Majors impressive in front of Hall of Famer Jenkins

On a night many across baseball in London had been waiting for, Friday night was the return of legendary MLB pitcher Fergie Jenkins to Labatt Park. Not only were fans treated to the return of the Chatham native, but the Majors dominated on both sides of the ball with a 7-0 win over the Hamilton Cardinals. 

After many stories, memories shared and a ceremonial first pitch shared between former teammates Jon Owen and Fergie one more time, the Majors sent out Fernando Fernandez to the mound to start the contest, coming in after a dominant outing vs the Red Sox on Saturday, and 4 games in 4 days (2 being a doubleheader Sunday in Kitchener) Roop Chanderdat was looking for Fernando to continue his return to his former self. Going 5.2 innings, while only allowing 5 hits, Fernandez would count on his defence behind him getting multiple outs on the ground while only striking out 2. Another Major who was looking to build off 2 dominant outings last weekend was Anderson Acevedo who returned to the mound going 1.1 innings striking out 2. Daniel Gore and Braeden Ferrington would also make a single-inning appearance in the game, striking out 1 batter over the 2 innings while only allowing 2 hits. 

Not only was Fergie Jenkins a gift to the Majors but Taylor Wright also returned to 25 Wilson Street after spending the last month with the Ottawa Titans of the Frontier League. With the Majors playing fundamental baseball at the start of the game, a sac fly by Gibson Krzeminski and a single by Starling Joseph would put the Majors up 2-0 before the end of the 3rd inning. After that the Majors swung some hard bats putting up a home run by Cleveland Brownlee, a double by Taylor Wright followed by a 2-run home run by Wright in the 7th inning that also scored Byron Reichstein who has started to find his groove as of lately, the Majors would cruise to a 7-0 victory over the Cardinals. 

Saturday is a rare weekend day off for the Majors but they will travel down to Kitchener in Jack Couch Park to take on the Panthers in a rescheduled rainout from earlier this season followed by a Monday night contest vs the Brantford Red Sox. Tickets for that game can be purchased online at www.londonmajors.com  

The London Majors are a member of Canada’s top baseball league, the Intercounty Baseball League. In 2021 the London Majors won the IBL Jack & Lynn Dominico Trophy. The 100-year-old summer league is one of the oldest baseball leagues in the world, with the league established in 1919, drawing significantly more fans, in a friendly ballpark experience, than any league of its kind. For more information, visit www.londonmajors.com or follow the Majors on Facebook, Instagram, Tik-Tok, Youtube and Twitter at @Londonmajors.