Majors Fall Short in Tight Road Battle With Cardinals
Written by: Evan Frederiksen / Photo by CW Photos
The margin between winning and losing only gets smaller as the CBL season enters the second half, making every game much more meaningful. Sunday's matchup between the London Majors and Hamilton Cardinals showcased two teams who are in the thick of the playoff race in a classic pitchers' duel, where scoring opportunities were very hard to come by. In the end, Hamilton capitalized on a big seventh inning, defeating the Majors 3-2 at Bernie Arbour Stadium.
From the first pitch, it was clear this game was going to be a pitchers' duel.
Photo by Mason Dawdy
Both starters, Victor Payano and Hector Yan, were in complete control. Yan, who had allowed three earned runs or fewer in five of his seven starts entering Sunday’s contest, continued to provide consistency for the Cardinals’ rotation. The Dominican Republic native pitched five innings, allowing an earned run on seven hits while striking out eight.
The Majors’ ace, though, was in a complete groove throughout his outing, moving his season ERA to 3.09 with an efficient six-inning outing against Hamilton.
Victor Payano's Final Line Against Cardinals:
The first run of the game didn't come until the top of the fourth inning, when Jarrett Burney lined a shallow RBI single into left field, giving the Majors a 1-0 lead.
The Cardinals had their own problems against Victor Payano, as they managed just three base runners through six innings and were unable to mount any sort of momentum.
The bottom of the seventh rolled in, and the Cardinals got to Majors’ newcomer Luis Perez. The 30-year-old had a rough time limiting the damage in the frame as Darlin German hit a solo home run to deep left field, tieing the game at 1-1. Jaden Brown then capitalised with two runners in scoring position and lined a two run RBI single to centre field, giving the Cardinals a 3-1 lead after seven innings.
Despite surrendering three earned runs in his Majors debut, Perez displayed the stuff that made him an intriguing addition, striking out three with an electric fastball and a sharp breaking ball that kept both left- and right-handed hitters off balance.
The Majors made things interesting in the ninth, stringing together a walk and two hits against Cardinals reliever Steven Hospital. Jaden Babiuk's RBI single pulled London within 3-2, but that was as close as the Majors would get, as Hospital closed out the game to earn his second save of the season.
With the loss, the Majors now move to 18-10 on the season, 8-7 on the road and are now tied with the Welland Jackfish for the number two seed in the CBL.
CBL Standings:
The Majors will have a chance to bounce back this Friday at Labatt Memorial Park when the 17-9 Barrie Baycats will be in town. London has won all three meetings against Barrie this season, giving the Majors another opportunity to continue their success against one of the CBL's top clubs. First pitch is set for 7:05.