If you're looking for a team that's improved the most since the start of the season, you probably won't need to look further than the KPC Mosquito Sluggers in Baseball Regina.
The team lost 18-16 and won 9-6 against the Lumsden Cubs at Cactus Park Saturday and then travelled to Oxboq Sunday to play Weyburn, winning 9-5 and losing 0-5.
The wins this weekend doubled the team's win count for the season.
“I think the head coach Nick Mayers is really excited about this team,” said manager Christie Phillips. “We're a growing team this year and we weren't really sure what was going to happen with the team.”
The team's defense is playing a lot better and the ball is flying off the bats with their timely hitting...
“I think he's really excited about what's happening.”
In the first game Saturday, a windswept team still managed to put a charge in the ball, with a second inning rally capped by a two-run triple to centrefield from the bat of Nathan Yunick, himself driven home by a single from Jayden Kuckinka. The team is also picking up the finer points of the game.
“They're really excited about how they're trying different things with baserunning,” Phillips said.
But the pitchers on both teams Saturday had trouble locating the plate, leading to a lot of walks and fielders unable to judge fly balls. No matter, because both teams figured it out for the second game but the wind has been a factor in early games.
“The ball was moving around a lot but the boys adjusted well,” said Phillips. “It's not their first time playing in a lot of wind and it seems like that's the name of the game in this league. They're starting to adjust.”
The Sluggers are off next week, but play in White Butte and Lumsden the following weekend.
“The league playoffs are the July 1 long weekend,” Phillips said. “After that, we'll be going to Melville for a tournament and then provincials are the weekend after that.”
