Gibsons native Ryan Dempster came home last week and was treated to a warm homecoming at the park he called home for many years.
Last Thursday, Dempster was the guest of honour at an event hosted by the Gibsons Minor Baseball Association (GMBA) and the Town of Gibsons at Brothers Park.
The ceremony, which also featured many current young ball players and coaches, was held to commemorate renaming the Field of Dreams to Ryan Dempster Field.
"It is fitting, since both Ryan and the field represent the community," said GMBA president Bill Campbell.
"I would like to thank Ryan for strengthening our baseball community. Many of us recall when Ryan gave up his own holiday time to run a pitching clinic during the Christmas holidays. He financially supported our batting cage, which is now used by GMBA and other community baseball organizations. On an ongoing basis, Ryan sponsors our Midget All-star team. He is a tremendous role model for our players and our community.
"I have been involved with GMBA for 12 years, and during that time Ryan has always been spoken of with pride and respect. Many of our players dream of playing professional baseball, and for them, Ryan is living their dream. He is proof that with hard work and commitment, a player from a small community can achieve his dream."
Dempster said he was honoured by the gesture and was more than happy to give something back to the community.
"It's all about giving back to where you played," Dempster said.
"There is still a long ways to go to get the park and the facility up to better standards where the association can then start hosting tournaments and attracting more teams from off-Coast. This is where I started to chase my dreams. It's important to give something back to the game."
Dempster is coming off a successful season with the Chicago Cubs. He tied a Cubs record by converting his last 19 save opportunities and ended the season with a streak of 21 one-three scoreless innings - the longest by a Cubs reliever since 1989.
He didn't allow a run in 47 of his last 55 games, allowing just 11 runs, 39 hits and 26 walks during that span. Overall, he converted 33 saves in 35 chances this season and finished the year 4-0 with a 1.85 ERA in 57 relief appearances.
Last week, he was named Major League Baseball's outstanding relief pitcher for September. He was a perfect 13 for 13 in save opportunities, allowing no earned runs in 16 outings. He struck out 19 batters over 15 two-three innings and allowed only five walks.
The Cubs were certainly impressed with Dempster's season - so much so, they locked up the right-hander to a $15.5 million U.S. three-year contract extension on Oct. 1.
"The new deal is fantastic," Dempster said. "I probably wouldn't have hurt myself if I would have tested the free agent market, but we love Chicago. The city, the people, the ball club are all just fantastic. "I want to be there when the Cubs get into the playoffs. Can you imagine what a thrill it would be to get the last out for the Cubs and win the World Series? There is something to be said for loyalty. The Cubs have treated me very well, so in the end, there was no real tough decision to make."
Despite Dempster having a great year personally, the Cubs as a team struggled throughout the year with inconsistency and failed to make the playoffs.
"Obviously, everyone wants to get to the post season," he said. "We didn't do a good job as a whole for the most part of the season. We played very inconsistently. We'd go on a long winning streak, and then we'd hit a bad patch and go on a long losing streak. You can't play that way and expect to contend, especially in our division."
Right now, the St. Louis Cardinals and Houston Astros (both teams in the central division with the Cubs) are battling for the National League pennant and a trip to the World Series.
"When you factor in Milwaukee, Cincinnati and even Pittsburgh, every game is tough, everyone battles hard," Dempster said. "It was one of those years when injuries hurt us hard. It's not really an excuse, more of a contributing factor to the whole season."
Dempster said he relished his role as the closer for the second half of the season. He hopes to build on his late season success for next year.
"It was a lot of fun and a real challenge for me," he said. "I had some early success and it gave me some confidence. Part of it was me making the pitches and the other part was getting quality defence behind me."Dempster's off-season plans include lots of rest and relaxation at his home in Colorado.
"It's time to kick back and recharge the battery," he said. "After Christmas, I'll start to throw again and get things cranked up for spring training. I don't expect a lot of changes with the team. When healthy, I think our pitching stacks up with everyone in our division. If we could add a solid lead-off hitter and maybe a few guys with some speed, that would help a lot. If you can get guys on base early, then it sets the table for our heavy hitters. We can get it done. I have all the confidence in the world that this team can be successful. I want to be there when it happens."
