Baycats Battle till the End, Edged Out by Cardinals in Hamilton
Hamilton, ON – The Barrie Baycats battled until the very end Friday in Hamilton but came up just short against the Cardinals in a 3-2 loss. As expected, the matchup between Frank Garcés and Owen Boon lived up to all expectations and then some, as the two aces matched each other pitch for pitch, creating a very exciting finish.
Boon went eight innings in his first win of the season—and as a Cardinal—striking out ten Baycats, with his only blemish coming in the eighth when Baycats left-fielder Tristan Clarke hit one off the light pole in right field, his first in the Intercounty Baseball League.
Garcés matched Boon until the seventh inning, when Hamilton catcher July Vittini put a great swing on what looked like a good pitch from the lefty, sending it over the left field wall to break the scoreless tie. Yolki Pena’s two-run single four batters later made it 3-0 for the home side. Garcés was the only pitcher used by acting manager Jeremy Uylenbroek in the game, striking out nine.
The Baycats made two great plays on defence late in the game to keep things close. Catcher Leliis Beltran threw out Pena by a considerable margin—thanks to a perfect throw—at second base in the seventh. In the eighth, it was the slick hands of Francisco Hernandez, who snagged a sharply hit ball off the bat of Josh Williams and flipped it to his brother Brandon, who fired it back to first for a smooth 4-6-3 double play.
Nolan Machibroda’s ninth-inning RBI single—on which he advanced to second on the throw home—made it a one-run game and put the tying run in scoring position. However, Cardinals relief pitcher Caleb Seroski closed the door, notching his first save of the season.
Final Score: Cardinals 3, Baycats 2.
NEXT UP: The Baycats return home Saturday afternoon for a rematch against the Cardinals. First pitch is set for 4:05 p.m. at Athletic Kulture Stadium. It’s Paul Sadlon Motors Junior Baycats Day!