How bad was it last night for the Capitals in front of 2,210 fans at Telus Field?
Sent out to pitch the ninth inning of Edmonton's 14-1 Golden Baseball League loss was backup catcher John Pasieka.
Then rightfielder Norm Hutchins took the mound.
Yes, it got that bad.
Victoria Seals' Isaac Hess has been lights-out all season, and the 24-year lefty upped his record to 5-0 after draining all the energy out of the Edmonton lineup in his seven innings.
Victoria's six-run sixth inning made it 11-zip and all but sealed the deal.
The only bright light on the Capitals' front (besides Hutchins's sparkling new 0.00 ERA) was an eighth-inning homer by centre-fielder Kevin House off Seals reliever Chris Bodishbaugh.
Starters coming around
Pitchers are a notoriously superstitious bunch.
So you don't want to be the one to jinx them.
"Then don't ask the question," Caps pitching coach Mark Randall said before last night's debacle.
But inquiring minds want to know!
Randall's starting staff had been stringing together a run of solid starts, first on their most recent road trip and continuing on this homestand.
"Part of it is that the guys are preparing well," said Randall. "We've gone into the fifth and sixth starts (of the season) now, guys are getting comfortable, starting to stretch things out."
Friday night, the win went to acknowledged ace Lou Pote, who hasn't racked up as many wins as he has quality starts.
Last week in Victoria, Pote struck out 12 in seven innings, but the Seals came back to win in the bottom of the ninth.
A pair of six-foot-five righties, Chris Little and Kris Honel, began the season pitching as bad as the weather was. Both have since found a groove, Honel going seven and eight innings in back-to-back wins on the road and at home over Jose Lima and the Long Beach Armada.
Even lefty Trevor Caughey pitched well in a loss to Long Beach Thursday, as the Armada's still-undefeated Ben Fox went into the sixth inning with a no-hitter.
"A few guys have set the tone. Lou has set the tone with the starters," said Randall. "When you have veterans, guys like that, it helps."
Little is thinking along the same lines as his coach. The key, he said, is that all the pitchers are thinking together.
"I think a great thing about this team -- because we have guys that have been at higher levels and seen a lot more hitters -- we share a lot of information. I think that's the biggest thing that helps us -- we communicate.
"I think everybody's kind of getting into a good rhythm and we're able to work off that. Our defence has definitely tightened up. That makes it easier because we don't have to throw as many pitches and we can go right after guys."
Sometimes, though, it's as simple as not wanting to let the other guys down. Or as complex as not wanting to get shown up.
"You know what? There's always going to be that competition among pitchers," said a smiling Little. "For sure, if a guy goes eight innings, you definitely want to be able to match that!"
Little will be looking for another solid start today in the last game of this homestand.
As long as he hasn't been jinxed.
