Thursday night was a milestone one for the Welland Jackfish.
Not only did they clinch a playoff berth with a 6-5 ten-inning victory over the Brantford Red Sox, they did so in front of a franchise record eighth sellout crowd of the season.
As of Friday, the Jackfish sit in second place in the nine-team Canadian Baseball League (CBL) standings with a (26-13) record, and have nine games left in the regular season.
“As I always say, our crowd is the best in the league – there’s no question,” said Welland manager Brian Essery.
London tops the league at (28-12) while Hamilton is a game back of the Jackfish at (24-13) but do have two games in hand of Welland.
“Very happy to have clinched a spot in the playoffs,” Essery said. “Our goal is one of the top three spots as it guarantees us a seven-game semifinal series.”
First baseman Ethan Mann leads the CBL in runs batted in with 56, while teammate and second baseman Jonah Weisner sits in second at 42.
Both are also top-five in hits, Weisner with 64, Mann with 61. Weisner also has the most doubles at19 on the campaign.
Japanese import Daike Abe leads Welland and the league in stolen bases with 32, and is third in walks issued with 27.
Jackfish catcher Robert Mullen has the dubious league high for being hit by pitches with 13 thus far, while centrefielder Gio Morello is tied for third at nine.
Two Welland pitchers top the earned run average category. The Dominican dominator, closer. Deivy Mendez sports a 1.16 ERA, while starter Euclides Leyer is third at 1.53.
Mendez is third in league saves on the season with six.
Erik Johnson, who picked up the win Thursday evening, has the fifth best WHIP (walk plus hits per innings pitched) at 1.02.
The Jackfish visit Hamilton on Friday before welcoming Kitchener Saturday evening on Italian Heritage Night at Welland Stadium. First pitch flies at 7:05 pm.
The club is also offering free first round playoff tickets with the purchase of 2027 season memberships.
For more information visit wellandjackfish.com
Rod Mawhood is a lifelong Niagara native who has had the pleasure of working in all three mediums – Radio, Print and TV – for over 20 years. His first announcing gig was with the then St. Catharines Stompers. Since then he’s worked in radio and TV in Toronto, and currently is the announcer for the Niagara IceDogs and Niagara River Lions.
Rod also covers the Buffalo Bills for FOX Sports and the Buffalo Sabres for NBC Sports.
