Great Beginning!

The Blue Jays delivered a complete performance in their fall season opener versus the Nationals Sunday, September 8, at Avenel Park.

Gavin Ferguson, Jaden Smith, Max Ferguson, John Wyatt, Sam Berman, Charlie Knowles, George Roggie, Ethan Yu, Rayan Nair, Jack Raymond, and Jake Lang combined to produce an outstanding team effort.

Dads were impressed.

Moms were impressed.

Everyone in attendance was impressed.  The final score was Blue Jays 15, Nationals 9.

September 8 Game Report

 

Max Ferguson said, "Hello!" in his Blue Jays debut, smacking a towering 3-run homer to deep center field in his first plate appearance with the team.  He followed it up with a solid single in the bottom of the third inning.  Max's 2-for-2 day included two runs scored, a team high four RBIs, and excellent defense at 3rd base.

 

Always a cool customer, Gavin Ferguson enjoyed a productive day offensively thanks to his keen batting eye.  Gavin drew walks in the second and fourth innings, scored a run, and delivered an RBI.  Defensively, he played well at 2nd base and in the outfield.

 

Jake Lang worked hard in practice and earned an opportunity to play 1st base, where the Blue Jays have many solid options.  He made a great catch to complete an assisted put-out in the second inning.  Offensively, Jake drew a walk to keep the line moving in the Blue Jays' big third inning rally.  He also scored a run.

Charlie Knowles picked up where he left off at the end of the spring season, turning in a 3-for-3 batting line that included a double in the third inning and singles in the second and fourth.  Charlie scored three runs and registered an RBI.  Defensively, he put in yeoman's work at catcher, making great stops and good throws for three consecutive innings.

Jaden Smith loves to work from the crouch.  He did an outstanding job behind the dish in the fourth and fifth innings.  Jaden is going to gun down a base stealer some day very, very soon; it almost happened in Sunday's game.  He also showed promise on the mound, throwing some very good pitches in the third inning.  Offensively, Jaden knocked a single in the fourth, drew a walk in the second, scored a run and collected an RBI.

John Wyatt again demonstrated ideal makeup for a starting pitcher.  Calm and collected, he threw strikes and let his teammates do their jobs in the field throughout the first two innings.  John struck out three batters and caught a pop fly.  Offensively, he belted a double in the second inning and an RBI single in the third.

Ethan Yu contributes to the embarrassment of riches that is the Blue Jays' pitching staff.  He pounded the strike zone and struck out two good hitters in the fourth inning.  Defensively, Ethan made a fine catch on a line drive at 2nd base in the top of the first.  A consistent hitter, Ethan knocked a single in the first and drove in a run with a well hit ground-out in the third.

Sam Berman brought the heat from the mound in the top of the fifth.  He blew up the radar gun and struck out three consecutive batters - all looking - to end the game.  Defensively, Sam caught a fly ball at shortstop in the fourth.  Offensively, he drew walks in the third and fourth, stole third and hustled home on an errant throw, and scored two runs.

Jack Raymond enjoyed an efficient day at the plate.  After drawing a walk in the bottom of the second, Jack put the ball in play and contributed an infield single that capped the Blue Jays' five-run rally in the third inning.  Jack ended the day with a perfect on-base percentage and two RBI.  Defensively, Jack played heads-up baseball in the outfield.

Rayan Nair put in a solid day's work in the field and at the plate.  He snagged a grounder at 2nd base and threw to 1st for an infield assist in the second inning.  He then caught a fly ball at shortstop in the third.  Rayan distributed singles to center field in the second and fourth, scored a run, and added an RBI.

George Roggie enjoyed a relaxing afternoon at 1st base and in left field, spending most of his time watching Blue Jays pitchers work their magic.  George crushed a single to left field to extend the second inning rally.  His 2-for-2 day also included an infield single and two runs scored.

After the game, the Blue Jays congratulated the Nationals, a highly skilled, well-coached team that we look forward to seeing again.

Brain Trust

In addition to coaching at first base, Tom Yu threw pre-game batting practice.  Given how the Blue Jays bashed the ball in Sunday's game, we might ask him to do it every week!

Brian Ferguson coached at 3rd base, kept the carousel rolling, and enjoyed watching his sons combine to score three runs, drive in five more, and produce a 1.000 on-base percentage.

Steve Berman adjusted seamlessly to the new score book and generated the stats that made this game report possible.

Thanks to Fred Knowles for volunteering to be our bench coach this week.  The team was organized and ready to play both offensively and defensively.  Fred also helped the catchers put on the gear, a thankless but important job.

Only the Beginning!

If the season opener was any indication, then the immediate future looks bright!

We look forward to another fun and exciting practice and game next week.

Coach Steve