The Abbotsford Cardinals split their double-header with the Coquitlam Reds in B.C. Premier Baseball League action last weekend — a result that pleased coach Corey Eckstein.
This was a big series with the Reds, said Eckstein, as the Cardinals are two places out of a playoff spot.
The Cardinals are 10-20 on the season, good for 10th position in the 12-team division.
This past spring, the Cardinals were dealt a swath of injuries, from torn muscles to facial fractures and concussions.
One of the club’s top pitchers, Hunter Cunningham, won’t return to the lineup for another week or two.
In the double-header, junior Cardinals players Koki Fukui, Brett Bass, Cade Smith and Robert Bradley were called up to fill some gaps.
In game one, Corey Jackson pitched all seven innings, allowing six hits and one run.
The Cardinals edged ahead of the Reds in a two-run seventh inning. Both runs were batted in by Tanner Rempel, who was hitting .370 at the top of the order. The scoring runners were juniors Fukui and Bass.
On the season, Rempel has a .365 average, with three homers and 14 RBIs.
In the second game, the Cardinals lost 6-1 despite keeping their opponents scoreless through three innings.
Bradley scored a run in the first inning off a hit from Carter Loewen. Loewen has nine RBIs on the season.
The Reds’ Comeault, Matthew Clay, Nick Panozzo, Riley Leoppky (two) and Austen Butler also crossed the plate.
“Offensively, we need to pick it up,” Eckstein said. “There were just seven hits in the double-header — that’s not good enough.”
There are 14 games left in the season.
The Cardinals play tonight (Friday) June 26 at 7 p.m. against the Whalley Chiefs at McLeod Park in Langley. The team then returns home Saturday in a double-header versus the Parksville Royals at Delair Park. Game one begins at 1 p.m.
In addition, at 6:30 p.m. at Delair, the Cardinals’ alumni game begins. About 40 past players stretching back as far as 1998 will be making an appearance.