Disastrous Doubleheader Nets C's Two Losses

SPOKANE, WA – The Canadians experienced two kinds of excruciating losses Saturday in a scheduled doubleheader with the Spokane Indians [Rockies], first a 7-6 walk-off after leading by two with two outs in the bottom of the seventh then a 17-1 late innings meltdown to get swept in the twin bill and fall two games below .500.

Game 1 – Spokane 7, Vancouver 6 (7 innings)

The afternoon began with the C’s down 3-0 after the first three innings, but an impressive two-out rally in the top of the fourth shifted the momentum. Jackson Hornung singled, Jeff Wehler worked a nine-pitch walk then Dylan Rock drove in the first run of the day with a base hit. Glenn Santiago followed with an opposite field double that brought in a pair and he scored when Jaden Rudd singled him home to make it 4-3.

Spokane tied it with a solo homer on the third pitch of the home half of the inning, but another two-out rally in the top of the sixth put the Canadians back in front. Rock doubled, Santiago singled him in then a balk, a wild pitch, a walk for Rudd and another wild pitch saw Santiago scamper home to extend Vancouver’s lead to 6-4.

Carson Pierce (L, 0-1) took the ball in the bottom of the seventh after two dominant innings of relief in the fifth and sixth. He got the first out, but a soft single to center from #7 Rockies prospect Dyan Jorge was the first of three consecutive hits to load the bases. On came Anders Tolhurst, who induced a foul out before Braiden Ward worked the count full, fouled off a pair of two-strike pitches then pulled a medium-depth fly ball down the right field line that landed just fair and – thanks to an error at first base on the throw from the outfield – allowed all three runners to score for a 7-6 C’s loss.

Game 2 – Spokane 17, Vancouver 1 (7 innings)

The Canadians were the home team in game two, a makeup of one of the four postponements at The Nat at the end of April. Both teams scored in the second, with Spokane taking a 2-0 lead on three consecutive one-out hits and a wild pitch. Singles from Nick Goodwin and Hornung set the table for a Rock RBI knock that spoiled the shutout, but a pick-off at third base and a strikeout to end the inning stymied the rally.

Vancouver’s last chance to tie it was the third, when a Dasan Brown double and a two-out Ryan McCarty infield single would have put the tying and go-ahead runners on base. But after McCarty legged out the hit, Brown was nabbed at the plate and the inning ended without a run.

From there it was all Spokane. They used a six-hit fifth inning to score four more then sent 17 men to the plate and scored 11 runs on 11 hits with one walk and one hit batter in the seventh to go on to win 17-1. Click here for the box score with all the sordid details.

Tomorrow’s series finale will be a chance for the Canadians to flush today’s results and end their second visit to the Lilac City on a high note. Lazaro Estrada goes for the C’s opposite Spokane’s Connor Staine. First pitch is set for 1:05 p.m.

The Canadians return home May 28-June 2 to face the Tri-City Dust Devils [Angels]. Tickets are available now at CanadiansBaseball.com.