The Vancouver Canadians held off the Tri-City Dust Devils 5-3 in a rain-shortened affair at Nat Bailey Stadium on Jackie Robinson Day Saturday afternoon.
The Dust Devils needed just two pitches to get a runner in scoring position as D’Shawn Knowles doubled to right-center field off Canadians starter Dahian Santos. The next three pitches produced the first two outs of the inning as Adrian Placencia flew out to left field and Arol Vera grounded out to second. Knowles would be left at third as Gabe Matthews struck out swinging.
Vancouver took advantage of a Tri-City error in the bottom of the first inning. Adrian Placencia’s throw from short pulled Matthews off the first base bag to allow Dasan Brown to reach. Dust Devils starter Bryce Osmond got ahead of Alan Roden in the count at 0-2 but Roden snuck a ball under the glove of Vera at second base and hustled into second base for a double. Gabby Martinez then jumped on a 1-0 pitch from Osmond and smacked a two-out single to center to drive in Brown and Roden to give Vancouver a 2-0 lead. Josh Kasevich followed with an opposite-field single to right but Riley Tirotta struck out swinging to leave two runners on.
The Dust Devils were retired in order by Santos in the second as he whiffed Joe Stewart and Gustavo Campero to bracket a Steven Rivas pop out to short. The bottom of the inning began painfully for C’s catcher Jommer Hernández as he was hit in the right hand by Osmond’s first pitch. Hernández was caught trying to steal second on what appeared to be a missed sign for a hit and run with Estiven Machado holding up on his swing. Machado would eventually strike out for the second out. Michael Turconi lined a base hit to left but he was picked off by Osmond to end the inning.
Tri-City made Santos work in the third and they would break through. Casey Dana walked to start the frame after falling behind in the count at 1-2. Brendan Tinsman worked the count full but struck out looking for the first out. Santos then got ahead of Knowles at 0-2 but in a nine-pitch at-bat, Knowles heard ball four to put two Tri-City runners on. Placencia grounded out to first after facing six pitchers to advance Dana and Knowles into scoring position. Vera then drilled a double off the top of the padding in center field to tie the game at 2-2. Santos would keep Vera at second by getting Matthews to pop out to third.
The Canadians hit a couple of balls hard in the third but had nothing to show for it. Brown was robbed of a potential double when Knowles ran one down at the warning track in right-center field before running straight into the wall but the Dust Devils right fielder managed to hang on to the ball. Roden then lined out to left-center on the next pitch when Dust Devils center fielder Joe Stewart flagged the ball down. Osmond finished the inning 1-2-3 when he struck out Alex De Jesus on a foul tip.
Vancouver went to the bullpen in the fourth inning and lefthander Cooper Benson turned aside Tri-City in order. Osmond was a strike away from managing a clean inning of his own but Tirotta spoiled that plan with a single up the middle on a 1-2 pitch. Hernández smoked a double off the wall in the right field corner and that scored Tirotta all the way from first to regain the lead for the C’s. A throwing error by Placencia—his second of the game—gave Hernández an extra 90 feet. Machado would drive in Hernández with a hustle double to center as he slid head first to beat the tag at second to increase the Vancouver lead to 4-2. Emilker Guzman relieved Osmond and walked Turconi on four pitches but got Brown to fly out to left for out number three.
With the rain increasing in intensity, the grounds crew had to work on the mound before Benson could resume pitching in the top of the fifth. The former Arizona State Sun Devil struck out Dana looking to start the frame. A two-out single to center and a stolen base by Knowles were wasted by Tri-City when Placencia popped up a 3-1 pitch to short for the third out.
The Canadians got a rally going in the fifth when Roden singled to right and got to second on a Tinsman passed ball. Roden would be thrown out trying to advance to third on a grounder too short on a grounder by De Jesus. De Jesus got to second on a Guzman wild pitch and he was joined on the basepaths by Martinez on a four-pitch walk. Kasevich fouled out to first but Tirotta made sure Vancouver would not come away empty-handed as he punched a single up the gut to score De Jesus to give the C’s a 5-2 advantage. Tirotta would get into scoring position on a Guzman wild pitch that appeared to clip Hernández’s jersey at the plate and hit home plate umpire Garrett Griffin in the left arm. However, Hernández did not jog down to first. After Garrett discussed the situation with base umpire Garth Snow, Hernández returned to the batter’s box and eventually struck out swinging.
With the rain continuing and field conditions worsening, Vera singled to right off Benson on a 0-2 pitch to start the top of the sixth. Matthews struck out swinging but Stewart hit one off the wall in the right field corner for a double to get Vera over to third. Rivas then drove Vera home with a sacrifice fly. Benson was called for a pitch clock violation before throwing a pitch to Campero and fell behind in the count at 3-1 before hitting the Dust Devils designated hitter with a pitch in the midsection. Campero represented the game-tying run at first but the home plate umpire came out to chat with Benson and then after conferring with the base ump, the game was halted and the tarp was rolled out onto the field. Then at 3:22 p.m., the game was officially called, resulting in a Canadians victory.
C-Notes
The Canadians announced a roster move just before Saturday’s game. Righthander Eric Pardinho has been placed on the seven-day injured list after being charged for six runs over 1-2/3 innings in his season debut on Wednesday. Taking his place is 2017-2019 and 2022 fellow righty Juan Nuñez who is on the verge of making his fifth tour of duty with Monty’s Mounties. The 27-year-old from Santo Domingo in the Dominican Republic was reassigned from Double-A New Hampshire. The 6-foot-2, 185-pound hurler will wear number 41.
The series finale is set for Sunday afternoon in a 1:05 p.m. first pitch. However, rain is in the forecast for the next little while, meaning the Canadians face the possibility of having its fourth rainout of the season. If the game goes ahead, it is on CanadiansBaseball.com and MiLB.TV with Tyler Zickel calling the action. Fans are advised to sign up for the Vancouver Canadians text service by texting the word ‘Canadians’ at 604-239-7071 for the latest updates on game time status updates, postponements and exclusive ticket deals.
The Canadians will go on the road for the first time this season as they travel down the I-5 to Everett to face the AquaSox on Tuesday night at 7:05 p.m. The game is on CanadiansBaseball.com and MiLB.TV as Everett is broadcasting its games at Funko Field this season.
Radar Gun Rundown
Santos had offerings in the range of 77-92 miles per hour with strikeouts at 92, 82, 82 and 79.
Benson was around 72-90 with a K of 87.
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