NEWS PHOTO JAMES TUBB
Medicine Hat Mavericks designated hitter Noah Adams fouls off a pitch in the Mavericks 9-4 loss Monday at Athletic Park against the Fort McMurray Giants.
jtubb@medicinehatnews.com@ReporterTubb
Medicine Hat Mavericks head coach Mark Goodman gave his team two options after their 9-4 loss Monday night, they can either build off it and start something good or get bitter and start down a bad path.
The Mavs’ loss at the hands of the Fort McMurray Giants came in the penultimate game of a nine-contest stretch that saw the local Western Canadian Baseball League club put up a record of 3-5, for 6-8 on the season. The stretch wrapped up Tuesday in Swift Current against the 57’s, a game not complete by press time.
After Monday’s loss, a game the Mavericks led 3-0 at one point, Goodman was confident his team would bounce back in Swift Current but asked more of the group having passed the quarter mark of their 56-game season. He says the grind of summer ball is something a lot of them have never experienced before but have to learn from quickly.
“I told them, this feels like we’re going through the motions right now and it’s just not going to cut it,” Goodman said. “This is something they’ve never experienced so at the end of the day, it’s fun to help them grow as players and learn to get through this, if they truly want to play professional baseball.”
The Mavericks have struggled with finding success on both sides of the baseball at the same time. Entering play Tuesday, they sit second in the league in hits with 135 and third in runs scored with 85. But on the mound, the Mavs have surrender the second most earned runs with 93, tied for first in all runs allowed and second in hits against. They have also committed the second-most errors in the 10-team league, with 25 in 14 games.
Monday’s loss exemplified a pattern for the Mavericks of getting ahead and getting comfortable with the lead and success before ultimately losing. Starter Garrett Nicholson pitched 6.2 innings while only allowing one run on three hits, walking four and striking out one. Tim Carlson took over in the seventh for the final out but combined with Dylan Weaver to allow eight runs across in the eighth and ninth innings. The Mavericks committed two errors in the loss, with one occurring in the eighth to put Fort McMurray ahead 5-3.
The majority of Medicine Hat’s offence came in the third and fourth innings, scoring a run in the third off a fielder’s choice RBI from shortstop Tyler Vanneste. Their two runs in the fourth came from an RBI single from designated hitter Noah Adams and left fielder Ryan Dousett scoring on a wild pitch. They scored a run in the bottom of the ninth, a sacrifice fly from pinch hitter Brent Cota, but it was too little, too late.
While there’s hope that Monday’s loss provided the Mavericks a turning point and a spot to build from, having it come at Athletic Park in front of the Medicine Hat faithful makes it hard to move on from Goodman says.
“Losing at home, it gives the hardest losses to take no matter what you do, especially when you beat yourself,” Goodman said. “The package we’re trying to provide for this town and these fans, is a good ball club and you can’t do that at home. We just didn’t complete the package today and let our fans down.”
The Mavericks have an off-day today, their first full day off since June 4. They open up a four-game stand on Thursday when they host Swift Current before welcoming the Okotoks Dawgs to Athletic Park on Friday. They travel to Brooks to face the Bombers on Saturday and face the 57’s on Sunday in a Father’s Day matinee.
