Majors Fall in High-Scoring Clash With Maple Leafs
Written by: Evan Frederiksen / Photos By Mason Dawdy
The London Majors entered Friday night with an offence that has been among the CBL’s best, carrying a .319 team average, .398 OBP, .507 slugging percentage, .905 OPS and 65 home runs. Those numbers helped London build a 28-12 record through 40 games. But Friday night against the Maple Leafs, despite the Majors putting up solid offensive numbers, they couldn’t generate enough offence to match Toronto’s production, ultimately falling 10-7 at Historic Labatt Memorial Park.
In a game filled with emotion and intensity, both teams had their moments offensively throughout Friday night’s affair.
Both offences entering Friday's matchup:
Victor Payano got the nod for his 14th start of the season and showed flashes of consistency, striking out seven over his five innings of work. However, the Maple Leafs’ offence continued to battle and work long at-bats against Payano, which led to some lengthy innings for the three-time All-Star.
The Toronto offence first broke through in the top of the second when Yolki Pena lined a deep double to right field, bringing home Toronto’s first run. JJ Dutton then drew an RBI walk, scoring Pena, before Crixtian Taveras was hit by a pitch with the bases loaded, bringing home another run and giving the Maple Leafs a 3-0 lead.
Nick Veselinovic got the ball for Toronto, and the left-hander continued to show why he has been one of the more reliable arms on the Maple Leafs’ pitching staff. Veselinovic turned in a strong outing, working five and a-third innings while allowing three earned runs on six hits while striking out three.
The London offence did find some success against Veselinovic, though, as Starling Joseph, who entered the contest batting .314 against left-handed pitching, hit an absolute screamer to left field for his sixth home run of the season, giving the Majors their first run. London continued to make solid contact against Veselinovic in the bottom of the third as well, when Cristian Inoa lined an RBI single to center field, scoring David Draayers and bringing the Majors within one at 3-2.
(Photo by Mason Dawdy)
Toronto wasted no time responding, adding a run in each of the fourth and fifth innings. Crixtian Taveras drove in another run with an RBI single to right field in the fourth, before Spenser Ross added a sacrifice fly in the fifth to put the Maple Leafs ahead 5-2.
London didn’t stop fighting back, though, as Tucker Zdunich, who entered the contest 8-for-20 (.400) over his last five games, continued his scorching hot stretch when he lined an RBI double to right field in the bottom of the sixth, pulling the Majors back to within 5-3.
The back-and-forth between these two clubs continued into the seventh inning, as the Maple Leafs put together another big frame. Yolki Pena opened the inning by scoring on an error by the London defence, before Yasiel Puig followed with a deep home run to left field, his 17th of the season. The three-run shot put Toronto ahead 9-3, with Puig continuing to be the heartbeat of the Maple Leafs’ offence.
The fight and resilience from the Majors were two of the biggest storylines of the game. Despite not picking up the win, London continued to compete until the final out, showing the mindset of a team that believes it can come back from any deficit.
(Photo By Mason Dawdy)
That fight was on full display in the bottom of the seventh and eighth innings. Maikol Escotto got things rolling in the seventh with his 13th home run of the season, a missile to center field that cut Toronto’s lead to 9-4. Cristian Inoa followed with an RBI single, bringing London within four at 9-5 after seven innings.
Toronto added another run on a Drew Howard RBI single in the top of the eighth, making it a 10-5 game. London responded right back with another two-run frame in the bottom of the eighth, as Maikol Escotto, who had himself a night, drove in two more runs with a two-run single to left field, pulling the Majors back to within three at 10-7.
Zach Laird was then called upon for the top of the ninth and pitched a massive scoreless inning. The Maple Leafs’ hitters stood little chance against Laird’s heat, as the 23-year-old struck out a pair in his outing.
(Photo By Mason Dawdy)
Zach Laird’s Final Line Against Toronto:
Unfortunately for the Majors, they were unable to generate a rally in the bottom of the ninth, as Maple Leafs reliever Luis Florentino recorded the final out of the game, sealing a 10-7 victory for Toronto.
With the loss, the Majors now move to 28-13 on the season while still maintaining the No. 1 seed in the CBL. Elsewhere in the standings, the Hamilton Cardinals defeated the Welland Jackfish 7-6 on Friday, leaving both teams one-and-a-half games back of the Majors.
CBL standings
Team X= Clinched Playoff Berth W-L GB STRK
The Majors will now look to get back into the win column Saturday, August 15, when London visits Barrie in the second game of a three-game weekend. First pitch at Athletic Kulture Stadium is set for 4:08 p.m.