Eli Hansen grew up around the Weyburn Beavers.
His grandfather, Garnet, is the team president, while his father, Tyrel, was a star pitcher with the Beavers during his college days.
As the youngest Hansen trotted out to leftfield for his first Western Canadian Baseball League start with the Beavers on Aug. 2 against the Medicine Hat, the enormity of the situation wasn’t lost on him.
Three generations of the Hansen family were getting their day in the sun at Tom Laing Field.
With many family and friends in the stands, Eli went 3-for-5 with a double, run scored, and three runs batted in as his hometown team doubled up the visitors 14-7.
“It’s always my goal to make my family and especially my dad proud when I play,” he told Saskatchewan Dugout Stories. “With dad being a former Beavers pitcher, it was super-cool to be the second-generation player in that league.”
It was a game and a moment the entire family won’t forget any time soon, as they hope for more memories to be made in the years to come.
THE 10TH PLAYER
Garnet first started volunteering with the Beavers in 2003 and remembers taking his grandson to games as a four-year-old.
“I remember him saying that his two favourite teams were the Toronto Blue Jays and the Weyburn Beavers,” the proud grandpa laughed. “He sometimes wondered when the Beavers were going to play the Blue Jays.”
As he got older, Eli says he always got the latest gear and the best experiences at the local ballpark, hoping to one day suit up for the Beavers.
“My favourite childhood memory was being ‘The 10th Player’ and throwing out the first pitch,” he recalled. “I remember getting my glove autographed by all the players and wishing I could play at this level one day.”
The youngest Hansen progressed through the Weyburn Minor Ball system while honing his skills at Rival Cage.
JUST A TASTE
Eli’s first opportunity to suit up with the Beavers came late in the 2024 season as an affiliate player.
After WCBL All-Star utilityman Ian Heck singled to leftfield in the bottom of the ninth of a game against the Regina Red Sox on Aug. 5, head coach Cam Williams summoned the bright-eyed high schooler to come in as a pinch-runner.
Unfortunately, River Smith hit a groundball to shortstop Matthew Fox, who flipped it over to second baseman Jackson Romero to get Hansen on the force-out, ending the game as a 6-0 Red Sox victory.
Eli returned to the Beavers after his high school graduation, hoping to get another shot to play some games.
His first call came at home on July 21 against the Saskatoon Berries as a pinch-hitter, going 0-for-2 with a strikeout.
Over the next week, he found himself coming into ball games as a substitute against Swift Current and Regina.
Ahead of the Aug. 2 home game, Williams told Hansen he would be getting his first start at home.
“I found out about it about a half-hour before first pitch and definitely had some nerves,” Eli said. “I had gotten a couple of at-bats in late innings of games before, so I knew what to expect, and was just honestly really excited to play in front of the hometown crowd.”
TIPS FROM POPS
Hansen’s father, Tyrel, says he never had any intentions or expectations of Eli getting any playing time this season as a high school player.
When the youngster’s 18U ‘AAA’ season with the Southeast Twins came to an end, he was just excited for his son to just dress with the Beavers and be around the older players to see how they go about their business.
After learning that Eli was getting the start against Medicine Hat, Tyrel says he was able to lean on his own experience, having played with the Beavers during their run to the championship in 2003, which they lost to the Mavericks.
“My advice to him was to enjoy the moment and try to soak up the knowledge from the coaches and players around him,” Tyrel said. “The league talent level is so much higher than when I played, so I really just hoped he could learn one thing and keep his head above water.”
Heading into the game, Eli says his game-plan was to simplify things and trust his abilities by putting good swings on pitches.
After taking the field for the first couple of innings, his first at-bat came against Mavericks starter Gary Dornan in the bottom of the second inning, where he struck out on five pitches.
His next at-bat came against Ryan Harney in the bottom of the fifth, where he picked up a single on an 0-2 pitch.
“I just felt relieved,” Eli said. “It felt amazing to get on the board and help the team.”
While he didn’t end up scoring in that inning, the young outfielder was back up in the bottom of the sixth inning with the Beavers trailing 3-2 and threatening with runners on second and third.
THE DOUBLE
In hopes of limiting the damage, the Mavericks made a call to the bullpen to bring in senior right-hander Luke Barrientos.
He and Hansen battled with a foul ball, called strike, ball and another foul before the young prospect took a pitch for a ride.
His double scored both Robert Gurney and Owen Mayencourt to tie the ball game at 4.
“When he got his first hit, it was a huge sigh of relief,” Tyrel said. “Then to come up and hit a two-run double to take the lead, we were beyond excited for him to actually help the team out.”
The Mavericks bounced back with four runs of their own in the top of the seventh, while the Beavers responded with another pair in their half of the inning.
Then Hansen struck again in the bottom of the eighth with an RBI single in a seven-run inning, putting the Beavers up for good to finish with a 14-7 victory.
INSPIRING THE NEXT GENERATION
Hansen finished the season with the Beavers, getting two more starts on the road against Regina and Swift Current, collecting two more hits and an RBI.
His final season stats line includes a .313 batting average with four singles, one double, four RBI and three runs scored.
Grandpa Garnet says it’s “unreal” getting to see a second Hansen generation suit up for the team he’s been involved with for so long.
“If there’s such a thing as a ‘Baseball God,’ he was definitely looking down on our family that day,” he said. “I couldn’t have been more proud or thankful to have experienced that as a grandparent.”
The Saskatchewan Baseball Hall of Fame member, who was inducted in 2017, says it’s important for local players like Eli to see that they can have the opportunity to play high-level baseball as well and aspire for bigger things in the game.
Tyrel adds it meant a lot to the family, especially his dad who spent years volunteering with the team and with baseball in Weyburn, adding “no matter what comes of Eli’s playing days, we will remember this forever.”
For Eli, he has some big plans as he heads to North Dakota State College of Science for his first semester in the fall.
“Having some more success at the plate gives me more confidence as I head to college,” said the 18-year-old soon-to-be college freshman. “I’m grateful for the opportunity from the Beavers and it was an amazing experience to do it with my hometown team.”
In the blink of an eye, a young boy running around Tom Laing Park has turned into a young man inspiring the next generation of Weyburn ball players to dream bigger.
A special shout-out to Sam at Highway 39 Photography for supplying us with the main image for this story. Make sure to check out her work on Instagram.
Tales of Baseball 
Congratulations to Eli, Tyrel and Melissa, Garnet and Shelley, and families. Proud moment! Cliff and Debbie
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