By: Tyler King

Canadian Baseball Network

There are a few baseball cliches so tired that even the casual spectator rolls his or her eyes whenever they’re uttered.

One of the most common age-old adages it that defence wins championships. And bad defence, it therefore follows, loses them.

The thing about cliches is that they are cliche for a reason - they’re usually (at least somewhat) true. But sometimes, no matter how commonplace these sayings may seem, you just have to learn them the hard way.

There’s no doubt that the young Futures Navy team learned their lesson in a 5-2 loss to the older, more experienced Atlantic Maroons in their fourth game of Tournament 12.

Boxscore: Atlantic Maroon 6 Futures Navy 2

The Futures bats were shut down for most of the game by Atlantic starter Jaden Griffin (Lower Sackville, NS). The lefty allowed just three hits over 6.1 innings, missing out on the complete game by only two batters and propelling his team into the semi-finals on Monday.

With the loss, the Futures team - which is comprised of some of the brightest young talent from across Canada - was eliminated from the tournament. 

But perhaps even more disappointing was the way they ushered in their own exit. Navy finished the game with three errors, four wild pitches, a balk, and had a runner thrown out trying to steal third. 

Only two of the five runs they surrendered were earned.

It might be tempting to dismiss those mistakes on account of their relative inexperience, but alumni coach and former Blue Jays outfielder Lloyd Moseby doesn’t want to let the Futures off too easy.

“Talent-wise, they’re as good as any team out here,” said Moseby, who took in the entire game from the Futures dugout. “The excuse would be that they haven’t played together, but we aren’t going to give them that.”

Moseby - a veteran of 12 big league seasons - knows a thing or two about defence. He finished his career with a .981 fielding percentage, so it should come as no shock that he expects more.

“You want these guys to at least do all the fundamentals right. If you’re going to be playing in this tournament we expect you to do all the basic things. But what happens is [the Futures] haven’t played a lot of baseball.” 

The inexperience Moseby was referencing seemed to be apparent right from the first pitch.

In the bottom of the first inning, Futures shortstop Cam Sanderson (Ilderton, ON) threw wide of the bag after Declan Buckle (Dieppe, NB) was picked off trying to steal third. Buckle easily scampered home on the play for the game’s first run. 

Later in the inning, Atlantic centre fielder Dominic Tardif scored on the second fielding error committed by Sanderson.

The struggles continued in the second when Futures starter Taisei Yahiro (Harrison Hot Springs, BC) got two quick outs but then walked Atlantic left fielder Doug Hassell (Kentville, NS). Hassell then promptly advanced to second on Yahiro’s wild-pitch.

That error proved costly once again as the hot hitting Adam Estey (Fredericton, NB) ripped a double, cashing in Hassell and picking up his sixth RBI of the tournament in the process.

And with the way Griffin was throwing, that was already more than the Atlantic side would need.

Griffin struck out seven batters while breezing through his first six innings. His only blemish came in the seventh and final frame, but by then the game was nearly secure with Maroon up 5-0. 

The Futures tried to make it interesting when they managed a leadoff walk against Griffin followed by a double, putting runners on second and third with nobody out.

Futures infielder Jaden Brown (Mississauga, ON) then scored on a fielder's choice, and after allowing another run on a wild pitch, Griffin’s night was over. Fellow left-hander Garrett-Nicholson (Sydney Mines, NS) came in and eventually got Terrell Rogers (Aldergrove, BC) to line out and secure the win.

Griffin’s start would have been impressive under any circumstances, but after the game Atlantic coach Ken Lenihan admitted his Game 4 starter had been ill for most of the weekend.

“[Griffin] actually wasn’t even here yesterday,” Lenihan said. “He was sick in bed back in the hotel, he wasn’t feeling well.”

He admitted that the illness forced the coaching staff to adjust their plan.

“He was probably going to start yesterday or first thing this morning, but after being sick [he was pushed back]. He just battled out there. He did a great job.”

When asked if he toyed with the idea of allowing Griffen to finish the game, Lenihan said it was a no-brainer.

“We kind of decided on a certain pitch count to go with, and we could see he was starting to labour a little bit. It was an easy decision when he walked the last batter.”

Although he didn’t finish the game, it’s clear the Futures hitters would have wished Griffin didn’t start at all. 

But having flown all this way, spending one day sick in bed was more than enough.

With the win Atlantic Maroon (2-2-0) advances to the semifinals on Monday where they'll take on BC Orange at 1 p.m.