After the last two seasons were cancelled amid the COVID-19 pandemic, the Victoria HarbourCats are anticipating welcoming fans back and returning to the diamond in 2022.
On Tuesday, the HarbourCats released their 2022 West Coast League schedule, with their home opener at Wilson’s Group Stadium in Royal Athletic Park set for Tuesday, May 31, 2022.
Wilson’s Group Stadium will be the site of 34 regular-season home games for the ‘Cats, who are anticipating being able to host West Coast League teams from both Canada and the U.S.A., barring any changes.
The team’s front office says that the organization has been patiently staying active amid the health crisis and is looking forward to a return to play — especially getting to host the brand new Island rivals, the Nanaimo NightOwls, for the first time.
‘We get to work on things we’ve wanted to work on for two years,” said Christian Stewart, Assistant GM, who handles ticketing aspects for the WCL club. “People have told us how much they have missed our games, the fun we bring to the community. They want to see Harvey, meet our new players, see Head Coach Todd Haney and the coaching staff. They want a hot dog and a beverage and to sing Sweet Caroline with thousands of others.”
The first-ever inter-Island clash with the Nanaimo NightOwls will be held in Victoria on June 7-9. The NightOwls were set to debut in 2021, but the pandemic put that on pause.
The ‘Cats front office says fans can anticipate the return of promotional nights too including Vancouver Island Construction Association bobblehead giveaways and the ever-popular fireworks games, with dates still to be announced.
Along with hosting the NightOwls for the first time, Victoria will also feature two other expansion teams on its 2022 schedule including the Kamloops NorthPaws and the Edmonton Riverhawks.
The schedule also features the return of familiar West Coast League teams including the Kelowna Falcons, Wenatchee AppleSox, Cowlitz Black Bears, Yakima Valley Pippins, Bellingham Bells, and Port Angeles Lefties.
“The biggest thing this schedule reminds us of is how appreciative we are of our season members and corporate partners who have stayed with us through this — each and every one,” said Stewart. “We all knew the situation and the work to keep the faith and be ready for a return to play. There hasn’t been much activity at our park since August of 2019, aside from our new CCBC college team Victoria Golden Tide, so we’re anxious to animate the facility again, with our loyal supporters and put on the full show that is HarbourCats baseball!”
The regular season will run throughout the summer with playoffs slated to begin August 9.
Season tickets are currently on sale with details at https://harbourcats.com/
The HarbourCats say that ten game flex-packs are also available, however, single-game tickets are not yet being sold at this time.
Graham Cox
