The old adage is wrong.
Close does count.
The Victoria HarbourCats will need a miracle closing weekend tonight through Sunday in Bellingham to make the West Coast League playoffs. But simply being mathematically alive on Thursday afternoon was seen as something of a breakthrough for a franchise that finished well below .500 in its first two WCL seasons.
The HarbourCats rewarded rookie head coach Graig Merritt and his dugout staff of Alec Adame Jerry Pena and Joe Meggs by announcing they will return next season after guaranteeing the club鈥檚 first season above .500.
鈥淲e were 8-16 and left for dead, but we weren鈥檛 giving up on the season and we rallied the crew and went on a nine-game winning streak and followed that up later with a six-game winning streak,鈥� said Merritt, who is also a pro scout for the Tampa Bay Rays.
鈥淚t was addicting to come down to the ball park. We fell short of our goal, which is the playoffs,鈥� added Merritt, before catching himself, and quickly adding: 鈥淏ut we鈥檙e not mathematically out of this, yet.鈥�
That showed, however, just how daunting the task is for the HarbourCats (27-23) in needing a sweep against the West Division-leading and playoff-bound Bells (31-19). Victoria must not only win out its three games in Bellingham to capture the final wild-card playoff berth but also hope the Corvallis Knights (30-20) lose their final four games of the season against Kelowna and Medford. Depending on Thursday night鈥檚 late-finishing Knights game in Kelowna, the HarbourCats could be out of it even by the time they reach Bellingham.
But just coming within hailing distance of the playoffs is something for a team that endured an ownership change during the off-season.
鈥淲e wanted to reconnect with the community this season, establishing faith and trust in this organization to show this team is here to stay. We accomplished that,鈥� said team co-owner John Wilson.
Victoria will lead the WCL in attendance (1,910 average per game at Royal Athletic Park in 2015) for the second straight year.
鈥淲ho wouldn鈥檛 want to play in front of 1,900 fans per night in the WCL? We have the best destination in the league, bar none,鈥� said Merritt.
鈥淭here are other great spots too 鈥� like Corvallis, Bellingham and Bend 鈥� but there is no better place to play in the WCL than Victoria. That鈥檚 important because the recruiting process [garnering the best U.S. NCAA collegians for summer ball] is the most important thing in this league. You are dealing with 18- to -21-year-olds starting to get man size [in physique] and we will have a more physical team next year.鈥�
That means more juniors and less freshman for Victoria in a league that boasted 209 WCL alumni active in affiliated pro ball in 2015, including 21 in the majors.
鈥淢e and my staff learned a lot about the WCL this season. We will have older, more physical players next year. We want to come back here to win and to make the playoffs for 2016,鈥� said Merritt.
The HarbourCats are just a missing piece or two away, said GM Jim Swanson.
鈥淥ur players had a good summer. The effort, energy and passion were there,鈥� he said.
鈥淗aving Graig, Alec, Jerry and Joe back, was a priority for us, and that鈥檚 why we wanted to get this done now. There鈥檚 been a teaching level that brought improvements team-wise and individually. We get into a crucial recruiting time right away and it鈥檚 important to not delay in working with the great [NCAA] programs who have entrusted us with players. We have a pro-style environment with training, medical, media and fan support, and almost all our players want to come back.鈥�
