It all started on a Sunday afternoon when some kids got together at the south end grounds to practice and form a ball team. The boys were having a hard time coming up with a name that they could all agree on, so it was decided that each of them would pick a name and enter it into the hat. They did this and the name drawn out was “Cloverleafs”, at the time the only guy who liked the choice was Royce Berg, because he had entered that name.
Dressing in uniforms that consisted of black sweat pants and white t-shirts, the young team played exhibition games and took part in some tournaments. The Cloverleafs first started to play organized ball in 1951 when the joined the Central Manitoba Baseball Association (CMBA). The start of the 1953 season heralded the beginning of a dynasty which will not soon be forgotten by baseball fans in the area. From ’53 through to ’60 the Cloverleafs, under playing manager Jimmy “Slugger” Slevin, won 8 CMBA championships and were a feared baseball machine. They were solid in all departments with fellows like Tom Town, Don Hunter, Gerry MacKay, and Bob Wilson leading the way at the plate. To get them through the infield against them was some feat as they had vacuum cleaners like Rudy Stritz, Dave “Chips” Adams, and Frank McKinnon to grab anything that was near them. And then there was the mound staff of Mort Wright, Jack “JD” Denbow, Gerry Muirhead, Lorne Lilley, and Morley McFarlane. In ’57 “The Tank” (Morley) set a record when he won 21 games out of 23 starts!
It was not until 1961 that the Cloverleafs helped develop the Manitoba Senior Baseball League (MSBL) and is now the only remaining original team. The ‘Leafs ran into a few lean years in the early ‘60’s, due mainly to a lack of good pitching. The start of the ’66 season saw manager Irv Powers put a team in the field that went on to win the league and the provincial championship. This was the start of another dominating era for the Cloverleafs.
Much like the teams of the ‘50’s the ‘Leafs were solid at every position, the only players left over from the glory days of the ‘50’s were Tom Town, Mort Wright, Lloyd Brown, Bob Wilson, and Gerry MacKay. The veterans led the team, backed up by the superb pitching of Bob Thompson. The start of the ’67 season saw the defending champions even stronger with the additions of players like Bill Chapple, Warren Veale, Mike Repin, Maurice Oakes, Roy McLachlan, and Jack Borotsik. This club, along with the addition of Billy Gray, Dave Bender, and Rick McFayden in 1969, went on to win four championships in the next five years. The only club to stop them was the Riverside Canucks in 1968.
The Cloverleafs capped off five fine seasons with a Canadian Championship in 1971. The ‘Leafs didn’t taste victory very often after the ’71 season, they managed to win the league pennant in 1974 with a 19-7 record, but lost in the first round of playoffs to the eventual champion Riverside Canucks. After four seasons without a championship the ‘Leafs ended the drought in 1976. The club was 16-9 in the regular season and got hot in the playoffs, led by the slick infield of Dennis Weibe, Bert Ready, Bill Chapple, and Rick Cruise. The power hitting of Rick Hlady, Rick McFayden, and Bob Thompson, and the fine pitching of Hlady and Brian “Lefty” Hodgson were also huge contributions to the championship season. Hodgson put his name in the record book during the playoffs when he set a pitching record that may never be broken. Hodgson started and completed eight games, winning them all. He was awarded the Playoff MVP honors for his efforts.
Another 4 seasons would pass before the ‘Leafs would rise to the occasion once again and win their 15th championship in 1980. Rick McFayden was the Playoff MVP and guided the leafs to the League and Provincial championships with his strong hitting and pitching. The team also had a threat on the base paths as Dale Foster set a league record with five stolen bases in one game. Second baseman Bert Ready contributed, not only with an outstanding year in the field, but also as a steady mentor to rookies Foster, Wayne Coates, Grant Griffin, Ray McLachlan, and Blair Murray.
The late ‘80’s brought new team management and a new younger team to the field, however the ‘Leafs were unable to bring home a championship for their fans.
The Cloverleafs would taste MSBL victory again in 1994, 95, & 96. The team was led by perennial all star Shane Moffatt. In ’96 the ‘Leafs defeated the pennant winning Neepawa Farmers, to claim their third straight MSBL title, they also captured the provincial title that same year defeating the St. Boniface B’s.
The 90’s also saw the emergence of a new star, Jamie Hodgson, who began to mature and lead a young ‘Leafs team into battle each and every night. The team went through its share of adversity through the late 90’s, but always put a competitive team on the field. 1999 saw Hodgson win the MSBL batting title with an incredible .507 batting average.
The new millennium began for the Cloverleafs on a great note as the team went to the league final to face the Birtle Blue Jays. The ‘Leafs, however, were unable to capture a championship losing to the Jays in 5 games (3-2). Jamie Hodgson was the leagues batting champion once again. 2001 brought on another strong Cloverleaf baseball team, as they captured the leagues regular season pennant. The Cloverleafs were, once again, led by Hodgson who led the league in Home Runs (8) and finished with a batting average on .487. A young pitcher named Curtis Morrison was the ‘Leafs top hurler and finished with a 4 – 1 record. The fellas failed to bring home the title, falling to their cross town rivals the Brandon Marlins four games to three. The next year was another extremely successful regular season for the Cloverleafs, finishing 19-5, good enough for their second straight MSBL pennant. This was the first year the MSBL switched back to wood bats, this didn’t seem to bother Hodgson as he went on to another league batting title. The Cloverleafs also owned the MSBL’s top pitcher in 2002 as Tom Klapp finished the season with an amazing record of 10 wins and only 1 loss! All the regular season success, but still no glory as the ‘Leafs fell to the Birtle Blue Jays in the final 4 games to 2. The Cloverleafs regrouped in 2003 and again won the league pennant, and squared of with the cross town rival, Ora Dental Marlins, in the final. Again it was heartbreak as the boys were defeated in game six in extra innings.