The North Battleford Beavers are set to sink their cleats back into the sand next week, and expectations are high.
Rory Gregoire, coach and pitcher for the Beavers, said a good core group of returning players and experience should pave the way for a better season.
"We dealt with injury problems, going into this year it looks like we're all healthy, if we can stay that way, there's no reason we can't improve on last year," he said.
The team finished with a respectable 10-7 record in 2012, but Gregoire wants to see them take the next step.
"We're getting to the point where we're kind of average towards the league we need to make a push for the top four," he said.
The Beavers have caught a break early, starting the season off against the Mervin Flyers, a team with only two wins last season, but the Beavers won't be taking anything for granted.
"Mervin's a good club, they just struggled the last few years. I guess we'll just see what happens and we can go from there," Gregoire said.
So is there added pressure to beat a team that hasn't played well in recent years?
"They could come out, beat us, no I wouldn't worry," he said. "If we start the season 0-6 then maybe I'll push the panic button, until that happens, I think we'll just take it one game at a time."
Gregoire won't be able to make it to the first few games and it's not because of injury. The weather threw off his farming schedule, which is priority number one.
"This year with the late fall and late spring I can't go play baseball when I've got seeding to do," he said. "That's why the first few games, take it for what it's worth, it's not going to be full of meaning."
Gregoire said the Beavers probably won't be able to field a full team until June, with three or four of their players involved in the farming industry.
He's confident in his club, he even said there's no reason the Beavers can't knock off the four-time defending champion Lloydminster Meridian Twins. In order to achieve that kind of success, the team's pitching will need to take it to the next level.
"Pitching I wouldn't say is our strong point, our top two I would say is and can contend with anyone in the league, after that, I'd say we're thin," Gregoire said.
The team opens the season May 21 at the North Battleford Civic Centre. First pitch is set for 7:30.
