tanton said the team was in all the Montana games, but they were a little intimidated at first.
Tanton said the team just tries to focus on what they can do and control on the field and are hoping to carry that strategy forward into the MCYSA International Championships.
The MCYSA International Championships will feature two separate tournament sessions with the first taking place July 22-25 and the second during July 28-31. Each session is divided into U15, U13 and U11 teams. The tournament features teams from around the world including Japan, Brazil and Russia.
The Redbirds open the tournament against Puerto Rico on July 22. The Redbirds U15 team will also be attending the tournament.