With a win over the Regina Red Sox on Monday night, the Weyburn Beavers have advanced to the playoffs for the Western Major Baseball League.
“This season went reasonable well for the Beavers,” said Garnet Hanson, president of the Weyburn Beavers baseball club. “It is not where we finished last year, when we claimed first in the league, but a lot of teams have gotten better from last year.”
“The attendance and game-day revenue for the Beavers is also up from last year. We continue to focus on making a family-entertainment experience during the baseball game,” said Hanson.
There were some challenges for the Beavers during the first half of the season, when they had to bring in a few new players to the team.
“We did have a little more turnover this year, than last year, but there were a few injuries that factors into this and that is just the luck of the draw,” said Hanson.
The Beavers will finish fourth place in the eastern division of the league. The Swift Current Indians claimed first place, the Yorkton Cardinals took second and the Regina Red Sox finished in third. Neither the Moose Jaw Miller Express or the Melville Millionaires, who finished fifth and sixth respectively, will be in the playoffs.
In the first round of the playoffs, the Weyburn Beavers will play the eastern division champions the Swift Current Indians. The first two games of the best-of-five playoffs will be held in Swift Current on Sunday, July 31 and Monday, August 1. The Beavers will host game three on Tuesday, August 2, and if needed, game four on Wednesday, August 3. Game five, if needed, will return back to Swift Current territory.
In the western division of the league, the Okotoks Dawgs claimed first, the Medicine Hat Mavericks took second, the Lethbridge Bulls finished third and the Edmonton Prospects placed fourth. Neither the Fort McMurray Giants or Brooks Bombers, who finished fifth and sixth respectively, and were both new to the league this year, will be in the playoffs.
In their win against the Regina Red Sox on Monday night, the Beavers rallied in the extra inning to claim a 3-2 at Tom Laing Park.
Regina scored the first run of the game, scoring in the second inning. Weyburn tied up the game with a run in the fourth. Then Weyburn scored another run in the seventh inning, before Regina tied up the game with a run in the eighth inning. It wasn’t until the bottom of the 10th inning that the Beavers captured their game-winning run.
Scott Beever was the starting pitcher for the Beavers, and had one run scored off five hits in six innings.
During a game in Regina on Sunday, the Beavers lost a 10-1 decision to the Red Sox. Weyburn scored their lone run of the game in the first inning.
Regina scored twice in the first, second and fifth innings, then picked up one run in the sixth inning, two runs in the seventh and one run in the eighth. Ryan Johnson was the starting pitcher for the Beavers, and he had six runs scored off nine hits in five innings.
During a game on Thursday night, the Beavers lost a 1-0 decision against the Melville Millionaires. The lone run for the game was scored by Melville in the fifth inning. Hunter Tipton was the starting pitcher for the Beavers, and he had one run off five hits in eight innings.
While hosting the Moose Jaw Miller Express during a home game on July 20, the Weyburn Beavers captured a close 8-7 win. Moose Jaw scored the first run of the game in the first inning. Weyburn picked up two runs in the second inning, and then five runs in the fourth inning.
Moose Jaw had a strong seventh inning, scoring five runs to come closer to tying the Beavers. Weyburn scored one run in the seventh inning, and Moose Jaw scored one run in the eighth inning.
Cole Feazell was the starting pitcher for the Beavers, and he had six runs scored off 10 hits in six innings.
To close off the remainder of the regular season, the Weyburn Beavers are in Yorkton tonight, July 27, and then will host the Melville Millionaires at Tom Laing Park on Thursday, July 28.
