The unhittable left-hander, as he was known around baseball diamonds during his minor baseball years, Andrew Albers has a similar reputation as a 26-year-old, only on a much larger scale.
Albers was the starting pitcher for Canada Tuesday at the 2011 Pan American Games, as they took on the United States in the gold medal game.
Albers surrendered a run in the first inning, but settled in after that and gave his team a chance to get the offence going. Albers pitched 6.2 innings allowing just the one run on six hits with eight strikeouts. Albers was in line for the win, as team Canada rallied to score two runs in the top of the sixth and that 2-1 lead held up.
Albers gave way to former Blue Jays pitcher Scott Richmond, who earned the save after 2.1 innings.
The gold medal is the first for Canada at a major international baseball event at the senior level.
Albers was also a key part of the pitching staff during the IBAF Baseball World Cup in Panama earlier this month, where Canada won bronze.
According to Adam Morrissette of Baseball Canada, the team Albers pitched for is the most successful in Baseball Canada's history.
"Andrew Albers and Scotty Richmond came through for us tonight and my gosh, it's just a dream come true," Canada manager Ernie Whitt told Morrissette after the game.
After years of success at the minor baseball level, four years at the University of Kentucky where Albers still has his name etched in the record books, a year playing baseball in Quebec and now this season moving up from A to AA ball with the Minnesota Twins organization, the North Battleford product has proved true perseverance, dedication and skill can take you anywhere if you put your mind to it.
In July, after being called up from the Fort Myers Miracle to AA with the New Britain Rock Cats, Albers told the Regional-Optimist, "I just hope to continue to throw well and stay up in AA this season."
Not only did Albers stay in AA he had an impressive season, which landed him on the roster for Canada and helped the team become the most successful baseball team in Canadian history.
Not bad for a prairie kid.
