News release

Let’s play ball!

August 11, 2026 - Surrey, British Columbia
From: British Columbia RCMP

Content

“Athlete or police officer.” That’s what he wanted to be growing up.

Amongst the ranks of the RCMP, there are some incredible all-around athletes, who chose to dedicate themselves to keeping our communities safe.

One of those remarkable athletes is Constable Ed Welch, who currently works in the BC RCMP’s Federal Serious and Organized Crime (FSOC) section, and was a former professional baseball player.

As a child he dreamt of being a baseball player. He started from a young age with Little Mountain Baseball Association in Vancouver and continued through high school, realizing that he was a talented ball player. While he played for the White Rock Tritons of the BC Premier Baseball League, in grade 11, he attracted the attention of scouts from the United States.

In 1998, Cst. Welch was drafted by the Los Angeles Angels of Major League Baseball in the 12^th round of the MLB Draft out of high school and signed his first professional contract that year.

He spent 5 years in the minor league system of the LA Angels attending Spring Training in Arizona and went on to play in the Pioneer League, the Northwest League, and the Mid-West League. During this time in his baseball career, Cst. Welch was teammates with several notable future MLB All-Stars and World Series winners, including Mike Napoli, Francisco Rodriguez, John Lackey, and Ervin Santana.

Ultimately, his playing career ended in 2002 when reality started to set in as to just how difficult it is to hit at the Major League level.

“It comes to a point where you have to determine what your long-term goals are and your long-term vision is,” he explains.

He turned his sights towards a career in policing.

“I always had my eye on policing. That was always the other thing I was always interested in as a child.”

Once back in the lower mainland, Cst. Welch volunteered with both the VPD and the Burnaby RCMP while finishing his post-secondary schooling. He went through the recruiting process and got to Depot in early 2008.

He was initially posted in Langley as a General Duty officer, then worked with the Canadian Air Carrier Protective Program, and the LMD Integrated Border Enforcement Team.

Currently working with FSOC, a federal drug and organized crime investigation unit which is focused on getting fentanyl off our streets.

Cst. Welch’s athletic prowess was not limited to baseball. As a teenager he competed at the Canadian U18 National Track & Field Championship in St. John’s, Newfoundland for Team BC in the 100m and 200m – achieving a silver in the 100m, 200m and a gold medal in the 4x100m. He was also a Provincial long jump champion. Upon deciding to end his baseball career, he followed it up by competing in the 4-man bobsleigh for Canada. He went on to win a bronze medal at the Canadian Nationals in 2005, competed in the 2-man and 4-man at the 2005 World Junior Bobsleigh Championship in Altenberg, Germany, and just barely missed qualifying for the Olympic National Team and going to the 2006 Olympic Games in Turin, Italy.

In 2017, Cst. Welch broke the RCMP PARE record. The Physical Abilities Requirement Evaluation or PARE was the RCMP’s fitness test. It consisted of a timed obstacle course with jumps, stairs, hurdles, vaults, and controlled falls, a push/pull station requiring manipulation of a 32–36 kg weight stack, and an 80 lb torso bag carry over 15 metres. Most applicants aim to complete it in a time of 4 minutes and 45 seconds, while operational officers had a stricter standard of under 3 minutes and 30 seconds. On a whim, Cst. Welch inquired about the record, decided to train for 6 months, ran it three times, and on his fourth try, finally managed to break it with a time of 2 minutes and 22 seconds. And to this day, no one has managed to break his record.

Volunteer work is a meaningful way for RCMP employees to connect with the communities they serve. Cst. Welch is the current president of the New Westminster Little League Association, a position he’s held since 2023, a coach with his sons’ little league teams. He has managed to channel his love of baseball with giving back to the community.

Join us at Nat Bailey Stadium on Sunday August 16^th, 2026 at 1pm for RCMP Day celebrating 75 years of the RCMP policing in British Columbia. Cst. Welch will be on hand to throw out the ceremonial first pitch!