<h1><span lang=""style="font-size:35pt;">Cubs’ Stromberg packs a punch with small size</span></h1>

By Darren Steinke
Gordie Howe Sports Complex

Osher Stromberg works behind the plate as the Cubs catcher.

Osher Stromberg said being small has its advantages when it comes to playing baseball.

“Really how I see it, I get a lot of walks because of it,” said Stromberg with a chuckle. “It really helps me, if anything.”

The 16-year-old second-year catcher with the Saskatoon Cubs baseball team stands 5-foot-4 and weighs 130 pounds. He is the smallest player in the Saskatchewan Premier Baseball League’s under-18 AAA level. Due to standing only 5-foot-4, opposing pitchers have a harder time hitting the strike zone when Stromberg is at the plate helping his on base percentage.

With that noted, Cubs assistant coach Jordan Frey said people who see the Cubs play quickly find out Stromberg is a good player and one of the top catchers at the under-18 AAA level in Saskatchewan.

“I think his game calling is probably one of the best in the league,” said Frey. “Obviously, he is not the biggest guy behind the plate, but he has a really good arm.

“He is able to get outs for us. He is a leader. He blocks the balls back there no matter what.

“We can play him at catcher when it is plus-35 out for two games, and he doesn’t complain. He puts the gear on, and he gives it 110 per cent every day.”

Frey said the Cubs coaches were always excited about bringing Stromberg to the Cubs believing they were going to get a good player. The bench boss added the squad had to use some misdirection in order to bring him to the team.

Osher Stromberg, left, chats with pitcher Jared Tameling.

In the Saskatoon Zone for minor baseball, players entering their 15-year-old seasons going to the under-18 AAA level are divided between the city’s three teams in the Cubs, Diamondbacks and Giants via a draft. Players go though a tryout process including skill session evaluations and playing in exhibition games amongst the group trying out.

The tryout process usually occurs in September for the upcoming season in the next calendar year. After the September tryout process is held, the teams conduct a draft to distribute players.

Frey said Stromberg stood out, but the Cubs coaches put up a façade about being worried about Stromberg’s small size when they crossed paths with the coaches of the Diamondbacks and Giants. The Cubs coaches hoped that might create some doubt among the Diamondbacks and Giants coaches when it came to picking Stromberg, which would allow the Cubs to land him.

“That was kind of way we got him,” said Frey. “We had to fib a little bit and tell other teams he was a little small, and we were not sure how he will be.

“That was the way we got him was by making sure that other teams didn’t want him height wise. I think it has paid off for us.”

Stromberg said he became interested in playing baseball around age nine after his grandpa took him to a fastpitch softball tournament. He wanted to play the type of game where you used a bat to hit the ball, and it stuck with him how players in both sports were pumped to play.

“I just liked how everyone was so excited about it and really got amped up in the game,” said Stromberg.

Stromberg added there was another softball influence that drew him into becoming a catcher in baseball.

Osher Stromberg sets up for an at bat with the Cubs.

“At first, I was scared of the ball,” said Stromberg. “My mom told me she was a catcher when she played softball, so that is kind of what got me into that.”

Last season, Stromberg lived through a dream rookie campaign with the Cubs. The Cubs finished first overall in the SPBL standings with a 24-6 record and won the SPBL championship tournament hosted at Cairns and Leakos Fields.

In the tournament’s championship game played on July 24, 2022 at Cairns Field, the Cubs downed the Muenster-based East Central Red Sox 12-6 in front of about 1,000 spectators.

“That was pretty cool having everyone cheering for us, because we were the hometown team,” said Stromberg. “It was fun.”

The Cubs advanced to Baseball Canada’s Under-18 Nationals that were held in Grande Prairie, Alta., from August 18 to 21, 2022. They finished with a 4-2 overall record falling in the event’s bronze medal game 5-4 in extra innings to the Nanaimo, B.C., based Mid Island Pirates.

Overall, Stromberg couldn’t ask for a better experience for his first season with the Cubs.

“It is awesome,” said Stromberg. “I love all the players.

“We all blend really well together. The coaches are really into it. It is just all-around fun times.

“That was pretty cool being a part of the team that goes to nationals. Everyone was talking about it. To be able to be a part of that was pretty cool.”

This season Stromberg has called games well for his pitchers, made the throw to second base consistently to get base stealers out, stroked the ball well at the plate and run the base paths with conviction. He said it is more serious being a catcher at the under-18 AAA level compared to being a catcher in younger age groups.

Osher Stromberg looks for an opening to get a steal.

“At younger levels, they say anyone can be a catcher, but at this level, you really can’t,” said Stromberg, who will be going into his Grade 12 school year in the fall at Evan Hardy Collegiate. “You have to be able to focus and just really know what you are doing back there.”

When it comes calling games behind the plate, Stromberg said one of the big keys is communicating with the pitchers who take the mound to get a sense of where they are at that day.

“It is just seeing how the pitcher is feeling and what they can throw and what is good,” said Stromberg, who trains with Going Yard Training Centre at the Gordie Howe Sports Complex during the off-season. “(It is seeing) the hitters and how they hit certain pitches and what the count is.

“There are lots of factors that go into that.”

This season the Cubs have built a 16-5 record and are one of five teams in a dogfight for first place. The SPBL Under-18 AAA championship tournament will be held once again at Cairns and Leakos Fields from July 28 to 30. The winner of that event advances to Baseball Canada’s Under-18 Nationals, which will be held August 17 to 20 in Fort McMurray, Alta. 

As the season hits its stretch run, Frey said Stromberg will play a big part in how the Cubs finish out.

“It is going to be huge just the part with Osher catching,” said Frey, who added the Cubs will also use Jared Tameling at catcher too in provincials. “It is tough going down the stretch when it gets hot, and you’re catching day in and day out.

“It is nice that we have two catchers that we can use. You usually need two or three to get through a provincial weekend. He (Stromberg) works with all our pitchers.

“He is great with them. He is just a natural born leader. It is something that if he didn’t have it would put us behind the eight-ball a little bit.”

Osher Stromberg, centre, and the Cubs celebrate a win.

Stromberg is looking forward to playing out the stretch run and the SPBL championship tournament at home. He believes a few more good memories can be made.

“As a team, we’ve been playing good,” said Stromberg. “We’ve had a little less on the bats than last year, but defensively we’ve been great.

“Pitching wise, we’ve been great. We’re looking forward to the rest of it. I’m so excited.

“I’m ready to play in that provincial ball and having the fans in it and being really just into games. There is lots of tension in those games (last year). It is going to be great.”