NEWS PHOTO JAMES TUBB
Medicine Hat Mavericks starter Xander Roberts follows through on a pitch in the first inning of a 12-6 loss Sunday at Athletic Park to the Saskatoon Berries.
Medicine Hat News
Sunday’s matinee was a re-showing of Saturday’s feature at Athletic Park.
The Medicine Hat Mavericks allowed a crooked number in the first inning to the Saskatoon Berries for a second straight game, falling 12-6 Sunday to the WCBL leaders after a seven-run first inning. Saskatoon scored nine runs in the first inning Saturday in a 13-1 win over the Mavs.
Mavs’ head coach Jonathon Thornhill says they shot themselves in the foot for a second straight game and he credited his bullpen for their work in keeping the game alive for the offence.
“When you give a team nine runs in the first inning last night, seven runs in the first city tonight, it’s a nice little jump start for their offense,” Thornhill said. “We talked about it in there, the one thing that on top of Luis (Diaz), Luke (Barrientos) and (A.J.) Doll doing what they did from a pitcher standpoint, to give us hope, was guys never quit. They kept chipping away, they kept coming the dugout and easily could have said, ‘this again, let’s move on,’ but they didn’t.”
Mavs’ starter Xander Roberts faced 10 batters, allowing a leadoff home run to Ethan Menard, his first of three home runs in the game. The Berries put together five other hits and drew four walks in the inning before Luis Diaz took over on the mound, working out of the inning.
As they did Saturday night, the Mavs responded with offence in the bottom of the bloated inning. A lead-off double from centre fielder Jeremy Freeman Jr. was followed up a batter later by a walk by designated hitter Tyler Vanneste. With two outs, catcher Nate King pulled a three-run home run over the left field fence to make it a 7-3 game after the first inning.
Menard hit his second home run of the game, a solo home run in the third inning.
Medicine Hat continued the response, scoring a run in the bottom of the fourth on an RBI single to centre field from second baseman Blake Dale.
Saskatoon centre fielder Evan Janner hit a single to left field in the top of the fifth to make it a 9-4 score. The Mavs added a pair of runs in the bottom of the frame, the first coming on an RBI single from Vanneste. King knocked in a the second run on an infields groundout for the 9-6 score.
Diaz worked five innings out of the bullpen, allowing the two runs (one earned) on seven hits, striking out seven batters. A.J. Doll took over and pitched three frames, allowing three runs on two hits, a walk with two strikeouts.
Those three runs came in the top of the sixth inning when Menard hit a three-run home run for his third long ball of the game, fifth of the weekend, making it a 12-6 score.
Luke Barrientos finished the game for the Mavs, working a clean top of the ninth, recording a strikeout.
Saskatoon outhit the Berries 15-7, they also committed three errors to the Mavs’ one.
The Mavs (17-10) are off Monday before they embark on a six-game road trip through the West division, starting Canada Day (Tuesday) at Sylvan Lake against the Gulls.
