C's-ed Opportunities Lead To Series Win
VANCOUVER, BC – The Canadians scored five unearned runs between the first two innings and cruised to a 6-1 win over the Everett AquaSox [Mariners] in front of a sold-out crowd Saturday night at Rogers Field at Nat Bailey Stadium. With the win, the C’s secured their 11th series victory
VANCOUVER, BC – The Canadians scored five unearned runs between the first two innings and cruised to a 6-1 win over the Everett AquaSox [Mariners] in front of a sold-out crowd Saturday night at Rogers Field at Nat Bailey Stadium. With the win, the C’s secured their 11th series victory in 16 total series this season.
Michael Dominguez (W, 7-2) climbed the slope for the team high-fifteenth time and found himself in hot water in the top of the first. After a ground out on his first pitch of the night, he walked the next two batters on 10 pitches before bouncing back with a strikeout. Another walk followed, but the right-hander induced an inning-ending infield pop-up to escape the jam and keep the game scoreless.
Dominguez’s effort in the opening inning proved crucial. The C’s grabbed the lead for good in the bottom of the first and did so with two outs. Cade Doughty worked a walk to spark the rally then Gabby Martinez rolled a soft grounder towards the right side of the infield. Frogs second baseman James Parker took his eye off the ball just before he was set to glove it and had it clang off his mitt for an error that prolonged the frame. Josh Kasevich, Garrett Spain and Jeff Wehler all followed with run-scoring singles to plate three unearned runs against Everett lefty Reid Van Scoter (L, 8-4).
Two more two-out unearned runs would score in the second inning, and again on a ball put in play by Martinez. After Dasan Brown and Doughty hit back-to-back singles, the Maracaibo, VA native hit a fly ball into the right-center field gap that seemed ticket for an inning-ending grab for right fielder Colin Davis. Instead, a collision between Davis and center fielder Blake Rambusch – who has played terrific defense all week – forced the ball out of Davis’ glove for an error on Rambusch, which allowed both runners to score and made it 5-0.
The first inning was all the tight-rope walking Dominguez would do; he breezed through the next 12 outs and finished his night with five innings of scoreless work that featured one hit – a lead-off single in the fifth – around five walks and five strikeouts.
A collaboration by the Browns added on another run in the bottom of the sixth. Devonte worked a two-out walk and, after a balk, Dasan doubled him home to put the C’s in front by six.
Everett got their lone run in the eighth after Hunter Gregory’s two perfect innings in the sixth and seventh, but Justin Kelly left two of the three runners he inherited on base then faced the minimum in the ninth to lock down the 6-1 win.
Dominguez is posting career numbers in the C’s rotation this year and lowered his July ERA to 1.86 in 19.1 innings of work. He hasn’t allowed a run in the last 10.0 innings and has surrendered only two hits in that span.
All nine starters contributed in some way, eight reached base and seven had a hit. Dasan and Doughty paced the offense with two hits apiece. With the win, the Canadians are now a Northwest League-best 21-8 in the second half and 59-35 overall. Their 59 wins are the second most in High-A behind the Great Lakes Loons [Dodgers, 60].
The series concludes with an A&W Family Fun Sunday at The Nat. Gates open at noon and first pitch is set for 1:05 p.m. with Rafael Sanchez on the slope for the C’s. He’ll be opposed by Everett’s Raul Alcantara. Coverage can be found via CanadiansBaseball.com, the MiLB First Pitch app, Bally Live and the Sportsnet Radio Network.