In front of a loud and boisterous home crowd at Tom Laing Park on Monday night, the Weyburn Beavers nearly pulled off a late-inning comeback against the Regina Red Sox, only to see it slip away in the top of the ninth, falling 4-3 in a heated game between the two WCBL East Division rivals.
After being held off the scoreboard through the first six innings by Regina starter Colton Anderson, Weyburn finally broke through in the bottom of the seventh with a run, then grabbed a 3–2 lead in the eighth on a two-run homer from third baseman Trevor Dale, his seventh of the season.
But the Red Sox answered immediately. In the top of the ninth, a shaky outing from the Beavers bullpen allowed Regina to plate two runs, reclaiming the lead. Weyburn went down in order in the bottom half, sealing the tough loss.
“Obviously their starter came out and threw really well through six,” Beavers head coach Cam Williams said postgame. “But then we had a good job getting to the bullpen and taking the lead there in the eighth. Yeah, I mean, really, really tough one.”
Despite the loss, Williams praised his team’s effort, highlighting solid pitching and defence.
“It was a heck of a ball game. We pitched it well and took care of the bay. We played good defence. If we play like that consistently, we'll be all right. But it is a tough pill to swallow tonight.”
The tension wasn’t limited to the scoreboard. Tempers flared on the Regina side, leading to three ejections. In the sixth inning, a Red Sox bullpen player was tossed by the third base umpire. In the top of the eighth, left fielder Jackson Syring, who went 2-for-4 with an RBI, and Regina’s third base coach were both ejected. It was Syring’s second ejection at Tom Laing Park this season.
Still, the intensity only seemed to fuel the atmosphere at the park.
“The guys really feed off the crowd,” Williams said. “As soon as we start one little rally or something feisty happens on the field, the crowd gets into it and our guys really rally behind it. That’s why they want to play. They want to play in front of a good crowd.”
Weyburn starter Joe Hart allowed two runs on nine hits over 5 2/3 innings. Reliever Jamin Smith was tagged with the loss after surrendering the decisive ninth-inning runs.
The Beavers, who are 8-22 on the season, now hit the road for a two-game set in Medicine Hat on Tuesday and Wednesday before returning home for one of the biggest games of the year.
Thursday night’s matchup against the league-leading Saskatoon Berries is Pack the Park night, with Blue Jays Central host Jamie Campbell in attendance. Campbell, who spoke at the Beavers’ annual Sports Dinner earlier this year, is making his annual WCBL tour.
“It should be a really good ball game,” said Williams. “A big crowd on Thursday is going to help these guys really perform well.”