Kamloops – The NorthPaws got back in the win column, starting the weekend homestand off with a 9-2 win over the Nanaimo NightOwls. Starter Grady Baetz was brilliant, giving up just two earned runs on six hits while striking out six over five innings of work. The NightOwls were up 2-0 but had two costly errors, allowing for a big six-run bottom of the sixth, flipping the game upside down.
In Baetz’s first two starts of the summer, he had yet to record a strikeout, but that quickly changed as he struck out the first two hitters of the game. The lefty was cruising until a one-out single followed by a 405-foot homerun put Nanaimo up 2-0 in the third.
“He threw that pitch and learned from it right away and made the adjustment,” Pitching coach Dustin Beggs said.
Baetz certainly made the necessary tweaks, working his way through the fourth and fifth innings, stranding three runners. Baetz finished with six strikeouts and did not walk a batter.
“He mixed his fastball and curveball really well tonight,” Beggs said. “He was never timid; he was constantly going after hitters.”
At the plate, the NorthPaws left runners on in the third and fourth before finally getting on the board in the fifth. Tanner Mitchell singled and stole second with one out. Evan Dugdale delivered the first of his 3 RBI’s on the night with a single to cut the lead in half.
The sixth was looking promising for the Paws as well. Two walks and a hit by pitch loaded the bases with one out. A Setticasi strikeout meant Mitchell had the bases loaded with two outs down by one run.
In a 1-2 count, Mitchell wiffed on a curveball in the dirt, but the ball got away from the catcher. Mitchell was safe at first, and Keegan Drinkle scored the tying run. The chaos wouldn’t stop there. Kade Crawford was next up and chopped one to third. The throw was off-line, allowing Crawford to reach second and score two more. Dugdale was up next and doubled, making it five in the inning. Brock Grainger then sent a slow roller to second that got through the fielder’s legs, scoring Dugdale. The bottom of the sixth saw six runs on just two hits with two fatal errors for Nanaimo.
“The two-run deficit didn’t mean much because we knew we were putting good swings on pitches all night,” Assistant Coach Nolan Austin said.
The NorthPaws added on two more runs in the bottom of the eighth, courtesy of a passed ball and a Keegan Drinkle sacrifice fly, making it a 9-2 game. The Paws closed it out with ease, moving to 9-13 and 7-4 at home this season.
The two teams will be back at it Saturday night for First Responders Night, where any local first responders will get free entry. Jack Dickinson will take the mound for the NorthPaws, and the first pitch is scheduled for 6:35.
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