I’ve been watching this year’s Vancouver Canadians in person for three nights so far this season, and if only one thing about them is worth mentioning thus far, it’s that they have an abundance of pitching talent. The hitters are looking weak, the defense is fair, but the pitching… man, I’ve seldom seen a line-up throw so well and get so little love from their offense.

Tonight was no exception, though it was a small step up from the last two nights, where the C’s have averaged just four hits per game. Runs were scored this night, but the story was told once more not in runs scored, but in innings pitched.

The scoring began in the top of the second, when a pair of hits put Dust Devils on first and third with no outs, and though the C’s fought back with a nice 5-4-3 (Baisley-Perez-Pratt) double play, there was little they could do to stop a run from scoring in the meantime.

Down 1-0 in the bottom of the second, Haas Pratt once again took control, drawing a walk and moving along to second on the strength of Jose Garcia’s grounder up the middle.

And then came Ty Bubalo.

The big catcher out of Beaverton, Oregon had been struggling at the plate and looking for a break, but it’s a question as to whether his towering shot into the left field corner was a blessing or a burden, as the ball bounced over the bullpen wall for an RBI-scoring ground rule double, when in reality it deserved to have been a two run-scoring triple.

But hey, when your average is sitting at .053, you’ll take any hit you can get.

Inexperience is one of the major factors in this level of ball, and when Jeff Baisley, playing only his second game in pro  baseball, came to the plate, the inexperience seemed to be running thickly among all involved in the inning. Baisley hit a shot more or less at the pitcher, who brought it down and opted to push Bubalo back to second base. As the Tri-City shortstop took his throw, Jose Garcia saw his chance and took off from third for home…

Was there a call from the coach to try for a run, with no outs and two men in scoring position? Unlikely.

Much more likely, Garcia, a native of Santo domingo, Dominican Republic, who doesn’t have the greatest command of the English language, decided he had the gams to get there before the throw and set off on his own volition.

Bad, bad move. With Garcia out at the plate, the C’s now had only one man in scoring position, and one less out to play with. Thankfully, Wilber Perez knows his way around the baseball diamond and did exactly what Baisley should have - hit it deep into left and sac’ed home the runner. The scores were level going into the third, but for the Canadians it was a case of what could have been as a possible go-ahead situation was dampened by youthful excess. Or the language barrier. Or a bad call. You decide.

Vancouver starting pitcher Joe Scott, a New Jersey native who spent his college years at Seton Hall, hasn’t exactly started this season as strongly as he’d like. A non-draft free agent pickup in 2004, Scott started the year at Kane County but got mostly smooshed over four games he took part in, coming back down to Vancouver with an ERA of 9.00. He’d found starting responsibilities a little easier to cope with in his last start against Yakima, where he surrendered only four hits over seven innings, and he was looking fairly comfortable tonight as he took the mound in the third. A pair of hits later and the alarm bells were being dusted off in preparation for a good hard ringing.

A wild pitch put two men in scoring position with two outs, but Scott knuckled down and drew Tri-City third baseman Phillip Cuadrado into an inning ending double play.

Scott is a project, no doubt about it, in fact he didn’t pitch at all in his first year as a professional due to a broken wrist, so though most players in their second year aren’t struggling to impress just yet, preferring to learn and improve, Scott has a little more pressure on him than most. He knows he needs a few big results to take the evil eye off his numbers, and he seems more than capable of them.

Confidence, however, is possibly something he’s lacking at the moment, and getting out of a tough inning like that can only do a kid some good over the long haul.

At the same time, Tri-City fireballer, Zachary Simons, was having a rough time acclimatizing to the C’s ballpark. His third inning opened with a fastball smacking Chalon Tietje in the back, and a few batters later he was again out of control, striking the dangerous Haas Pratt. A deep single to left by Jose Garcia had the C’s fans on their feet as Chas Boyd came in to score, and suddenly the Vancouver team was looking dangerous… or was it that Tri-City were looking shaky?

Whatever it was, it didn’t last long.

Tri-City shortstop Oscar Materano drilled a double into left field, and first baseman Brian Kirby left no mistake about his intentions as he boomed a deep fly ball over the right field wall. Suck it up, C’s fans, your lead has been taken away, but once again, to Scott’s credit, he worked his way out of the inning strongly.

Though, not strongly enough, because the 5th inning saw Scott replaced by 29th round draft pick, Trey Shields.

Let it be known, Trey Shields is an absolute monster of a man. 6′7" in height, 230lbs in weight, when he throws a ball, it’s coming down from a much different place to where most pitchers are used to. The University of Alabama, Tuscaloosa grad found his way into the Oakland system through the kind of pick that usually goes to after-thought players, but at 6′7", it’s a fair bet that Billy Beane’s tendency to go towards players with important physical characteristics had something to do with his selection. Maybe Shields has good stuff, maybe he doesn’t, but when you’re that tall, you’re worth a late round gamble.

Unfortunately, it took a few innings for Shields to get his arm in, surrendering a triple, two singles and a run in the 5th. The 6th saw him come out blazing and shut the Dev’s down, before handing over to the big lefty from San Jose State, Brad Kilby, who continued the trend through the 7th.

And it was the 7th where Canadians second baseman, Wilber Perez, came into his own. Perez has been on a tear over the first part of the season, averaging .417 and looking strong in the field, despite playing off his beloved first base bag. He might have to get used to that, being as the Canadians list a whopping 8 out of the ten infielders on their roster as being corner players. Lord only knows where they’re going to fit 6 first basemen, 2 third basemen and a meager pair of middle infielders in a full season, but these are the things you deal with when you coach short season ball.

Perez drew a canny walk to lead-off the inning, and moved to second on a Justin Sellers sacrifice bunt. As Chalon Tietje struck out swinging, Perez took off for third, panicking the Tri-City catcher into a throwing error which allowed the runner to score. Almost single-handedly, Perez had small-balled his way from first to home, Rickey Henderson-style, without taking a swing.

Scores level in a topsy turvy affair, and that’s the way it stayed until the 9th, when Kilby weakened and was replaced by Mike Mitchell, a 35th round 2003 draftee who had Tommy John surgery last season and has been eager to show his mettle in pro ball since.

And show that mettle he has, racking up a no-hit save earlier in the season, and coming in tonight in a scores-level, two out, two men on base situation. Mitchell eased out of that jam, coasted through the 10th, dealt handily with the 11th, and watched his team build a great chance for the win with the 12th inning looming.

With one out, Jose Garcia singled, then Ty Bubalo cracked a line drive into left. Garcia was replaced by pinch-runner Michael Massaro as Jeff Baisley took to the plate with a look of grim determination about him.

The C’s fans were on their feet, the noise was incredible for a crowd of only 2600 (even less if you discount those that have to have their kids in bed by 11pm), and the game looked headed to a C’s victory… except…

You know the feeling when you’ve allowed yourself to get carried away with something, and you’re totally sure everything is going to be awesome, and then something stupid happens and it all turns to crap? You know that feeling?

Well, so do 2600 Vancouver Canadians fans who can not believe that 13th round draft pick, Mike Massaro, could allow himself to be picked off at 2nd in the 11th inning with the game on the line. I mean, geez, it’s second base! How hard is it to stay close and rely on your hitters to get you home?

So, once again, Vancouver had imploded, turning a game-breaking situation into a wimpering mess. And to make matters worse - Jeff Baisley drilled the ball into center field for what would have been the winning run… if only.

The bottom of the 12th was no better - Chalon Tietje managed to work his way to second on two outs, and as Wes Long smacked the ball to left, Tietje rounded third and barrelled home… only to be tagged out at the plate after a great throw by Tri-City left fielder Robert Hosgood.

For those counting at home, that’s three plays that could have won the game for the C’s, but didn’t.

And, of course, you know what happens next - Tri-City gets a walk, a sac bunt, and then an easy trot home when third baseman Jeff Baisley pulls a Bill Buckner and misses a groundball completely. Dust Devils lead in the bottom of the 13th.

Baisley’s shame was not yet total, but when he came up to the plate with one out and runners on 1st and 2nd, he had a chance to either be a hero or a zero on the night.

Double play. Game over. Thank christ.

Game notes:

* On a night when Tri-City gave Vancouver every chance to win, the C’s just weren’t up to the mental game. Granted, the kids are still coming to grips with the schedule, pressure and exhaustion of being a pro baseball player, but from a fan’s point of view, this game could not possibly have been more annoying to watch. Errors, poor running, bad decisions, you name it, it was all out there. On the bright side, just a tiny improvement in the thinking game would have seen this game in the win column. But on the reality side… you just can’t play this poorly and expect to move up to Kane County. A lot of guys need to start thinking like professional ballplayers and quit trying to be the hero.

* Ty Bubalo went 2 from 5 on the night, driving in a run, scoring another, and racking up a nice double. Behind the plate, he was peerless. Good to see, though he has a long way to go to get that average up above the Mendoza Line.

* Jose Garcia went 3 from 4 with a walk, but (miraculously) scored not a single run. Smarter running would have changed all that, but hey… we’re all wiser in hindsight.

* On the pitching side of things, Brad Kilby looked dominant, racking up 3 K’s in 2.2 innings of work. Mike Mitchell cruised through a good 2.2 as well, surrendering only one hit, and Brad "Danger" Davis, who had previously thrown 7K’s in four innings of work on the season, continued that fireball-throwing form by tossing 3 more over 1.2 innings to end proceedings. If there’s a positive to be taken from this game, the performance of those three pitchers, with their backs to the wall, would be that positive.

Tomorrow’s game is a nooner, so be sure to listen in if you can’t be at the game!