I will always have fond memories of Volcanoes Stadium in Keizer, Oregon. Last August 20, I did a few innings of play-by-play in the visiting broadcast booth for RHP Taylor Cole's spectacular performance on his 23rd birthday and the Vancouver Canadians went on to take two of three against the Volcanoes.*
This year, with Salem-Keizer having moved to the South Division, the Canadians and Volcanoes are no longer division rivals. So, instead of playing four three-game series, the two teams will play only a pair of five-game sets, with the June 20-24 series taking place in Keizer.
Vancouver took the first three games of the series by scores of 6-4, 5-4, and 8-6, before losing the final two in heart-breaking fashion, 2-1 (called after five innings due to rain) and 1-0 (10 innings).
The 6-4 victory on June 20 and the 8-6 thriller on June 22 remind me of why the Canadians are two-time defending Northwest League champions. Both wins featured amazing comebacks just when you thought the C's were out of it.
In the first win, the Canadians trailed 4-1 after seven innings as they were unable to get anything against Volcanoes starter LHP Andrew Leenhouts (4.2 innings, 1 R) and reliever RHP Jake Shadle (2.1 innings, 0 hits, 0 R). In the top of the eighth inning, though, Vancouver struck against LHP Chris Fern.
With one out, 2B Andy Fermin reached base when Volcanoes 2B Cristian Otero booted his ground ball, and DH Jordan Leyland singled him to second. After a groundout by RF Brenden Kalfus, Surrey B.C.'s 1B Justin Atkinson singled home Fermin, cutting the deficit to 4-2. A wild pitch by Fern put runners on second and third, before C Michael Reeves delivered a two-run double to tie the game at 4-4.
Stunned by the Canadians' rally, Salem-Keizer went down quietly in the bottom half of the eighth inning before Vancouver erupted for the winning runs in the top of the ninth. And it was a pair of Canadians who had been struggling who made it happen.
CF Ronnie Melendez, who came into this game batting .077, led off with a single off RHP Raymundo Montero. With Guelph Ontario's 3B Shaun Valeriote batting, Melendez took off for second base. However, Salem-Keizer C Gabriel Cornier threw the ball into center field, allowing Melendez to reach third base. After Valeriote walked, Andy Fermin doubled home both runners to give the C's a 6-4 advantage. For Fermin, who came into the night batting .188, it was his first double of the season and his first hit of the contest, and it proved to be the game-winner.
Though the Volcanoes loaded the bases in the bottom of the ninth on a pair of walks and a single, RHP Jonathan Kountis struck out the side, including Salem-Keizer's best hitter SS Jeremy Sy (who was batting .450 going into the contest) swinging, to end the thriller.
Though C's starter LHP Kyle Anderson gave up four runs, he still pitched effectively in his 5.2 innings of work, striking out six Volcanoes without issuing a walk. But it was the C's comeback--as well as the 3.1 innings of two-hit, shutout ball with seven strikeouts provided by the bullpen--that got him off the hook.
If that opening-game victory was exciting, then the C's certainly gave an encore performance two nights later.
Down 6-1 after five innings, Vancouver came storming back with seven runs over the next three innings to pull out an incredible 8-6 victory. While the Canadians showed a lot of grit by coming back, they were actually helped out by a porous Volcanoes defense that committed seven errors (which led to three unearned runs).
In the top of the sixth, C Daniel Klein reached base on a throwing error by Volcanoes counterpart Eugene Escalante, and 1B Justin Atkinson (who would finish the evening 2-for-4) made him pay by drilling an RBI double to make it 6-2. An inning later, SS Dickie Thon also delivered a run-scoring two-base hit as part of a three-run outburst which cut the deficit to 6-5.
The C's then put the dagger into the Volcanoes' hearts in the top of the eighth inning, scoring three runs to complete the comeback. After LF Ronnie Melendez and CF Ian Parmley both walked to open the inning, RF Brenden Kalfus stroke a one-out double to cash in both runners to give the C's their first lead all evening. One out later, Kalfus would score on a single by Daniel Klein for Vancouver's eighth run, and the Canadians would hang on to the 8-6 victory.
It was Vancouver's fifth straight win and the club improved to 6-3 after nine games. But that victory, as well as the 6-4 game that opened the Salem-Keizer series, served as a reminder as to why the Canadians have won the last two NWL Championships. They never seem to give up, and just when you think they're done, they show you otherwise.
The C's winning streak would be snapped the following afternoon on June 23, when Salem-Keizer won 2-1 in a game which was called after five innings. LHP Colton Turner (0-1) was the hard-luck loser in that contest, allowing only three hits (and three walks) in his four innings of work. SS Dickie Thon drove in the only run for Vancouver, slugging a fifth-inning double that cashed in CF Ian Parmley.
Vancouver would close out the Salem-Keizer series by losing 1-0 in 10 innings, wasting a stellar performance by ace RHP Eric Brown. Brown, the native of Thunder Bay, ON, tossed seven shutout innings and allowed just two hits with eight strikeouts (and no walks), lowering his ERA to a minuscule 0.96.
Alas, the C's couldn't get any runs off RHP Chris Johnson (6 IP, 3 H, 0 BB, 6 SO), RHP Jake Shadle (2 IP, 1 H, 0 BB, 2 SO), and RHP Raymundo Montero (2 IP, 1 H, 1 BB, 4 SO), either.
The game wasn't decided until the bottom of the 10th, when Volcanoes 1B Jonathan Jones singled off RHP Markus Brisker with the bases loaded, allowing Salem-Keizer to salvage the series finale.
The Canadians managed only five hits in the 1-0 loss, with 1B Jordan Leyland (2-for-4) collecting two of them, including a double. The two-hit game raised Leyland's average to .324, tops among all regular C's hitters.
Spokane Series, June 25-27, 2013
Following the Canadians' 3-2 series win in Salem-Keizer, they travelled to Avista Stadium in Spokane, Washington, for their second matchup of the 2013 summer with the Spokane Indians.
Vancouver had won two of three against the Indians back in its season-opening homestand at Scotiabank Field (June 17-19), and it was no different this time around in Spokane.
In the series opener on June 25, LHP Kyle Anderson was spectacular, tossing six innings of two-hit ball with no walks and three strikeouts, as the Canadians won 4-0. Anderson had to pitch a shutout, as the C's gave him just one run of support through the first six innings, with 2B David Harris' RBI single in the top of the second off Indians starter RHP Alex Gonzalez (driving in DH Jordan Leyland) the only run of the ballgame up to that point.
The C's would salt the game away in the final innings, with an Andy Fermin run-scoring double and Jordan Leyland RBI single cashing in two more runs.
The Canadians pitching staff did not issue a walk in the entire game, allowing only four hits to Spokane, as the right-handed trio of Alvido Jimenez, Tim Brechbuehler, and Chuck Ghysels shut down the Indians over the final three innings while allowing just two hits with four strikeouts.
Indians reliever RHP Eric Brooks gave up just one run on two hits over five innings in a losing effort for Spokane.
Despite 1B Justin Atkinson's game-tying home run in the ninth inning the following night on June 26, along with six innings of four-hit, one-run ball by RHP Jeremy Gabryszwski, the C's still lost 3-2 in 10 innings as the Indians earned a split in the series after the first two contests.
Atkinson, from Surrey, B.C., slugged a one-out homer to deep leftfield off reliever RHP Josh McElwee to tie the game 2-2 in the ninth, but the Canadians lost it in the bottom of the 10th inning on a throwing error by SS Dickie Thon with runners on second and third with two outs.
In the loss for the C's, there were still several standouts who came through on this night.
The Canadians would bounce back the series finale on June 27, beating the Indians 5-2 to complete a successful eight-game road trip where they went 5-3.
In the finale, 2B Andy Fermin banged out three hits in five at-bats and drove in a pair of runs, 3B L.B. Dantzler went 2-for-4 in his second game in a Canadians uniform, and C Michael Reeves was 3-for-4 with a run scored.
Reeves' three-hit game raised his batting average to .440 for the summer.
On the mound, LHP Bobby Brosnahan picked up his first win of the season with five shutout innings of three-hit ball. Brosnahan (1-1) did not allow a walk and recorded seven strikeouts.
With the win, the C's improved their record to 8-6 and return home for a six-game homestand beginning on June 28 against the Tri-City Dust Devils (three games) and the North Division-leading Everett AquaSox (three games).
*I began this post by reminiscing about the Taylor Cole/Salem-Keizer game from August 20, 2012. Here is the play-by-play of that memorable night:
Spokane Series, June 25-27, 2013
Following the Canadians' 3-2 series win in Salem-Keizer, they travelled to Avista Stadium in Spokane, Washington, for their second matchup of the 2013 summer with the Spokane Indians.
Vancouver had won two of three against the Indians back in its season-opening homestand at Scotiabank Field (June 17-19), and it was no different this time around in Spokane.
In the series opener on June 25, LHP Kyle Anderson was spectacular, tossing six innings of two-hit ball with no walks and three strikeouts, as the Canadians won 4-0. Anderson had to pitch a shutout, as the C's gave him just one run of support through the first six innings, with 2B David Harris' RBI single in the top of the second off Indians starter RHP Alex Gonzalez (driving in DH Jordan Leyland) the only run of the ballgame up to that point.
The C's would salt the game away in the final innings, with an Andy Fermin run-scoring double and Jordan Leyland RBI single cashing in two more runs.
The Canadians pitching staff did not issue a walk in the entire game, allowing only four hits to Spokane, as the right-handed trio of Alvido Jimenez, Tim Brechbuehler, and Chuck Ghysels shut down the Indians over the final three innings while allowing just two hits with four strikeouts.
Indians reliever RHP Eric Brooks gave up just one run on two hits over five innings in a losing effort for Spokane.
Despite 1B Justin Atkinson's game-tying home run in the ninth inning the following night on June 26, along with six innings of four-hit, one-run ball by RHP Jeremy Gabryszwski, the C's still lost 3-2 in 10 innings as the Indians earned a split in the series after the first two contests.
Atkinson, from Surrey, B.C., slugged a one-out homer to deep leftfield off reliever RHP Josh McElwee to tie the game 2-2 in the ninth, but the Canadians lost it in the bottom of the 10th inning on a throwing error by SS Dickie Thon with runners on second and third with two outs.
In the loss for the C's, there were still several standouts who came through on this night.
- Gabryszwski, who walked one batter and recorded three strikeouts, lowered his ERA to 1.59 on the summer. In each of his first three starts this year, he has gone at least five innings and given up no more than one earned run. He is 1-0 for the C's and has issued just one walk in his 17 innings of work.
- Atkinson, who was drafted by the Toronto Blue Jays in the 26th round in 2011, went 2-for-4. His ninth-inning home run was his first of the summer for Vancouver, and the second of his professional career. The 19-year-old first baseman's other home run came in 2012 in the Gulf Coast League.
- CF Ian Parmley went 2-for-4 to raise his batting average to .261.
The Canadians would bounce back the series finale on June 27, beating the Indians 5-2 to complete a successful eight-game road trip where they went 5-3.
In the finale, 2B Andy Fermin banged out three hits in five at-bats and drove in a pair of runs, 3B L.B. Dantzler went 2-for-4 in his second game in a Canadians uniform, and C Michael Reeves was 3-for-4 with a run scored.
Reeves' three-hit game raised his batting average to .440 for the summer.
On the mound, LHP Bobby Brosnahan picked up his first win of the season with five shutout innings of three-hit ball. Brosnahan (1-1) did not allow a walk and recorded seven strikeouts.
With the win, the C's improved their record to 8-6 and return home for a six-game homestand beginning on June 28 against the Tri-City Dust Devils (three games) and the North Division-leading Everett AquaSox (three games).
*I began this post by reminiscing about the Taylor Cole/Salem-Keizer game from August 20, 2012. Here is the play-by-play of that memorable night:
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