Dorchester, Ont., native David Mendham named Canadian Baseball Network’s college Player of the Year

Note from Kevin Glew, blog founder: I grew up in Dorchester, Ont. So this special to me. Congratulations to David and the Mendham family!

Official Canadian Baseball Network Press Release

Canadian Baseball Network unveils 2020 Canadian college Player of the Year and annual All-Canadian college teams

Toronto, Ont. – The Canadian Baseball Network (CBN) announced its 2020 Canadian college Player of the Year and its 21st annual All-Canadian college teams on Wednesday.

David Mendham (Dorchester, Ont.), who batted .493 and had 36 hits and 26 RBIs in 21 games for the Connors State Cowboys in Warner, Okla., has been named CBN’s college Player of the Year. The 6-foot-3 infielder received first-place votes on 54 of 62 (87.1%) ballots cast by a large panel of scouts, coaches, executives, former players, writers and broadcasters.

Mendham becomes the first player from Ontario to win the award since Connor Panas (Toronto, Ont.) in 2015.

In a spring season shortened by the COVID-19 pandemic, Mendham topped all Canadian college players in hits (36) and finished second in doubles (10). He was also third among Canucks in RBIs (26) and on-base plus slugging percentage (OPS) (1.401) and scored 31 runs and stole six bases.

Mendham, who honed his skills with the Ontario Nationals and is the son of former Intercounty Baseball League star Dan Mendham, was in his sophomore season with the Cowboys. In his freshman campaign, the previous year, he batted .422 with 14 home runs and 85 RBIs in 61 games and was rewarded with CBN All-Canadian Third Team honours.

The left-handed hitting Mendham spent the summer of 2020 with the Savannah Bananas, a college team in Georgia where he continued to excel at the plate, batting .338 with 25 hits in 22 contests. He is set to play this spring for the University of South Carolina Gamecocks in Columbia, S.C.

Mendham also claimed the third base position on CBN’s All-Canadian First Team. He is one of six players from Ontario on the squad. The First Team also boasts three Alberta players, and one player each from B.C., Quebec and Saskatchewan.

The Canadian Baseball Network’s 21st annual All-Canadian First Team (as noted below) consists of five NCAA players, six NJCAA players and one NAIA player.

The players on the All-Canadian teams represent the best of the 775 Canadians playing the majority of their schedule south of the border.

First Team

LHP – Graham Brunner (Sherwood Park, Alta.), Barton Community College, NJCAA
RHP – Logan Hofmann (Muenster, Sask.), Northwestern State University of Louisiana, NCAA
RP – Taisei Yahiro (Abbotsford, BC), Yavapai College, NJCAA
C – Max Hewitt (Midhurst, Ont.), Oklahoma State University, NCAA
1B – Ari Sechopoulos (Windsor, Ont.), College of Charleston, NCAA
2B – Tyler Scott (Calgary, Alta.), Bryan College, NAIA
3B – David Mendham (Dorchester, Ont.), Connors State College, NJCAA
SS – Ben Jones (Toronto, Ont.), Mineral Area College, NJCAA
OF – Owen Diodati (Niagara Falls, Ont.), University of Alabama, NCAA
OF – Brayden Cust (Edmonton, Alta.), Colby Community College, NJCAA
OF – Alex Bedard (Levis, Que.), Southwestern Oklahoma State University, NCAA II
DH – Ryan Dos Santos (Mississauga, Ont.), Dodge City Community College, NJCAA

Second Team

LHP – Antoine Jean (Montreal, Que.), University of Alabama, NCAA
RHP – Connor Irvine (Victoria, BC), Lassen Community College, NJCAA
RP – Ben Abram (Georgetown, Ont.), University of Oklahoma, NCAA
C – Garrett Takamatsu (Burlington, Ont.), University of Central Oklahoma, NCAA Div. II
1B – Graeham Luttor (Toronto, Ont.), Midway University, NAIA
1B – Tyler McWillie (Waltrous, Sask.), Colby Community College, NJCAA
2B – Liam Hicks (Toronto, Ont.), Arkansas State University, NCAA
3B – Déric Lamonagne (Saint-Amable, Que.), Clarendon College, NJCAA
SS – Tyler Small (Mississauga, Ont.), Northeastern Oklahoma A&M College, NJCAA
OF – Denzel Clarke (Pickering, Ont.), Cal State University Northridge, NCAA
OF – Ryan Humeniuk (Stonewall, Man.), University of Louisiana-Monroe, NCAA
OF – Cooper Davis (Mississauga, Ont.), Vanderbilt University, NCAA
DH – Chris Procopio (Toronto, Ont.), Monroe Community College, NJCAA
DH – Malik Williams (Toronto, Ont.), Lipscomb University, NCAA

Third Team

LHP – Evan Wilde (Airdrie, Alta.), Cloud County Community College, NJCAA
RHP – Jordan Marks (Bright’s Grove, Ont.), Upstate University of South Carolina, NCAA
RP – Jonah Offman (Thornhill, Ont.), John Hopkins University, NCAA Div. III
C- Evan Magill (Ajax, Ont.), Monroe Community College, NJCAA
1B – Matt Coutney (Edmonton, Alta.), Old Dominion University, NCAA
2B – Daniel Carinci (Ajax, Ont.), Kansas State University, NCAA
3B – Anthony Quirion (Dixville, Que.), Lamar University, NCAA
SS – Trei Cruz (Toronto, Ont.), Rice University, NCAA
OF – Jacob Ervin (Mississauga, Ont.), Northeastern Oklahoma A&M College, NJCAA
OF – Jordan Nwogu (Ottawa, Ont.), University of Michigan, NCAA
OF – Dayton Peters (Abbotsford, BC), Mineral Area College, NJCAA
DH – Nolan Machibroda (Saskatoon, Sask.), Southeastern University, NAIA

Sixty-two baseball experts from Canada and the U.S. voted for the Canadian Baseball Network’s annual college All-Canadian teams which have been recognized since 2000. The Canadian Baseball Network is regarded as the premier source of information on Canadian college players. Matt Betts, Adam Morissette and George Farelli were the primary statisticians for this project.

For more detailed information about each member of the Canadian Baseball Network’s 21st annual college All-Canadian team, visit https://www.canadianbaseballnetwork.com/.