THUNDER BAY – It’s not for a lack of opportunities that the Thunder Bay Border Cats are mired in yet another five-game losing streak.
But when a team leaves 14 men on base, as the Cats did on Wednesday night in a 5-3 loss to the visiting Duluth Huskies at Port Arthur Stadium, it’s tough to beat any opponent, even with a solid starting effort like the one delivered by southpaw hurler Connor Centala.
The Border Cats loaded the bases with one out in the ninth, but failed to make contact, pinch hitter Kyle Czaplak and No. 9 hitter Daniel DeSimone striking out against Huskies closer Kieran Shaw, sending 1,037 fans home with a loss.
“It almost seemed like they were a little bit scared today,” said manager Mitch Feller, back in the dugout after serving a one-game suspension for a weekend ejection.
“I don’t know what it was … They didn’t want to make that out or they wanted the next guy up to do the hitting. It’s something we talked about. We just need to work on remaining confident in our own abilities.”
Centala, who allowed eight hits and just two runs over six innings, said the blame must be shared across the team, not just the hitters.
“I think it’s frustrating for everyone, including the hitters. I think we’re hitting as well as we could, given the circumstances. I thought their pitchers threw very well tonight,” Centala said. “I thought we probably could have scored a few more runs than we did.”
Centala and the Cats were in control of the contest for the first five innings, building a 3-0 lead.
Shane Connahan singled to score Willie Bourbon with two outs in the second, Thunder Bay jumping in front 1-0.
They’d add two more in the fifth.
Brady Gulakowski singled off Duluth’s one-handed starter Parker Hanson to plate all-star Billy Cook, who blasted a one-out triple to right-centre. Gulakowski would later cross the plate when Dylan Caplinger singled off Duluth reliever Mitch O’Connor, who took over with two out in the frame.
The Huskies finally got on the board in the sixth, Chris Gilbody and Kyle Jacobsen opening the inning with a single and a double, respectively. Centala got two quick outs, but Troy Monroy chopped a slow roller toward third that Bourbon fielded cleanly, only to throw the ball away, allowing both baserunners to score.
The Cats (5-9) had runners on first and third in the sixth – thanks in part to a pair of stolen bases by speedster Cam Pearcey – but failed to score, Nick Conti ending the threat by hitting into a 4-6-3 , inning-ending double play.
The Huskies made their move in a three-run eighth, John Sakowski on the mound in relief for Thunder Bay.
Harrison Moore singled in the tying run before scoring alongside Gilbody on a Monroy triple, Border Cats left-fielder missing an attempted diving grab, the ball rolling to the outfield fence.
Callan Johnson, the pitcher of record at the time, picked up the win, his first decision of the season. Shaw, who allowed a hit and a walk, earned the save, his third of 2018. Sakowski was tagged with the loss, dropping to 0-2.
Thunder Bay hits the road for four before next week’s all-star break, starting Thursday in Rochester.
Claw marks: Former Thunder Bay Whiskey Jack Mark Wilson, a scout for the Philadelphia Phillies, was in the stands.
