May 31, 2021

By Bob Elliott

Canadian Baseball Network

The other day I asked a local sandlot coach if he was going to watch Canada’s first game on Monday against Colombia in the Americas qualifier for the Olympics.

At the time, the Toronto Maple Leafs were up 3-1 in their best-of-seven series against the Montreal Canadiens. Before answering, he considered his options.

“Sure I’ll be watching,” he said. “The Leafs will have wrapped up their series by then, so my night will be free. Canada shouldn’t have any trouble with Colombia should it?”

About the eighth inning of Canada’s 7-0 win over Colombia, the Maple Leafs season ended.

And Canuck pitchers didn’t have any trouble with Colombia hitters as LHP Andrew Albers (North Battleford, Sask.), RHP Brendan McGuigan (Austin, Tex.) and LHP Ben Onyshko (Winnipeg, Man.) combined on a no-hitter in the 7-0 win.

That would be the same Colombia which met Canada in the middle game of the 2017 World Baseball Classic first round. Colombia knocked off Canada collecting 11 hits in a 4-1 win before 17,209 at Marlins Park in Miami.

This one was different as Albers sat at the controls from the start. Jacob Robson (Windsor, Ont.) delivered the key blow, No. 13th ranked Canada held 14th ranked Colombia hitless at the The Ballpark of the Palm Beaches in Palm Beach, Fla. Monday night.

Albers threw 90 pitches (60 for strikes 71.3% strikes). Most pitching coaches ask their charges to hit 60%. Albers, who is pitching for the triple-A St. Paul Saints, part of the Minnesota Twins organization, threw first-pitch strikes to 16 of the game’s first 20 hitters.

He started in the first with eight of his first 10 pitches. An 0-2 off speed pitch hit No. 2 hitter Jeter Downs. It was the only base runner he allowed.

Albers recorded eight ground ball outs, five fly balls, a pop up and seven strikeouts, including a stretch where he fanned six of seven, including five straight from the third until the fifth.

At Saint Paul, Albers was 1-2 with a 7.11 ERA in four games, making three starts. As in any no-no, combined or otherwise, the guy on the mound needs help. And centre fielder Tyson Gillies (Vancouver, BC) made a diving play in the seventh.

After McGuigan worked a 1-2-3 eighth, Onyshko took over and after an out, Brayan Buelvas walked and Derwin Pomare reached on a grounder to short. But was it a hit or an error? Daniel Pinero (Toronto, Ont.) does not like errors but he would take this one. So, first and third one out -- the no-no still go-go going along.

Onyshko struck out Jeter Downs and then made maybe the most athletic play of the game. Jordan Sandoval hit a dribbler up the third base line. Onyshko looked like Harvey “The Cat” Haddix pouncing on the ball and throwing a just-in-time strike to 1B Connor Panas (North York, Ont.) to end the game. That most surely would have been scored a base hit.

Canada had eight hits, three of them in the four-run second. It all began with the bottom of the lineup as No. 7 hitter C Kellin Deglan (Langley, BC) led off with a single up the middle. An out later Gillies was hit by a pitch and lead-off man Wes Darvill (Langley, BC) bounced to first. Jerry Downs fired to his brother Jeter Downs but his throw was high. All hands safe.

They weren’t on for long as Robson lined a ball to left-centre which rolled all the way to the wall. As Robson beep-beeped to third, Deglan, Gillies and Darvill all scored. Moments later, Panas singled in Robson, who had a heck of a night. The Detroit Tigers prospect was 3-for-3 before striking out in his fourth at-bat. Besides the triple, he had two singles.

Darvill, who led off the game with a walk, as all lead-off hitters should, moved up on a passed ball, advanced on Robson’s infield single and scored on a Panas’ grounder. Then, Pinero, also in the Tigers system, singled home Robson.

Eric Wood (Pickering, Ont.), Canada’s No. 3 hitter hit a ball which cleared the left field fence, the bleachers and was last seen heading for Lake Okeechobee.

There is something about that red uniform, the cap with the crest and being in a clubhouse with the Canadian community. At least six players came out of retirement to play.

Wood has not hit a home run since 2020 when playing with the independent Winnipeg Goldeyes.

Must win: Its called a round-robin tournament, but you had best win if A) your country intends on advancing to the super round (the top two from each division advance) and B) having a spot in the Olympics.

What kind or urgency is there in international baseball? Well, when starter Erling Moreno was lifted after recording five outs of the 12 men he faced, manager Fernandez Lara turned to Sugar Ray Marimon, Tuesday’s scheduled starter. Marimon quickly restored order striking out nine Canadian hitters in 4 1/3 innings.

Next Up: LHP Ryan Kellogg (Whitby, Ont.) will face Cuba at Clover Park in Port St. Lucie. He has 60 starts in the minors in six seasons at class-A Eugene, class-A South Bend and class-A Myrtle Beach. He was with the double-A Tennessee Smokies before joining Team Canada. He had been in the bullpen and had not made a start, owning a 3.24 ERA with five walks and nine strikeouts in 8 1/3 innings.

Better late than never: This eight-country tournament in West Palm Beach and Port St. Lucie was scheduled for mid-March of 2020.

Back in uniform: Toronto Blue Jays legend Jose Bautista played first base for the Dominican Republic. The six-time all-star had a two-out, run-scoring single as the No. 10 ranked Dominican Republic beat the 11th ranked Puerto Rico 5-2.

The Last Time: When Colombia beat Canada in the 2017 WBC, it was the one game Ryan Dempster (Gibsons, BC) didn’t start. Nick Pivetta (Victoria, BC) started and left with the score even at 1-1. Freddie Freeman had two hits, while the other hits went to Tyler O’Neill (Maple Ridge, BC), Jamie Romak (London, Ont.) and Wood. All were singles

Rowan Wick (North Vancouver, BC), Scott Mathieson (Aldergrove, BC) Eric Gagne (Magousche, Que.) and Kellogg followed Pivetta to the mound. Canada did beat Colombia 10-3 in 2018 at the Pan-Am qualifier in Ibiúna-São Paulo, Brazil and lost 8-6 to Colombia in the 2019 Pan-Am Games in Lima, Peru on Feb. 1, 2019.

Google this: Vaughan Today had a story the other day about former Quebec Capitales Jonathan Malo (Joliette, Que.) and Josue Peley (Montreal, Que.), now with Team Canada.

Except the players named in the story were Jonathan Bad and Joe Bailey. I called a friend in Montreal and he said “sounds like they hit Google translate ... there was a story in a French paper the other day about those two.”

On the Diet Coke Out-of-Town Scoreboard: Host No. 2 ranked USA beat 15th ranked Nicaragua 7-1, the 10th ranked Dominican Republic beat 11th ranked Puerto Rico 5-2 and 8th ranked Venezuela knocked off 7th ranked Cuba 6-5.