NOTES FROM THE NAT: Vancouver Canadians news

"We’ve earned whatever we’ve got this season," C’s manager Juan Navarrete told the Vancouver Sun’s Lyndon Little after yesterday’s game. "I just know we’ll keep battling to the end."

Many of us right now are living in hope that Juan is right. Just as the Oakland A’s have experienced dramatic highs and dramatic lows all season long (right now - big low), so too have their short-season affiliate, the Vancouver Canadians, but right now the C’s are starting to get a distinct roll on.

The C’s killed all in the early stages of the season, going to a .700 win average and staying there for over a month, but the bats dried up at the middle stages, and only convulsions by Everett and Salem-Kaizer have allowed the sometimes awful Canadians to hang on to an NWL West division lead.

But that was then, and right now the Vancouver lads are breaking out of a string of slumps across the board. Ty Bubalo is belting home runs, Anthony Recker is belting them even longer, Steve Kleen is hitting everything, Justin Sellers is doing backflips in the infield, Mike Massaro is coming back into form, Wilber Perez and Isaac Omura are no longer considered defensive liabilities, and the pitching… well, the pitching is just insanely good, top to bottom. In fact, even when the pitching is awful, it’s awful in an extremely fast, massively-breaking, ‘holy crap’ kinda way.

One of the big problems for the C’s has been getting used to the ‘don’t swing for the fences’ wisdom regarding Nat Bailey Stadium’s outfield. "Some of the guys are still trying to fight it," said Chad Boyd a week ago. "When I first came up I struggled because I didn’t accept it. Now I love it. This park forces you to be a better hitter."

"We hadn’t been getting too many good at-bats lately, especially with men in scoring position. Our hitters have been trying to do too much," Navarrete told the Sun, before adding, "We were not getting the key hit or the breaks for a while. [...] We turned things around in Everett. Now we’re playing well again."

So can the C’s end the season on a roll? "We know we’ll be facing a good team in Salem-Keizer," Navarrete said, "We just have to concentrate on playing our game."

With only one win needed for the C’s to lock in an NWL play-off spot, tonight’s starter for Vancouver will be Mike Madsen (6-1, 1.68), who is filth. Salem-Kaizer will be starting with… bah, I don’t even care. Whoever he is, he’s no Mike Madsen.

GO C’S!

With 2 runs scored in the top of the 1st (Luis Valbuena -pictured left- and Prettyman were scored by Flaig and Tucker), and another two
in the 6th (when Sabatella and Hall scored Tuckerill and Gary) giving
him a healthy 4-0 lead, the Everett Aquasox’s Jeffrey Gilmore (4-1,
4.53) held Salem-Kaizer scoreless through six innings tonight in a game
the Volcanoes simply had to win.

Another run in the 7th inning gave Everett a 5-run cushion, before
Salem-Kaizer’s bats finally woke up, scoring three late runs in a ‘too
little, too late’ effort that sees Vancouver rack up a 2-game lead
going into the final series of the NWL season; a 3 game outing that
pits the 1st place Canadians against 2nd place Lava-Men, with the C’s
needing only one win out of three games to soldifiy their place in the
NWL Championship Series.

September 4, 2005
	Final 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 R H E Everett 2 0 0 0 0 2 0 1 0 5 7 1 Salem-Keizer 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 2 1 3 8 0 wrap | box | log HR: None.

So it’s Go Time. Vancouver now sits with a 1 1/2 game advantage over
Salem-Kaizer, and the Volcanoes have to beat Everett tonight to keep
themselves in contact with the Canadian-based NWL leaders.

But how many games does Vancouver need to win to ensure themselves a
place in the playoffs? And who will they face? We break down each of
the scenarios for you in this Notes From The Nat exclusive.

Salem-Kaizer and Everett play tonight, and that game will determine
what Vancouver needs to do in order to secure a playoff spot, but the
important thing to note is that the Canadians have a 1-game cushion
over the Volcanoes in head-to-head competition this season so far,
which means:

Scenario 1: Everett wins tonight.
This would be great for Vancouver, as it would mean that taking one
game off Salem-Kaizer in the final series of the year would send V-Town
to the playoffs, while Salem-Kaizer would need to sweep the series to
earn the right to attend the championship series as, in this scenario,
head-to-head results don’t matter. Unless a game gets rained out, in
which case it all gets funky.

Scenario 2: Salem-Kaizer wins tonight.
This scenario would mean Salem-Kaizer is just one game behind Vancouver
in the standings, which would mean that Vancouver would definitely need
to win twice to get to the playoffs, while only one Vancouver victory
would see the teams level in the standings at season end, but would
mean Salem-Kaizer is one game ahead in head-to-head competition, and
would see them go to the championship round.

Scenario 3: It rains tonight.
Salem-Kaizer sits 1.5 games behind Vancouver going into the last series
of the year, and one win for the Canadians in the upcoming series would
hand a playoff berth to the C’s.

Either way - Vancouver needs two wins to be sure of a play-off spot. Be sure to tune into the Volcanoes/Aquasox game on http://www.aquasox.com, and cheer the Frogs home.

So who will Vancouver see in the playoffs if they get there?

Tough to say. Spokane and Tri-City are level pegging on 34-38 (yes,
that’s right, the NWL East leaders are playing sub-.500 ball), and
Boise is only 2 games behind them. The winner of tonight’s game will
split the tie for first place, but it’ll likely go down to the final
two games before we have a clear winner.

Now, word from the C’s front office is that the championship series
will start in Vancouver on the 8th and 9th of the month, then go to the
other team’s home ground for the final three games (if the opponent is
Boise, a free travel day will be utilized on the 10th), but if Spokane
wins the NWL East, the first two games of the championship series will
be played there, because they have a scheduling conflict at their
stadium on the final days of the playoffs.

Makes sense? Good.

Note: UPDATE! Everett beat Salem-Kaizer
5-3 tonight, which puts Scenario 1 into play: Vancouver needs just one
win in the Salem-Kaizer series to earn a playoff place!

It was a lovely day in Vancouver today… well, not lovely weatherwise, but it was looking distinctly lovely for Vancouver Canadians
fans from the very first at-bat for their team today against the Eugene
Emeralds, as the opening play of the game for the C’s drew an error by
Eugene 1st baseman, Casey Smith, which allowed Justin Sellers to get on
base.

And from there it just got ugly for the Ems.

With Sellers on base, Steve Kleen came to the plate, fresh from a
week that saw him finally break out of his two-week slump by hitting
homeruns, doubles, and wielding the lumber like a hitter possessed.
Kleen wasted no time, singling to move Sellers to 2nd, before three
Vancouver doubles, from Jose Garcia, Anthony Recker and Ty Bubalo, made
it a 4-run opening inning for the C’s.

So how did the Emeralds respond? By being blanked for six innings
straight by Vancouver starting pitcher Jeff Gray (left), who conceded just 2
hits, no walks, no runs, and struck out one hitter to see Vancouver
into the 6th inning, where Justin Sellers sac’ed home Wilber Perez to
stretch the V-Town lead to 5.

Of course, to expect it to be bump-free would just be altogether too
much, especially with Curveball Corchado called in to relieve Gray in
the 7th. Corchado worked his way through one inning of ball without too
much problem, and after Perez singled with the bases loaded in the 7th,
driving in Baisley and Garcia to make the score 7-0 Van City, Curveball
went on his usual routine of pitching incredible stuff, then pitching
weak, non-breaking, erratic garbage allowed a run to score on a wild
pitch, then walked the bases loaded before Long John Herrera was called
in to get the C’s out of the inning.

Long John is a decent pitcher who has had a string of poor outings of
late, but he got to work pretty well, getting two outs with conceding a
run before giving up a 2-out, 2-RBI single that saw the Emeralds come
back to 7-4 before the inning ended.

Herrera stayed in for the 9th and closed the game down well, but the
real pity is that the C’s let the Emeralds off the hook from a shut-out.

September 4, 2005
	Final 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 R H E Eugene 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 3 0 3 6 1 Vancouver 4 0 0 0 0 1 2 0 X 7 14 4 wrap | box | log W: J. Gray (4-2, 2.51); L: F. Jimenez Angulo (1-3, 2.22); HR: None.

GAME NOTES:
* All hail Steve Kleen. Despite being the butt of many jokes over the
last month as he crumbled in the face of a nasty slump that saw him
picked off bases, struck out, and dropping balls aplenty in the field,
Kleen has delivered the requisite comeback to form, and then gone
beyond good form into MVP status. At a time when Vancouver REALLY
needed someone to take the wheel and help get some runs on the board,
efforts like Kleen’s 4-5 outing today will go a long way to wards
explaining the late season resurgence of the Canadians in the face of
Salem-Kaizer’s week-long winning streak. Nice work, Squeaky. Now bring
us home.

* Jose Garcia, who likes to swing at anything he sees coming at him,
has showed a little plate patience over the past few games that is
coming in REALLY helpful for the C’s as he slots into the clean-up
spot. Garcia went 2-4 today, with both hits being doubles, and he also
drove in 2 and scored 2 himself. That’s a great productive performance
for a guy who, until recently, could be counted on to give up an out
more often than not. If Garcia learns to lay off bad pitches, he’s
total Moneyball material - big, strong, athletic, fast (for his size)
and capable of a good long hit over the outfielders.

* Anthony Recker’s resurgence continues like a freight train. After
hitting a Nat Bailey home run last night (not an easy task), Recker
knocked out 2-4 with a double, a run scored and an RBI. Ty Bubalo is
matching Recker, hit for hit, right now, and he too notched 2 hits on
the night, going 2-3 before making way for the recently promoted Andre
Piper-Jordan in a defensive substitution in left field. Wilber Perez
matched Recker’s stats on the night, only he drove in 2 RBIs instead of
1, in a fine piece of back-of-the-order hitting.

* Jeff Gray, you’d have to assume, is very much healthy right now. I’ll
be the first to say that his long rehab spell was frustrating, pushing
the C’s into more than a few games with a deficit on the scoreboard,
but a healthy Jeff Gray is every bit as good as a healthy Michael
Madsen, and nothing is better than a healthy Michael Madsen.

So now we wait…

Last night’s come from behind win by the Vancouver Canadians
was a good sign, for two reasons. First, they really needed the win as
Salem-Kaizer is level-pegging with them for the NWL West playoff spot.
But second, Eugene is playing for nothing for the rest of the season,
and a demoralizing win for the C’s was always going to be likely to
take the wind out of their sails - perhaps the last wind they have left.

Tonight, the Emeralds came out with a little small ball in the 2nd,
notching the first run of the game against the under-rated pitching of
Joseph Newby (left)… but once the charity was out of the way, it was time
for the C’s to get to work.
(more…)

Vancouver bats were all but silent over six innings of tonight’s game
against NWL West strugglers the Eugene Emeralds, notcing only two hits
over the first 2/3 of the game. Eugene, on the other hand, managed to
score an early run off starting pitcher Joe Piekarz (left), which put abundant
pressure on the C’s as, down south, division co-leading Salem-Kaizer
Volcanoes put the sword to the Everett Aquasox.

The C’s can’t afford to drop a game right now, with only the division
winner going through to the playoffs, so it was little surprise when
the Canadians bats finally woke from their slumber in the bottom of the
7th.

With a single from Justin Sellers to lead-off the innings, Jeff
Baisley got to base after being tagged by a pitch, and as Haas Pratt
sac’ed them along, the C’s loaded the bases when Jose Garcia singled
through the 3rd baseman’s glove, with the ball not moving far enough
off base to get anyone home.

With Steve Kleen at the plate and one-out down, Kleen quickly fell
behind 0-2 in the count, giving a case of the nerves to all present.

But Kleen wasn’t rattled, watching a pitch inside, and then jumping on
a fastball, dispatching it into left field to score Sellers and Baisley
to give the C’s a 2-0 lead.

From then on, it was all Stephen Bryant, pitching two scoreless innings
of relief, before Brad Kilby allowed to Emeralds on base before
striking out the final two hitters of the night to get the save.

A game we really didn’t deserve to win, but what the hell - we’ll take it!

September 2, 2005
	Final 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 R H E Eugene 0 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 5 0 Vancouver 0 0 0 0 0 0 2 0 X 2 6 1 wrap | box | log W: S. Bryant (3-2, 2.93); L: D. Baca (0-1, 10.80); SV: B. Kilby (13) HR: None.

GAME NOTES:
* Joe Piekarz: 6 innings pitched, 4 hits, 1 earned run, no walks and 6
strikeouts - way to prove you’re worth another season in the minors,
Pikey! stephen Bryant pitched 2 innings giving up no hits and striking
out 3, while Kilby was run-free in the last.

* With the bat… ugh. Other than the resurgent Steve Kleen, who went
2-3 with a double and 2 RBIs, everyone else managed either 1 hit or no
hits at all. And NOBODY managed to draw a walk all game long. Not one.

* Everett scored 2 runs in the top of the 9th against Salem-Kaizer
tonight to level scores at 3-3 and take their game to extra innings,
but the Volc’s are on a tear and won 4-3 in the bottom of the 10th.

Where is Wes Long? We need you, Long Gone!

With the fearsome Jimmy Shull (3-2, 2.36) on the mound for Vancouver,
all the C’s should have needed to register a win was 3 or 4 runs
against the Everett AquaSox, if they wanted to hold their one-game lead
over Salem-Kaizer.

Alas, 3 or 4 runs seemed to be a challenge beyond tonight’s Vancouver Canadians,
as they left TEN MEN ON BASE, squandering scoring chances by the
bucketload before finally mounting a minor comeback, only for Jose
Corchado to let Everett get away.

Chad Boyd opened the game for the C’s the same way he opened
yesterday’s game - with a lead-off double - but the C’s leaky offense
left him stranded - just as it did yesterday.

Ronald ‘Julia’ Prettyman responded for Everett with a solo homer to
right in the bottom of the inning, which, at Everett’s homeground means
the ball had to travel about 180 feet into a stiff breeze to clear the
bases. In the bottom of the 2nd, Shull was again taken yard to the
Everett charity porch, when Mike Saunders went knocked him over that
same spot to make the score 2-0 to Everett.

But the C’s weren’t totally free of pop themselves, as Steve Kleen sent
a ball over the wall in left center for a (real) solo home run to bring
the score back to 2-1 Everett in the top of the 4th.

Alas, in the bottom of that inning, Jimmy Shull continued to look
surprisingly mortal, giving up a walk, a double, and an RBI-inducing
ground-out to see the Everett lead extend to two.

Shull was not done, however, and after he surrendered that run, he sat
eight straight Everett hitters. Shull righted the Vancouver ship
nicely, and if the C’s offense could just figure out a way to move
their runners around the bases, the game was ripe for the picking…

Alas, it seems a near-outfield wall is all the invitation needed for
some players at this level to swing away when they have men on base.
The pinch-hit decisions didn’t help, with newly promoted rookie-baller
Andre-Piper Jordan being brought in to hit for Jose Garcia, only to
strike out miserably.

Mike Massaro is always good for a little spark, and when he singled to
get on base and Zeke Parraz moved him around to 2nd, a wild pitch was
all the invitation needed for Jeff Baisley to knock Massaro home,
narrowing the gap to one once more.

This was where a rally was likely to happen, if the pitching could only
keep Everett close. Sadly, the pitching couldn’t, as Jose Corchado gave
up an insurance run in the bottom of the 8th to help the Sox back out
to a 4-2 lead which they held onto right to the finish.

September 1, 2005
	Final 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 R H E Vancouver 0 0 0 1 0 0 1 0 0 2 7 0 Everett 1 1 0 1 0 0 0 1 X 4 6 0 wrap | box | log W: H. Williams (1-0, 3.86); L: J. Shull (3-3, 2.55); SV: S. Kahn (11) HR: VAN: S. Kleen (1). EVE: M. Saunders (6), R. Prettyman (5).

GAME NOTES:
* Chad Boyd continued to impress in the lead-off spot, going 1-3 with 2
walks and a double. But Stev Kleen had the offensive performance of the
night (yes, THAT Steve Kleen) with a 2-3 night that included a dinger,
a run scored, an RBI, and a walk. Sadly, nobody else racked up more
than a single base hit. Only four walks were drawn all night, while ten
strikeouts were racked up. Which tells you exactly how much plate
patience the C’s had tonight..

* In Eugene, 2nd place Salem-Kaizer was finally getting a contest from
the Emeralds, who came from behind to level 2-2 in the 6th, but the
Volcanoes pushed back out to a 4-2 lead that stuck. This means the
Canadians and Volcanoes are TIED FOR 1ST PLACE in the NWL West. Let’s
hope that, with the Volcanoes playing Everett three times before facing
us at home three more, their share of the 1st place spot is simply a
loan.

Oh, that it could come to this…