Majors Drop Tough Contest to Panthers, Top Seed Race Continues
Written by: Evan Frederiksen / Photos By Mason Dawdy
The London Majors had the No. 1 seed within reach Thursday night, needing just one more victory to officially secure the top spot in the CBL playoffs. Unfortunately, the opportunity slipped away from London on the road, as the Majors suffered a 7-3 loss to the Kitchener Panthers at Jack Couch Park Thursday night.
Both squads entered Thursday’s affair with impressive offensive numbers:
Majors vs Panthers offence entering Thursday’s contest:
But for the Majors, offence was a struggle for a good portion of the evening as Kitchener sent Jorge Minyety to the mound and gave the Panthers a six-plus-inning outing, giving up two earned runs on seven hits while striking out four.
Luis Perez got the start for the Majors and endured his first rough outing of the season, lasting just two innings while surrendering six earned runs on six hits and striking out three. The Kitchener offence came out swinging right from the start, putting four runs on the board in the opening frame. Malik Williams got the scoring started with a two-run bomb to dead-centre field, putting the Panthers up 2-0. Kitchener continued to pile it on as Zane Skanski lined a two-run triple into right field, bringing home Yunior Ibarra and Petey Kiefer to extend the Panthers' lead to 4-0 after an inning.
The Panthers' offence, which entered the contest with a team .272 AVG, continued its offensive outpouring in the bottom of the second. Mateo Zeppieri, who entered the contest batting just .213 against right-handed pitching, lined a solo home run to right field, extending the Panthers' lead to 5-0.
Malik Williams clearly wasn't satisfied with hitting just one home run, as he launched another long shot to left field, this one a solo shot in the bottom half of the second, giving Kitchener a comfortable 6-0 lead after two innings.
There was no offensive momentum for either team from the third to the sixth inning, but the Majors bullpen was an absolute masterclass in this game, as Dustin Davidson was the first to come in relief of Perez, pitching three impressive scoreless innings and keeping the Kitchener offence off the scoreboard. Davidson continued what he’s done all season, creating whiffs with his funky delivery as he punched out three in his outing. Kade Douglas also had a great outing as he pitched two scoreless innings while also striking out three. Alex Springer then followed Douglas and pitched an inning of work.
(Photo By Mason Dawdy)
Majors Memorial Bullpen Breakdown (Davidson, Douglas, Springer):
The Majors offence did have some spark, though, as in the top of the seventh, Eduardo De Oleo smacked his fourth home run of the season, a two-run shot to center field that brought the Majors to within 6-2. Cristian Inoa then added another run with a sacrifice fly to left field, scoring Starling Joseph and cutting the Kitchener lead to 6-3.
(Photo By Mason Dawdy)
Unfortunately, for London, that was all the offence they could muster up, as Kitchener added another run in the bottom of the eighth, extending their lead to 7-3. Owen MacNeil then threw three innings of relief, recorded the save and shut the door on the Majors to seal the win for the Panthers.
With the loss, the Majors now move to 31-15 on the season but still maintain a two-game lead for the No. 1 seed in the CBL.
CBL standings
Team X= Clinched Playoff Berth W-L GB STRK
Here’s a look at the updated playoff picture as the CBL season winds down:
CBL Playoff Picture (August 27th updated)
#2 WELLAND JACKFISH ──────┐
(Best of 7 Series) (Semi-Final)
(Wild Card Game) #3 HAMILTON CARDINALS ────────┘
#4 GUELPH ROYALS ────┐ TBD VS TBD FINALS (Best of 7 Series) ├─ CHAMPIONSHIP
#5 BARRIE BAYCATS ───────┘ #1 LONDON MAJORS ─────┐
(Best of 7 Series) (Semi-Final)
WINNER OF #4/#5 ───────┘
The good news for London is that they’ll have a chance to clinch the No. 1 seed tomorrow, August 28, when the Brantford Red Sox visit Labatt Memorial Park in arguably the biggest game of the season. First pitch is set for 7:05 p.m.