Four straight wins have helped the London Majors get back on track with just over half of the 2019 Intercounty Baseball League season in the books.
A walk-off walk in the 10th inning helped them secure a 4-3 win over Welland on Sunday, capping off a three-win weekend for the club.
It was a relatively slow start for the Majors by their standards, dropping nine of their first dozen games. That included a few lopsided losses earlier in the season as the team worked several new faces into the lineup.
Since that slow start, the team has won seven of their last eight games, and have seen their record recover to 10-10 just past the midway point of the IBL season.
Manager Roop Chanderdat says it’s almost been a tale of two seasons up.
“We dug a bit of a hole early, but it’s given an opportunity to our young guys to get a feel for the league and get that experience,” said Chanderdat.
“We’ve been able to tinker with the lineup a bit and address what our group needs to get better.”
The Majors are coming off a three-win weekend and have won their last four contests. Ismael Pena has hits in all four of those wins and leads the Majors with five home runs and 19 RBIs this season.
He’s been a real bright spot for the Majors, as has Carlos Arteaga, who has hit safely in all 12 games he’s played so far this season.
“They’ve really been our two best hitters. Since Carlos has joined us he has been a big boost at the top of the order. He’s given us some clutch hits that really help set the table for our other hitters,” said Chanderdat.
The Majors have also added Japanese infielder Yuki Yasuda to play second base, which has allowed Chanderdat to move Arteaga over to shortstop, which he says is a more natural fit and gives the team a strong, well-rounded infield.
Reliever Jon Fitzsimmons is another player who has impressed Chanderdat. His playing time has been limited because of his coaching commitments with the Great Lakes Canadians, but he has come in for some very timely saves. Chanderdat says Fitzsimmons has been crucial in helping them close out big games. He’s been successful in both of his save opportunities and has yet to allow a run in nearly 14 innings of work. He’s struck out 19 batters during that stretch.
Fitzsimmons has handled the closing duties but Juliandry Higuera has taken care of the bulk of the workload on the mound, posting a 3-2 record in eight starts, striking out 63 batters and walking just 20.
The Majors have won the last four games Higuera started.
Up next, the Majors are in Brantford Wednesday before playing three games during the Canada Day long weekend. The Majors will host Barrie for their annual Canada Day game, with fireworks once again happening afterwards.
Another trick for Kovacevic
On the pitch now, Jade Kovacevic scored a hat trick as FC London’s women’s team beat Aurora FC 3-2 on Saturday. That brings her goal total to 13 on the season, good for top spot in the league. The win improves the team’s record to 4-2-2 on the season. They host FC Oshawa Friday night for an 8 p.m. kickoff.
On the men’s side, FC London fell to Sigma FC 2-0 on Saturday to drop their record to 3-5 on the season.
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