Binkley claims gold at baseball's Canada Cup

Tyler Binkley of the Soo Midget Black Sox of Soo Select Baseball Association won the Gold Medal game with Team Ontario at the Canada Cup Baseball Tournament in Medicine Hat, Alberta on the weekend.

Binkley was one of 18 elite players on Team Ontario that competed in the Canada Cup Tournament.

Team Ontario started to tournament with a loss to Team BC by 5-4 decision before rebounding later in the day versus Team Alberta with a 14-6 victory, where Binkley came on in relief and pitched two and 1/3 innings while striking out three batters. Team Ontario continued their winning ways by defeating the defending champions from Québec by a score of 6-4 before eliminating Team Manitoba from semi-final action with a 10-0 win to conclude round robin play.

In semi-final action, Team Ontario was partnered against the host Team Alberta with Ontario emerging with a 10-6 decision. Team Ontario put the game away with back-to-back four run innings in the fourth and fifth, to break the 2-1 game wide open.

Team Ontario advanced to the Gold Medal game versus Team BC, the only team Ontario had lost to in the tournament.

In the championship game, each team took turns holding a one run lead until Team Ontario, down by one run in the top of the eighth inning, scored two runs in the bottom of the inning to win the gold medal and the tournament.

Binkley, along with 10 of his Team Ontario teammates, have been invited to the National Junior Evaluation Program tryouts.

Only 40 players have been invited to the camp in Florida in October of this year, with the final 32 members that will make up the National Junior Team.