The Manitoba Baseball Hall of Fame has announced their inductees for 2024, and the 1965-1970 Kinosota Cougars are on the list.

Don Asham was a member of the team during that time, and he says he was responsible for organizing a lot of their events. He explains the team was quite proficient on both sides of the ball.

"We had a very good defensive team, and a great bunch of hitters. We put it all together in the month of June (1969) and had a fantastic month."

The team played in 28 games during that month, accumulating a 26-2 win-loss record. Few other records of the team's history exist, but Asham notes, their performance on the field wasn't the only thing the squad is remembered for.

"One of the big highlights was being asked to put on an exhibition game in 1970 for the Queen's visit for the Manitoba Centennial. That was definitely a highlight. There were so many of them, but that one stands out as being kind of different."

Asham shares that the induction into the Manitoba Baseball Hall of Fame is an achievement he holds very dear.

"It was very exciting for me. About seven years ago, I was involved as a member of another team, the Southeastern League All-Stars, we went out to Nanaimo, British Columbia for the Western Canadian Baseball Championship. That was exciting, but that wasn't really my team. The Kinosota Cougars was my team, so this is a very special one for me."

As the roster was made of working men, they would travel on Fridays and, if necessary, on Saturdays to tournaments, and play over the weekend. Once the tournament concluded, they would travel back home in time for work on Monday.

The Induction Ceremony will be held in Morden on June 15.

Kinosota CougarsDon Asham is in the bottom right in this photo