Bats Thaw Late, But C's Frozen Out In Season Opener

SPOKANE, WA – A frigid night in the Lilac City was the backdrop for the Canadians’ season-opening game against the Spokane Indians (Rockies) Friday night at Avista Stadium, a 4-2 loss that was decided in the late innings.

On a night where the first pitch temperature was 6 degrees Celsius, both teams were held hitless for the first three innings. Spokane starter Chase Dollander – the #2 Rockies prospect and last year’s ninth overall pick – made his much-awaited pro debut and sparkled for five hitless innings. He worked around three walks and an error of his own making to keep the C’s in check, racking up eight strikeouts along the way. Vancouver’s Ryan Jennings matched Dollander zero for zero until he gave up a two-out single to his penultimate batter before finishing the fourth with his fifth K of the game.

Newcomer Alex Amalfi put up a zero in the fifth to keep the game scoreless then ran into trouble in the sixth. Yet despite a bases-loaded walk with no outs to put Spokane up 1-0, the right-hander limited the damage to a run thanks in part to a strikeout authored by Grayson Thurman to strand the three inherited runners Amalfi left behind.

Hitless through sixth, the Canadians finally broke through in the run and hit columns in the seventh. Dylan Rock spun on a 2-0 pitch with one out in the inning and dropped a double just inside the left field line for Vancouver’s first hit of the year. He scored to tie the game three pitches later when a ground ball to second turned into a two-base throwing error.

After the stretch, Spokane used a hit batter, a single, an errant pick-off throw and a two-RBI hit past a drawn-in infield to go in front 3-1. A passed ball and another run-scoring knock made it 4-1 Rockies affiliate.

Dasan Brown - the #28 Blue Jays prospect - got that run right back to start the eighth. The Oakville, ON native launched the first Northwest League home run of the season to cut the deficit to two, but a two-out single from Nick Goodwin later in the inning was the only other hit the C’s could muster in a 4-2 defeat.

Tonight’s game was the second time these two teams have opened the year against each other in the High-A era. The last was in 2022, when the C’s beat Spokane 8-6 in ten innings. Vancouver is now 2-2 in game one of the season since their classification change in 2021.

The Canadians send right-hander Rafael Sanchez to the slope on Saturday night looking to even the series at one game apiece. Spokane counters with MLB.com’s #14 Rockies prospect Sean Sullivan. First pitch is set for 5:09 p.m. with coverage available on Sportsnet and the MiLB app.