By: Tyler King

Canadian Baseball Network

There were likely a few sighs of relief coming from the BC Orange dugout when Atlantic Maroons starter Garrett Nicholson (Sydney Mines, NS) was finally taken out of thefirst Tournament 12 semi-finals game.

With the Atlantic side up 1-0 over BC, the 6’3” left-hander exited the game having no-hit the team in Orange through five innings, racking up eight strikeouts.

But the pitching change appeared to be the spark the BC offence needed, as they promptly scored two runs off reliever Cam Ritcey (Herring Cove, NS) the very next inning and hung on for the 2-1 victory, thus ending any possibility of a cinderella story being written by the team from the east.

The BC hitters couldn’t have cared who came out of the Maroons bullpen after Nicholson’s start. With the way he was dominating, they may have even warmed up to the idea of T12 alumni coach and former Blue Jays pitcher Duane Ward taking the mound.

BC second baseman Rhys Cratty - who picked up the game-winning RBI in that sixth inning rally - acknowledged just how close Nicholson came to ending his team’s tournament.

“Near the end, it was getting kind of nerve-racking,” Cratty said after the game. “[Nicholson] was pitching pretty dang well, we were kind of getting nervous. We couldn’t find the spots in the holes, but he was pitching well all game.

“[Ritcey] came in and made some mistakes coming inside to some of us. We put some good swings on him and got the runs that we needed.”

Keeping Cratty off the base paths hasn’t been easy for any pitcher. He started the tournament going 5-for-10 with three RBI in his first three games before going hitless in his final game of pool play.

“I think I started off really well defensively and offensively. Then I got moved up to the three-spot [in the lineup] and I started getting more off-speed - more curveballs, more changeups and less fastballs. But I’m feeling more confident with the off-speeds now. I have a plan when I go up to bat.”

After going 1-for-3 in the semi-finals, Cratty is now hitting .353 with a four RBI and a .765 OPS for the tournament. Victoria Mariners infielder Jason Willow (Victoria, BC) had the other RBI for BC, spoiling Nicholson’s impressive outing.

The start was Nicholson’s third appearance in only five games, a span of 8.2 scoreless innings. He gave up just one hit while striking out an astonishing 17 of the 25 batters he faced.

Although the Atlantic side couldn’t hold on for the win, Nicholson’s dominance must have felt like a sort of redemption from last year’s tournament, when he gave up six runs (one earned) in two innings.

But for most of this semi-finals start he looked untouchable, and even with the slim lead it appeared as if the Maroons were going to pull off the unlikely win.

In the second inning, Dominic Tardif (Dieppe, NB) led off with a double off BC starter Travis McDougall. He then advanced to third on a groundout before taking advantage of some sloppy play by the Orange defence.

After outfielder Connor Snarr (Upper Tantallow, NS) lined out, Tardif was caught too far off the bag. But Willow’s throw from short went wide of third and bounced out of play, allowing Tardif to score.

BC threatened to tie the game in the bottom of the third - the only real trouble Nicholson was in all game. Designated hitter Steven Moretto (Coquitlam, BC) led off the inning with a walk before Nicholson struck out the next two batters he faced. 

But Nicholson followed those strikeouts by giving up a two-out walk to left fielder Dawson Gray (Surrey, BC) before committing an error, as he misplayed Willow’s slow comebacker to load the bases. 

He escaped his one jam by getting Cratty to pop out to third, however, Cratty would get his redemption - albeit off a new pitcher - with that game-winning hit in the sixth.

The win propels BC to the tournament finals being played at 6:30 p.m. on Monday - a game that will have added significance for Cratty and many other BC players.

“We lost to Saskatchewan in the Canada Cup finals,” Cratty recalled. “So hopefully we can finally get a National Championship under the belt.”

To do that they will have to go through the winner of the second semi-finals, either Quebec Blue or Ontario Black.