There is never a bad time for a local baseball prospect to receive that phone call from a recruiter, informing the player that an offer is on the table.

For Sudbury native A.J. Dubeau, the call could not have come at a better time.

Dubeau and Ryan Spencer were celebrated last week as the two most recent Sudbury Voyageurs program products to take the next step in their careers on the diamonds, moving on to the Prairie Baseball Academy (Lethbridge, Alberta) and Graceland University (Lamoni, Iowa) respectively.

A quad accident in the fall of 2024 would leave Dubeau with a badly broken leg - and with visions of his baseball dreams quickly dissipating before him.

"Sitting in that room with my leg in a cast, elevated on the pillows and with nothing left to watch on Netflix, I felt that was it, that I would never step foot on the ball field again," Dubeau recalled.

"I was so down on myself."

Then came the call from Josh Burgmann (pitching coach at the PBA) that changed everything.

"It gave me the motivation that I needed," said Dubeau. "I don't think I would have recovered nearly as fast had it not been for that."

By the time the 2025 Voyageurs' season rolled in May, Dubeau was not only back on the field but contributing to team success in a very big way, more often than not out on the mound but pitching in at third base when he is not staring down opposing batsmen.

Over the years, he has come to learn who he is as a pitcher.

"Most of my success has been as a contact pitcher," said Dubeau. "I'm not trying to blow anything by anyone. Just get up there and compete, be a dog on the mound, win every pitch."

If that does not sound like the mindset of the average 18 year-old baseball pitching prospect, rest assured that Dubeau has dealt with the same eye-opening metamorphosis that most young flame throwers endure.

"I would be lying if I said that there weren't times that I just got up there and wanted to throw a baseball as hard as I could," he said with a smile. "When I do, it usually ends up in the batter's back or 15 feet up in the backstop."

(pretty much impossible not to conjure up images of Nuke LaLoosh (Bull Durham) at this point, isn't it?)

"That's kind of why I have avoided it."

A 17 year-old from North Bay, Ryan Spencer becomes just the latest in a growing handful of Voyageurs who have set their sights on the American Midwest as a wonderful launching pad for a leap forward in baseball.

Another multi-positional talent who will at least start this part of the journey as both a pitcher and first baseman, Spencer is confident that at least certain parts of his game are already where they need to be to allow him to compete with the Graceland Yellowjackets of the NAIA (National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics) Heart of America Conference.

"I think my fielding, for sure, can definitely play there," he said. "This year, my primary position has been first base so I think my defense will transfer over. I would like to say hitting too but I'm not 100% sure what to expect from college pitchers."

"We will be facing better and more elite stuff than in the PBLO (Premier Baseball League of Ontario), but I think my hitting can transfer over as well."

More than anything, Spencer is thrilled with the fact that his dedication in pursuing his dreams is now being rewarded.

"I think the thing I am most proud of is the commuting back and forth, an hour and a half, nearly every day at times," he said. "It's finally paid off."