The Victoria HarbourCats began their seventh West Coast League baseball season with a 7-4 loss Tuesday evening in Wenatchee, Washington, against the AppleSox.
Wenatchee scored the final four runs over the final two innings to take the season opener at Paul Thomas Sr. Field.
Victoria starter Cade Smith had a decent outing over six innings. The six-foot-five 2017 Minnesota Twins draft pick from Abbotsford allowed four hits with three earned runs on three strikeouts and a walk. The University of Hawaii Rainbows hurler handed the ball over to reliever Ryan Watson with Victoria leading 4-3.
Watson, from Georgia State University, was rocked by five hits and four runs allowed, but only two earned, in two innings of work to take the loss. Watson recorded three strikeouts but was unable to stem the AppleSox rally.
Logan Chase took the win in relief for the AppleSox.
The HarbourCats committed three errors and the AppleSox two errors as both teams worked out the infield kinks.
Griffen Paxton led the Victoria attack with a hit and run batted in. Nick Adams, Frankie Niemann and Parker Bramlett had the other HarbourCats hits on the night.
Wenatchee鈥檚 Ryan Altenberger had two RBI鈥檚 and Brett Gillis鈥檚 two hits led the way for the home team.
Rookie HarbourCats skipper Todd Haney will look for his first WCL win as head coach tonight when Victoria continues its three-game set in Wenatchee, before closing out Thursday night.
The HarbourCats return for the home opener on Friday night at Wilson鈥檚 Group Stadium at Royal Athletic Park against the defending WCL-champion Corvallis Knights of Oregon.
