Seriously, just stop now, people.

I don’t know if there’s some sort of pool where the guy with the most errors this season wins $48 and a coupon to Subway, but the ball-booting and throwing into right field must stop.

The C’s are starting to get some bats moving now, and the pitching is still strong, but the defense on this team is something close to what you’d see from my former beer league softball crew (Kids in the Hole, represent!) after the 5th inning top-up. 

Last night’s game was a historic one for this year’s C’s, and an emotional one for fans of last year’s squad, as it marked the return to the Vancouver fold of one Brother Love.

No, not that Brother Love.

We’re talking about ‘The Inferno’, Dante Love, co-Beerhawker Player of the Year from season 2007, tireless battler, backup catcher, and symbol of all that is good in minor league ball.

And he has a cool name.

Love came to Van City (actually, to Yakima) from Arizona this week and last night opened his short-season account with an RBI triple in a 1-3 performance with a walk, to set the table for a competitive C’s outing.

A single, balk, steal and another single saw Da Bears draw level in the 2nd off C’s starter Hector Garcia, and an inning later, the Canadians began letting Yakima back into the game through a litany of defensive errors.

A pair of singles up the middle put two on with one out for Yakima, before a grounder to 3rd saw Rodney Rutherford step on the bag to remove the lead runner, but in an attempt to snag a double play, he threw the ball past Dan Wentzell at 1st, allowing a runner to cruise in to 3rd base after all.

Thankfully, Yakima’s Ramon Castillo made the insane error of trying to steal 2nd base on Juan Nunez.. note to Ramon: we don’t call him Bullet Time for nothing.

Jason Christian got to 2nd base for the C’s in the 4th, but Wentzell and Rutherford couldn’t bring The Fundamentalist home. The Vancouverites did score in the 5th however, even if it took two defensive errors, one passed ball, and a sacrifice bunt to make it happen. Hey, we’ll take it, especially when it gives us a 2-1 lead and we’re doling out the E’s like we’re in a Granville Street nightclub.

That said, those who might feel cocky as the C’s ride errors, sacs, and passed balls home should stop angering the baseball gods and learn a little humility, because if there’s one thing this year’s Canadians have yet to master it’s defense. Well, and hitting. And base-running. Maybe middle relief too.

Okay, so there’s a lot of things they have yet to master, but my point is, we got lucky with errors and passed balls to score a run. So what do the C’s go out and do?

Rinse, lather, repeat.

Yakima Bottom 5th

• Greg Bordes reaches on fielding error by shortstop Jason Christian.
• David Cooper out on a sacrifice bunt, pitcher Hector Garcia to first baseman Daniel Wentzell. Greg Bordes to 2nd.
• Collin Cowgill reaches on throwing error by shortstop Jason Christian. Greg Bordes scores.
• With Alfredo Marte batting, Collin Cowgill steals (2) 2nd base.
• Alfredo Marte hit by pitch.
• Pitcher Change: Brent Lysander replaces Hector Garcia.

You can’t make this crap up.

So in a single inning of baseball, we get FOUR errors (including two from one player), one passed ball, one beanball, two sac bunts and two runs scored.

Oh, and way to show us those fundamentals, Jason Christian.

But it wasn’t over. Three singles, a throwing error to Brent Lysander, and a pair of walks saw Yaktown take the least in the 6th, 3-2, with the only high point being yet another gun-down of a base stealer by Bullet-Time Juan Nunez.

If it all sounds like an abysmal ballgame to this point, you’re reading into it exactly as you should. This was a horror show of basic mistakes, horrendous errors, a disastrous lack of confidence, and a total lack of focus. But it would get better, if only for an inning or two.

In the 7th, the C’s got their dander up and started playing legit ball, and it was good to see. After Bad King Wentzell got done with his lead-off strikeout, Bullet-Time and Marcos Luis peppered the outfield with line drives, and with men on the corners, Mitch ‘No Fear’ LeVier did what No Fear LeVier has made a habit of doing of late - he swung the bat like a fiend, driving in a run, leveling the scores, and keeping the roll alive.

Dante Love didn’t let the situation get to his head, drawing a patient walk to load the bags when less men might have been tempted to bust out the broadsword swing, and though Jareck West could only ground-out on the following at bat, it was enough to score a run and put the Canadians ahead.

Well done, lads. You’ve got the ability, you just need to use it for good, not evil.

What followed was a little bizarre, as No Fear LeVier earned his nickname and decided to steal home. It wasn’t a successful run, but hey, give it up for outside the box thinking, coach.

There wasn’t a lot else left to report on the game, being as Vancouver’s continual come-from-behind runs had Yakima’s confidence basically shot by that late stage of the game, and though Goose Guzman had to fight off a Marcos Luis fielding error, a sac bunt, and a wild pitch in the 9th to close out the game for the C’s, he maintained his 0.00 ERA and ate up two innings without major incident.

Ultimately, it seemed as if, despite all the weirdness, Van City might just have discovered in that 7th inning run that they have the cajones to compete in this league, if they play smart and hard.

It’s true what they say, I guess. All you need is Love.

June 26, 2008
	Final    1   2   3   4   5   6   7   8   9      R   H   E   Vancouver   1   0   0   0   1   0   2   0   0      4   6   5   Yakima   0   1   0   0   1   1   0   0   0      3   7   3  Recap | Box | W: B. Lysander (1-0, 7.94); L: J. Durst (0-1, 6.75); SV: J. Guzman (3) HR: None.