On September 27, Yves and Chantal Lagassé proudly witnessed a moment few parents ever get to see: their three teenage sons, playing for different baseball teams, enjoying the unique opportunity to play against each other at a high-level game in Grand Rapids, Minnesota.
On this day, the Home Run Sports Academy of Winnipeg was invited to play against Itasca College in Grand Rapids, an event which brought together all three sons.
Stéphane, Luc, and Cédric have been playing baseball for most of their lives. Each of them played on the A and AA divisions for Seine River as well as on their high school teams at Ecole Gabrielle-Roy. They each also made the cut for the AAA level and went on to play with the Carillon Sultans.
This year, Luc and Cédric, ages 17 and 15, played their way all the way up to the Home Run Sports Academy Travel, a U18 team that plays from September through March.
Their older brother, 19-year-old Stéphane, is in his second year at Itasca Community College in Minnesota and plays on the varsity team there.
“We were thrilled to hear the news [of the match-up], as this would be the first and only time our three sons would play each other,” says Chantal. “Cédric had the opportunity to tag his older brother out at second base during the second game. Luc crushed the ball and Cédric played an amazing defensive game.”
Chantal and her husband Yves were already baseball enthusiasts prior to having a family. Each of them played for their community teams during their youth. Later, as a husband and wife team, they played together on a slow pitch team from the late 1990s until 2013 when life began to get busy with their sons’ baseball endeavours.
“The passion our sons have for the sport of baseball is unbelievable,” Chantal says. “They practice and play hard every time they step onto a field, no matter the level of team they are playing on. They also workout at least three times a week to be physically stronger for the sport.”
Chantal recalls years and years where she and Yves dedicated themselves to driving to practices and games within the province and beyond. Their baseball travels have taken them to Saskatchewan, Alberta, Quebec, and Ontario. They also assisted in hosting the AAA Westerns on two occasions, which allowed them to build connections with other baseball parents nationwide.
“We wouldn’t want it any other way,” Chantal says. “They love the sport and we have met so many amazing parents.”
Luc, who graduates from high school in 2020, is already checking out his options for colleges in the United States with noteworthy baseball curriculums. In 2022, Cédric intends to do the same.