ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. – Dondrae Bremner is a promising and ambitious prospect who knows what he wants.
Bremner, 16, was selected to the Canadian U18 junior national baseball team after impressing scouts and head coach Greg Hamilton at the annual Toronto Blue Jays Tournament 12 held at the Rogers Centre last September.
Being chosen to represent Canada as one of the nation’s best amateur baseball players did not seem realistic to the infielder just a few years ago.
“It’s an amazing feeling, I did not imagine myself playing for my country three or four years ago but now that it is here I am overwhelmed,” Bremner said after practice.
Bremner attends Bill Crothers Secondary School in Markham, Ont., a specialized athletic based institution that provides elite student-athletes access to its state-of-the-art $32-million sports complex.
It was pretty much in the genes to play baseball
However, elite student-athletes are not allowed to play their primary sport in order to keep the playing field level for the other schools in the region, Bremner is allowed to practice with the baseball team.
The playing experience with the junior national squad will be vital for the young shortstop as the jjuniors compete against minor league players from pro Major League organizations and on March 17, a Blue Jays split squad, that included some players on the MLB roster.
Wearing the red and white national team jersey is an honour for the wiry six-foot-two Scarborough, Ont., native, who was introduced to the game by his parents.
“Both of my parents played (baseball). I have been around the game my whole life, that is what got me started,” Bremner said. “It was pretty much in the genes to play baseball.”
Playing the game was not all that was inherent in the Bremner household as his family instilled the importance of education at an early age.
Coincidentally, a minor arm injury sustained by the infielder inspired his scholastic path.
“I had arm pain from throwing and I visited a specialist,” Bremner said “It seemed like a pretty cool job.
“I would like to study sports medicine, either in physiotherapy or athletic training. My aunt is also in that field, so it pretty much runs in the family.”
Either path he chooses to follow in his future should lead him to success. After all, it is in the Bremner genetics.
Twitter: @allsportsalex