It's been a solid year for the Deloraine Royals and as the regular season is quickly coming to an end, player Eric Sorensen believes the team is ready to build toward a solid playoff run.
For Sorensen, it's already year 10 as a member of the Royals and he says time has flown by in the best way. "It's been so much fun," he says with a smile. "Lots of learning, lots of changes with guys coming in and out. It's been a great time. The team has had some struggles here and there, but we battle through it as a group. Can't complain at all."
Starting back in high school, Sorensen says not much has changed even though he's more of a veteran now. "I don't think it's changed, everyone has always contributed at the same level on the team. It's nice and we love when the young guys are asking questions, but everyone relies on each other, so I don't really see it as a mentorship. It can work out that way sometimes, even though it doesn't feel like it."
Representing the community has always meant a great deal to Sorensen and he says when fans do come out, the team notices and appreciates it. "It's been hit and miss sometimes. Weekend games are a lot better for fans, but we always know the community has our back. Those weekend games are packed, it's a full crowd and we never have an empty spot along the sidelines, it's so great. The playoffs come and we have the whole community behind us. We grind for them. I can't give enough compliments when it comes to our fans, they're really the best."
While the record isn't where Sorensen and the Royals would prefer, he says the competition this year has been fierce and his team believes they can catch fire at the right time. "It's been tough. You have the power houses in Oak River and Boissevain out there, but I mean, we hold our own. We fight every game and sure, some may not go our way, but we have the numbers, so we just go out there and put forward our best effort, hopefully coming out of those battles with a win."
Sorensen can't help but smile when he talks about the rivalries that have formed over the years and continue even now. "It's a lot of fun, a lot of fun. The biggest rivalry is maybe Boissevain. They come to our barn and we go there, it's just a dog fight. Back and forth, whether it's the banter going on during the game or the game, the best part is that everyone gets along after the game. You can sit down and have a beer at the bar if you need to. It's a lot of fun, it really adds a lot of emotion to games and I can't love it any more, it's just really great."
A couple of games left for the Royals await and Sorensen has a couple areas where he believes the team can take a positive step. "We want to stick with things, form good habits, get the bats hot. Our defense has been incredible this year, pitching has been good, even though we've been tagged up but everyone has bad games. It's a matter of keeping true to the team, getting things rolling and go into the playoffs feeling good. We want to knock these last three games off the schedule and go into playoffs hot."
The final regular season home game for the Royals is coming up on Friday and Sorenson says a packed house would mean a lot to the team. "It would be so huge. I know we had a rivalry kind of develop last year against Rivers. We had a great turnout for those games, especially in the playoffs. I mean, we want to get that game off to a high note and keep things rolling from there."
With lots of ball left this season and in his career, Sorensen says he still makes sure to take time to appreciate that he can keep playing the sport he loves in for a town that has embraced him. "It means a lot to me. I didn't grow up my whole life here but the people have accepted me right away and it means a lot to represent as a Royal. I want to keep giving it all I got and leave it all out there on the field. It means a ton for me to do it and I've loved every moment."
The Royals schedule can be found here: South West Baseball League - Schedule