C's Win Wild One To Start Second Half 6-0
The best second half start in Canadians franchise history continued Thursday night, as a three-run shot from Jeff Wehler in the bottom of the seventh turned out to be the game’s difference maker in a 6-5 win over the Hillsboro Hops [AZ] in front of a sellout crowd at The
The best second half start in Canadians franchise history continued Thursday night, as a three-run shot from Jeff Wehler in the bottom of the seventh turned out to be the game’s difference maker in a 6-5 win over the Hillsboro Hops [AZ] in front of a sellout crowd at The Nat.
Tied at three after the stretch, Jace Bohrofen worked a lead-off walk before back-to-back outs threatened to keep the game even. Je’Von Ward laced a single to right field to set the table for Wehler, who fell behind 0-2, fouled off a pitch, took a ball then launched a sky-scraping drive beyond the left field bullpen for his fifth homer of the season to put the C’s in front 6-3.
Hillsboro didn’t go quietly in the top of the ninth. Consecutive one-out walks, a pitching change and a pair of two-out RBI singles cut the Vancouver lead to one, but Johnathan Lavallee (S, 2) bounced back to strike out #13 D-Backs prospect Jack Hurley to strand the tying and go-ahead runs in scoring position and secure a 6-5 win.
The C’s started the scoring in the bottom of the third. Dylan Rock and Robert Brooks delivered back-to-back doubles for an early 1-0 advantage, but Hillsboro rallied to tie the game in the top of the fifth with a single, a wild pitch, a flyout and a sacrifice fly. They grabbed their first lead of the series on a two-out single from Junior Franco in the sixth after a one-out walk and a throwing error on a wild pitch put the go-ahead run at third.
Vancouver trailed until the fifth batter of the bottom of the inning. With the bases loaded and one out, Brooks cashed in for another RBI with a sacrifice fly and a passed ball brought home the go-ahead tally to put the Canadians in front 3-2. Hops first baseman Kevin Sim wasted no time retying the game; he smashed a solo shot on the fourth pitch of the seventh inning to make it 3-3 before Wehler’s clutch bomb in the home half.
Starter Connor O’Halloran bounced back from a rough outing last week and logged his second career High-A quality start. The Mississauga, ON native went six complete, allowed two runs (one earned) on four hits, walked two and struck out five over 81 pitches.
With the win, the C’s have won six in a row for the first time since August 8-13, 2023. Their 6-0 start is the best of any half in franchise history.
Wehler and Ward paced the offense with two hits and a walk apiece. Brooks’ two-RBI game was his most productive since joining the organization as a free agent on June 7.
The Canadians can win the six-game series tomorrow afternoon as part of a FortisBC ‘Nooner at The Nat. Carson Pierce toes the slab for Vancouver opposite Hillsboro’s Joe Elbis. First pitch is set for 1:05 p.m. RE/MAX Canadians Baseball will be live across the C’s Broadcast Network: Sportsnet 650 (alt feed) and Bally Live.