When you’ve won three of your last four games, the tendency is to think you’ve turned a corner. The Vancouver Canadians could be forgiven for getting that thought in their heads right now, especially after a convincing come-from-behind win over the Everett Flipperkids, and I’m certainly not going to rain on that parade.
But I will serve up a word of warning… at 6-10, the Aquasox share our position of ‘worst team in the NWL’, so though beating them is a good thing, and the competition in the upcoming road series against the Boise Hawks isn’t overly tough (they’re 8-8 on the season), the one thing that will kill this roll is over-confidence.
The C’s have been brutal for much of the season so far, and some continue to be. But they’re determination to pick themselves up off the canvas and fight back has been what’s turned things around over the last week, and if they lose that determination and replace it with cockiness, things will head south fast.
Yesterday’s nooner against the Chris Evert Aquasox was played to one of the C’s smallest crowds to date (2,283), and the home team seemed to enjoy the quieter surrounds as they started aflame and kept the flame burning bright for nine.
Last season, JD Pruitt enjoyed an insane on-base percentage, largely because every second pitch thrown hit him in the head. This season, under pressure to show he has more game than a steadfast refusal to flinch, Pruitt has been everything you’d want in a lead-off hitter and more. He draws walks. He steals. He scores runs. And he hits!
Yes, he hits – Pruitt has quietly rolled his average up to a solid .318, which is all the more remarkable being as the team batting average is somewhere around the Michael Jordan line.
Leading off for the C’s this day, Pruitt opened the show with a lead-off walk. After Lorenzo Macias struck out swinging as part of his mission to claim the lowest batting average in the history of organized ball (as of now, .050 is to be known as the Macias Line), The Dusty Love Show came back to town, with Dante Love singling Pruitt around to 3rd base, and Dusty Napoleon knocking an RBI-grounder through the hole into right field.
Paying attention kids? Runner at third? Hit into right. Runner at second? Hit into right. See Napoleon, Dusty [left].
On the mound for the C’s was the 6′4 Dominican righty, Ronny ‘The Mauler’ Morla, and he earned his nickname in the second by striking out the side in quick time.
In the bottom of the 2nd, the Canadians bottom-of-the-order hitters were up, and nobody really expects much from them. Jareck West has shown he can hit doubles, but not with much consistency to date, and Francisco Tirado and Ryne Jernigan had one hit from 39 at bats between them.
F’real, it was time for the tail to wag, and this time out it did, with Wild Wild West opening the show with a walk, then stealing second, before The Tornado singled up the middle to bring him home.
Then came the selfless play of the season so far. Ryne Jernigan, sitting on a .000 batting average after 24 at bats, dropped a sacrifice bunt.
Seriously. The guy hasn’t managed a base hit in his professional career to date, and he dropped a sac. That’s heart. That’s ‘there’s no I in team’. That’s ‘you may be sucking as a hitter, but come here and give us a hug, ya big lug’ material.
It came to nothing, despite an ensuing base hit from JD Pruitt, largely due to Rick Magnante’s policy ‘ the player who most needs to bust out of a slump in the #2 slot and hoping he enjoys pressure’.
Rolling into the 3rd inning, The Mauler kept up his nastiness, against striking out the side, giving him 7 K’s against the ten batters he’d face to that point.
Jeremy Barfield killed a no-out, two-on situation in the bottom of the frame when he grounded into a DP, but he atoned for that in the top of the 4th when he unexpectedly got to a sinking ball in right field and doubled up the returning runner at first base to kill a potential Everett roll.
With the bat in the 4th, the C’s didn’t do anything. Oh, JD Pruitt took another walk, thereby bringing his OBP to about 17.983 to the power of 11, but he didn’t move from first base as he was bookended by the Fly-Ball All-Stars trio of Jernigan, Tirado and Macias. Dusty Napoleon drew a walk in the 5th, but that too led to nothing.
As The Mauler continued to rain down hellfire on Aquasox hitters in the 6th, the C’s got ornery again in a bid to extend their lead (I’m not sure I’ve written the words ‘extend their lead’ in relation to the C’s so far this year… this is a nice feeling).
As respectable Everett pitcher Brent Lorin gave way to reliever Marquis ‘Aurelius’ Pettis, the good guys turned on the burners and mocked the new kid some. And wouldn’t you know it – it was the bottom end of the lineup that did the damage!
Jareck West was clued in on the likelihood that the new pitcher might be a little stray, so he held off swinging and drew a lead-off walk. Francisco Tirado, desperately needing a stats bump, held off on big swing urges and drew a second base on balls right behind him.
Which brought in Ryne ‘The Journeyman’ Jernigan [right] who, also desperately needing some big contact swings, held off and instead (AGAIN!) dropped a sacrifice bunt!
Dude! Who’s a team player? Jerny is, that’s who.
So with Wild Wild on 3rd and only one out, what does JD Pruitt do? He remains awesome, drilling a deep sac fly to score West and EXTENDING THE C’S LEAD to 3-0.
Then Lorenzo Macias strikes out. Seriously ‘Zo, you closing your eyes when you swing?
In the top of the 7th, The Mauler was given some much deserved rest, to be replaced by Ben ‘The Horndog’ Hornbeck, and let’s just say if you mess with the bull, sometimes ‘getting the Horns’ isn’t exactly a punishment.
With two outs and men on the corners, Hornbeck simply lost his ability to get guys out, giving up three singles and a walk to concede four earned runs before Mr Ed Tejada took his place and ended the inning.
Remember that whole ‘extend their lead’ thing? Yeah. So much for that.
But the C’s weren’t finished, and good for them for staying true to their goals after an awful inning that was beyond most of their control.
What followed was a classic example of a team playing as a team, doing everything they can to pressure the opposition into mistakes, giving themselves up for the greater glory, and manufacturing success.
The Love Machine opened things off with a walk, bringing about a pitcher change with Phil Hann entering the fray for the Chris Everts.
That brought up Dusty Napoleon, and with the thought that the C’s needed a run to tie the scores, he duly dropped the third sac bunt of the game for the home team. Way to pay attention to the scrubs, Duster!
Jason Christian, who had been relatively quiet in the game thus far (and who would make a great #2 hitter, I’m just saying, Rick Magnante) singled to right to score The Love Machine, and suddenly the C’s started to think that maybe they had more options than simply tying the game.
Jeremy Barfield strode to the plate with grim determination and pounded out another single to see Fundy safely at second, and though Jareck West struck out trying to hit a three-run bomb, the C’s tail end was not about to go quietly – two outs or not.
The Tornado, Francisco Tirado, did something he’s been thinking about for a while now – he hit the ball safely, scoring The Fundamentalist from second, and both he and Barfield took an extra base when Everett left fielder Wellington ‘Das Boot’ Dotel tried to nail Christian at home plate (badly).
With the pressure on the Sox, Ryne Jernigan knocked one to short and ran hard to first, bringing about another throwing error as Barfield and Tirado scored and the C’s went out to a 7-4 lead.
Then, of course, JD Pruitt drew a walk. Then, of course, Lorenzo Macias struck out swinging.
The Chris Evert Aquasox could do little with an HBP and a booted ball at third by the Tornado in the 8th, and thought Napeoleon (shock), Christian (shock) and Barfield (mild shock) all hit safely with one out in the bottom of the inning, the fact that Napoleon got nailed by Christian’s liner meant that, instead of runs, they ended up with men on the corners and an unlikely second out. Jareck West struck out looking for that monster bomb again and the inning was over.
So in came Goose Guzman to secure the save for the C’s, and since he’s been lights out all season, it came as some surprise when he gave up two singles, a wild pitch, and a base loading walk with one out. Goose has been ironclad whenever he’s been faced with a potentially perilous situation this year, but this was a right nasty one, with the winning run at the plate and two outs to make.
- Manelik Pimentel grounds into double play, third baseman Francisco
Tirado to first baseman Dusty Napoleon. Kevin Reynolds out at 3rd.
Yes, folks. The Tornado notches a 6-3 unassisted DP to bring the win home and take the Notes From The Nat player of the game award. Well done, Frank.
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