Playing in a fairly windy part of the season, errors and throwing balls away haven't been a good scene for the Southeast Performance Pump Twins.
The Twins lost in Regina Saturday 7-4 and 11-7 to the Regina WolfPack and lost 9-8 in an extra inning and 8-5 to the Regina Athletics Sunday at Lynne Prime Field. The Twins have had a stretch where they've played plenty of games on the weekends in tournaments or league games but had their weeknights have nothing but practice.
"It's pretty hard to stay sharp because there's only so many things you can do in practice," said Kent Phillips, head coach. "You don't have to be as intense in practice as you do in the games, but it's hard when there's such a long layoff."
So once they did get in game action on the weekend, things started not going their way on the field.
"It's hard to be sharp all the time but they did pretty well considering the long layoff," Phillips said. "It's hard to get into in when the wind's blowing and you're freezing."
By the end of the first game in Regina, conditions deteriorated from a nice late spring day to a wet spring day in a wind tunnel.
In the 7-4 loss, right fielder Layne Shad had a good day at the plate, going 3-for-4, and first baseman Ryan Gaab went 2-for-4 with two runs and two RBI. Brett MacMurchy pitched five good innings for the team in the loss, allowing only three earned runs and striking out six while scattering five hits and two walks.
In the other game Saturday, the 11-7 loss, left fielder Walker Happ hit a two-run home run as part of a 2-for-4 day at bat.
Shad went 2-for-4 with a triple and three RBI Sunday's first game, and McMurchy went 2-for-3 with a double. Burke Lyons nearly went the full game allowing 11 hits over six and two thirds innings. He struck out four and walked one in the loss. Three unearned runs crossed the plate in the eighth inning on Hunter Perkins.
The last game, Gaab and Jose Reyes were each 2-for-4 with an RBI.
Errors have been an issue, Phillips said, but he was also concerned about throwing the ball away when they do field it cleanly.
Next action for the Twins is Saturday at home against the Swift Current 57s at Lynne Prime Field. Games are at noon and 3 p.m.
"We definitely have to work on just getting ready to play," Phillips said. "Errors are killing us right now and our pitchers are pitching great. But we're not giving them enough offence early enough. By the time our bats finally come alive, it's like we've dug ourselves too deep of a hole because of errors or just the other team hitting the ball."
