Jarod Leroux had a hand in a pair of near no-hitters in B.C. 18 AAA Midget Baseball League doubleheader action Saturday against the second-place Aldergrove Dodgers.
The Vernon Canadians righthander broke up a no-hitter in the opener, a 10-0 Dodgers win, with a single to left field.
Leroux then nearly tossed a no-no in the nightcap, a 1-0 loss.
“Jarod pitched a gem,” said Canadians manager Ken Liefke. “He had a no-hitter with two outs in the bottom of the seventh when they got a single to centre. The next batter crushed a ball to deep centre to score the winning run.
“It was too bad for Jarod. He was unreal on the mound; his curve ball was awesome.”
Leroux had four Ks and nearly had all the offence he needed from Landon Currie, who was 1-for-3 with a single and a stolen base, but was thrown out at home in the top of the sixth inning on a real close play.
Corey Anderson took the loss in the opener, giving up eight runs (five earned) with one strikeout.
The Cs, who made the weekend trip with just 10 players, rebounded in Chilliwack Sunday, sweeping the Cougars 7-4 in the opener and 12-5 in the nightcap.
Jake O’Quinn got the start in Game 1, going three innings and allowing four earned runs for a no-decision. Ethan Huizinga pitched four innings of relief to pick up his first win of the season.
Huizinga helped his cause at the plate with a pair of singles in three trips and two stolen bases. Caden Doyle added a two-run triple and had three RBIs. Tyler Liefke walked three times, stole two bases and scored twice.
In Game 2, Doyle pitched a complete game and got help offensively from Anderson, who was 2-for-4 with two singles and three stolen bases.
Noah Alleyne was 2-for-4 with two singles and four ribbies.
Tyler Liefke walked three times, stole three bases and scored twice while Currie was 1-for-3 with a walk and was hit by a pitch. He stole four bases and scored twice.
Ken Liefke praised the yeoman effort from backstop Eric Embleton, who caught all four games.
“Eric was absolutely unreal,” said Liefke. “He blocked more balls in the dirt than any catcher I have ever seen. His performance behind the plate kept runners from moving up and allowed us to compete in three games. You know it was special when the umpires came up to me after to tell me how awesome he was.
“He took a beating back there and just kept doing his job.”
The Canadians, now a quarter of the way through a 16-game road spell, sit fourth at 17-11. They resume play July 2 in Burnaby with a twinbill versus the fifth-place Braves (15-10) and visit the South Fraser Giants for two the next day.
The Victoria Eagles are first at 17-8, followed by the Richmond City Checkers at 14-8 and Aldergrove at 19-11.
