No sooner had Alberta Health and the Provincial Government announced that their targets for a full re-opening of all sports venues had been met that the NCABL followed suit with an announcement of their own.  To no one’s surprise, the League with an impressive fifty-four consecutive year track record, will be taking to the diamonds on opening day, June 14th, just days after being given the green light to do so.  League Office released a partial schedule which will provide fans with a steady diet of baseball until the close of the regular season on August 13th.  Seven franchises will be vying for the four traditional post season berths including the youngest franchise from Fort Saskatchewan known as the Reds. Joining the Reds will be the St. Albert Cardinals and Westlock Red Lions who battled in a separate cohort last season to meet health requirements then in place but which will no longer impact this season’s alignment.  Joining them will be the reigning League Champion Sherwood Park Athletics, the Parkland Twins, the Edmonton Primeaus, and the Edmonton Athletics.  The League also announced the cancellation of the annual All-Star Game for the second time in as many seasons, partly due to the abbreviated season’s impact on player selection to the All-Star club.  Likewise, the League will not be activating its core of official scorers nor providing complete statistical coverage for all active players within the League during the regular season.  During the post-season, however, the League will be returning to full statistical coverage of all games played in both the LCSFS and LCFS series.  The post-season will begin on August 19th and conclude on August 29th, barring any rain postponements which would push the boys of summer into September as was the case last season.  The sound of baseballs popping into the leather and resonating after solid contact with a bat will once again be greeting visitors to the ball yards this summer.