Mavericks mowed down
Erik Sabrowski continues to be the Edmonton Prospects’ not-so-secret weapon.
The big left-hander retired the first 18 batters he faced Tuesday at Athletic Park, dominating the Medicine Hat Mavericks’ esteemed batters like nobody else has all summer.
Edmonton won Game 2 of the Western Major Baseball League’s Western Conference finals 9-0, tying the best-of-five at 1-1 with the next two games in Edmonton tonight and tomorrow.
“The way it was tonight, I didn’t have a lot of command of any pitch,” said Sabrowski, who was named a first-team all-star designated hitter and secondteam starting pitcher this year. “Just effectively wild, I guess
“Everyone made a few nice plays. That’s why they didn’t score tonight.”
His defence didn’t commit an error, Sabrowski’s curveball confounded Mavs hitters and Edmonton broke open the game with a five-run fifth inning. He finished with four strikeouts, two walks and just three hits against.
“We were hitting the ball hard, just not finding holes anywhere,” said Mavericks leftfielder Jaxson Hooge, who finally spoiled the no-hitter and perfect game with a hit through the right side to lead off the seventh inning. “Push past, I have faith in this team we’ll come back tomorrow.”
Sabrowski, an 6-foot-3, 220-pound Edmonton native, didn’t allow an earned run in his first outing of the playoffs either. In 6 2/3 innings at Okotoks he gave up one unearned run in a 2-1 win.
The only good news for Medicine Hat is he’s unlikely to pitch again in the series. But he will hit.
“He’ll probably DH tomorrow,” said Prospects coach Ray Brown. “Every time we give him the ball he does a pretty good job for us. It’s nice to see.”
Brown will throw Zaine Foth-Thomas against the Mavericks’ Tanner Helms tonight at Re/Max Field, knowing it probably won’t be as easy. Then again, Foth-Thomas threw a no-hitter against Brooks earlier this season. Edmonton definitely has the pitching and defence to counter Medicine Hat’s potent attack.
The baseball gods were clearly in Edmonton’s favour early, the opposite of Monday’s 5-3 Mavericks win. Anthony Cusati reached on an error in the second, and looked to be out by a mile trying to steal second base. But the umpire called him safe, eliciting loud boos from the crowd of 1,212.
With Sabrowski shutting down the Mavericks, Edmonton broke open the game in the fifth inning. Michael Gahan doubled and Nick Spillman (who went 4-for5) singled runs in, ending the night for starting pitcher Tyler Skinner. Edmonton added three more off reliever Barry Caine, leaving only one question left for the Prospects: Could Sabrowski really no-hit the best-hitting team in the league?
He couldn’t. But the effort was nothing short of incredible.
“He was throwing three pitches for strikes, didn’t walk anybody early on,” said Mavericks coach Michael Thompson. “And they played some good defence behind him.”
At Weyburn, Ryan Johnson struck out 10 in six shutout innings as the Beavers took a 60 win at Swift Current and 2-0 series lead. They’ll try to sweep tonight on home field.