One of Maple Ridge's own has been drafted into baseball's major leagues
Cameron Leiter, 21, who attended Albion Elementary as a child, and Samuel Robertson Technical, before moving to the United States to follow his dream when he was 15, was drafted to the LA Dodgers in the second round, 65th overall, on Sunday, July 13.
He was with his family in Florida, at his father's place, when he found out.
"(To) see your name up there with a major league organization, it's really cool," he said.
"Throughout the years, and especially this year, you're working towards the draft, and you're hearing things and whatnot, so you just kind of got to wait and watch how it plays out," explained the pitcher.
"I'm so grateful that I got picked in a great organization," added Leiter. "I'm really excited."
Leiter, who was born in Florida and holds dual citizenship, said he played hockey, basketball, and baseball while growing up in Maple Ridge.
However, he started leaning towards baseball around Grade 8, playing for the Ridge Meadows Royals, and then heading to the 黑马磁力 Blaze, before moving to the States.
Leiter comes from a long line of pro baseball players, starting with his father, Kurt Leiter, who played for Oklahoma State and then with the Orioles in the minor leagues; his uncles, Al Leiter and Mark Leiter Senior, both pitched in the major leagues, and his cousins are currently playing in the major leagues 鈥� Mark Leiter Junior plays for the New York Yankees, and Jack Leiter plays for the Texas Rangers.
"I'm really lucky, just all the knowledge and just knowing the real deep inside parts of the game," he said, about the pitchers in his family.
"To be be able to talk to people that, you know, have done it, have had long careers, guys that are doing it, right now. There's different knowledge and stories passed around that you can really take advantage of and utilize when you are trying to put it towards your dream," he added.
His parents, Nicole and Kurt Leiter, couldn't be prouder.
"It's a dream come true for Cam, and for us as a family. We are so incredibly proud of all his hard work and dedication," they said. "Watching him achieve this, after all his sacrifices and efforts, it's just amazing and we are so proud of him and excited for his future with the LA Dodgers."
According to Heavy.com, an independently owned website that focuses on news from the NFL, NBA, NHL, and MLB, Leiter, who played for Florida State until being drafted had a 4.63 ERA with 56 strikeouts in 35 innings in 2024, but hasn鈥檛 pitched since then because of a shoulder injury that required surgery.
Baseball is a tough game, Leiter acknowledged. The hitters are good and challenges are part of the dream, part of the job.
"It's really just about success once you start pitching. In a game it's about putting up the numbers and whoever is doing the best is going to be helping the big league team," he said, about winning games.
"Once I get started it's just about putting up zeros and putting my team in good positions to win."
