The winning inning: An oral history
In winning their second straight IBL championship, the London Majors, improbably and in wild fashion, came back from down 5 runs in the 9th inning — in Toronto — to claim victory. How did it happen? The Majors: In their own words …
(Photo: Matt Hiscox Photography).
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It may have been the wildest comeback in IBL championship history.
On the first day of fall, a cold Sept. 22 evening in Toronto, the London Majors seemed destined to lose. It was Game 6 of the Intercounty Baseball League championship series. London led three games to two, but they were down big at Christie Pits in Game 6. They’d failed to muster much at the plate all evening – and the Maple Leafs had gotten to Majors ace Jose Arias for seven runs.
Even after a solo homer by Taylor Wright in the eighth inning, the Majors trailed 7-3 heading into the ninth. A Game 7, the following evening in London, seemed all but certain.
And then everything changed.
With just three outs remaining, the Majors rallied in the ninth in wild – and improbable – fashion, turning a four-run deficit into an 8-7 lead. Majors pitcher Fernando Fernandez then completed the shocking comeback in the bottom half of the inning, inducing a double play and then striking out Toronto’s shortstop, Jose Vinicio, for the final out.
A Game 7 would not be necessary. The London Majors had claimed back-to-back IBL championships.
How did it happen? What was the experience like? What was going through the Majors’ minds during that unforgettable inning?
After a night’s sleep, to process the wild comeback, Gameday London caught up with four players (DH Cleveland Brownlee, outfielder Byron Reichstein, infielder Taylor Wright, reliever Braeden Ferrington) – and manager Roop Chanderdat – to get their insight on the wild game the night before – perhaps the most memorable championship performance in franchise history.
Cleveland Brownlee during the IBL Finals series. (Photo: Matt Hiscox Photography).
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First, a little backstory …
The teams had exchanged wins for the first five games of the best-of-seven series, with the home side winning each contest. An 8-3 win in Game 5 Tuesday, Sept. 20, at Labatt Park had put London one win away from claiming back-to-back IBL titles – one year after snapping a 46-year championship drought.
Back at Christie Pits on Thursday, Sept. 22, they were to match up against Toronto’s best starter, Angel Castro, a long-time veteran with former big-league experience. Despite pitching on three days rest, the right-hander was on his game that night. It became clear early that it might not be the Majors’ night. In fact, even before they’d stepped on the field, things had gotten off to an inauspicious start …
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Heavy traffic on the way to Toronto had made it a nearly four-hour trek. The team left Labatt Park at 3pm and didn’t arrive to Christie Pits until 6:50 or 6:55, well past the time to take batting practice or complete a proper warmup.
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Roop Chanderdat
We had no batting practice, no infield/outfield, no nothing. Just literally on the field, start stretching on your own. I’m writing up the lineup quickly, and we’re playing baseball. On the bus, about 20 minutes way, we had a quick meeting. I said, ‘Okay, boys, you know what, this (game) is going to be all mental. When we get there, get some dry swings with your bats, stretch on your own …’ And I said expect the unexpected. I talked about Christie Pits … I’ve been there a lot through all these years … Anything can happen there. That’s the mentality you gotta have going in there.
Braeden Ferrington
Not a lot of people understand, or even know about, the fact we didn’t show up until probably a half hour before the game. (Traffic) was just ridiculous. So, to have the grind of things not going very well for the first eight innings and then all of a sudden turning it on after not having batting practice or really doing anything … it was really nice to see that.
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Those first eight innings were rough for the Majors. Starling Joseph did hit a two-run homer in the second inning, cashing in himself and Byron Reichstein to make it a 2-2 game at the time, but it had been all Toronto since. The Maple Leafs had gotten to Majors ace Jose Arias for seven runs (five earned) and held a 7-2 lead heading into the eighth. Were London players – and their manager – mentally preparing for Game 7 the following night?
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Roop Chanderdat
Honestly, no. And two reasons I say that … one, we were having some good at-bats against Castro. I know it’s not showing up, there’s strikeouts and stuff, but we’re just missing. We were just a little bit off on him. And two, and I wanted the guys to believe this, I said, their closer is a young guy and, I mean, this is a high-profile, high-pressure situation and he’s thrown a lot of wild pitches, he can't find his own stuff … So I said, we gotta get to him, guys.
Taylor Wright
There was no point where I thought, ‘Alright, this will go to Game 7.’ Not necessarily because I thought we were going to win the entire time, but it’s just not really where your head’s at when you’re on the field. We could have been down by 20. Game 7 starts once game six is over. Sure, there’s a moment there where we’re down five in the eighth, with two outs, and I’m kind of like, ‘Well, shit, this is unfortunate. This is not going the way we wanted.’ But at the same time, we had put up a six-run inning against (Castro) in the first game of the series. So, it’s not like it’s unheard of for that type of thing to happen. And especially not at the Pits.
Taylor Wright. (Photo: Matt Hiscox Photography).
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With those two outs in the eighth, right after Jakob Newton had lined a ball to the wall in centre for an out, the play-by-play commentator on the Maple Leafs’ YouTube broadcast commends the Leafs’ starter on his Game 6 performance: “I’m going to call this game for Castro perhaps the greatest Finals performance I’ve seen, outside of Claudio Custodio [Guelph Royals ace] against the Kitchener Panthers in 2017. This, right now, has been a brilliant outing for Angel Castro – on the biggest stage in the IBL.”
The remarks wrap up as Castro is mid-windup on his first pitch to Taylor Wright. The Majors’ third baseman smacks the fastball over the right field wall for a solo home run to make it 7-3.
“The commentator’s curse if I’ve ever seen one,” says the play-by-play man’s partner, with a laugh.
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Taylor Wright
We were one run closer. You know, it doesn’t tie the game in that spot but, personally, I think it kind of gave me some hope … Like, alright, a chink in this guy's armor, maybe something’s going to happen here. At least we got a better chance now than we did before, right? That’s kind of the mentality we’ve tried to carry at all times when we’re down in ballgames.
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Cleveland Brownlee strikes out to end the inning, Majors reliever Bo Lewington holds the Maple Leafs scoreless for a second straight frame, and London comes back in for the ninth, down four runs with three outs remaining. Angel Castro, with 13 strikeouts on the night, comes back out for the ninth inning, to a loud ovation at Christie Pits, with his pitch count at 117. Could they muster a comeback?
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Taylor Wright
We got back into the dugout, and I kind of jokingly said, ‘Fuck it, let’s score five and win the game.’ You know, I didn't necessarily think it was gonna happen at that moment, but I just wanted to try and keep the vibes up and stay positive.
Roop Chanderdat
I kept telling the guys, it’s not like he’s dominating us. It’s not dominant stuff. You know, we should be hitting him. We’re better hitters. We gotta get to him, guys. I said, let’s just get a baserunner and if we lose it this way, that’s fine. I said we’re going to chip away at this. There’s no five-run home run or whatever. We're going to chip away at this.
Cleveland Brownlee
If I were to sit here and say that I saw that (rally) coming, I would be lying to myself and lying to everybody else (laughs). We didn’t see that coming. But we did see those little things transpiring. And that’s what we kept saying the whole season. Don’t take no days off, guys. Little things will transpire into something big.
Byron Reichstein
If I told you I thought we were going to win it that (inning), I’d be lying (laughs). I thought, you know, it was 7-3 coming into the 9th … And they put Castro back out there … I had mixed feelings, but it was a bit like, okay, Game 7’s about to happen. And then Robert got on …
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Robert Mullen, who won the IBL’s batting title during the regular season but who’d been struggling during the Finals series – and was 0-for-3 on the night – led off the ninth with a single.
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Roop Chanderdat
That kind of gave us life, you know? And then I pinch ran [Phil Whelan]. That’s telling the guys, we still want to win, we’re not packing it in. Because you’re not thinking a home run, right? I want someone who can score. But after, I’m sure they’re like, ‘Why the hell did you pinch-run for Mully? We need a catcher (laughs). But you’re just thinking, how are we gonna tie this game up?
Cleveland Brownlee
I said, ‘Good hit, Robert.’ Let’s roll into the next batter, let’s just keep it going. Let’s make these pitchers throw. This guy’s been throwing great all day, let’s make him work …
Roop Chanderdat
Bowles [Kieran, backup catcher] had been coaching third [in the 8th]. I said, ‘Get in here, get suited up, we’re coming back. Go talk to Bo (Lewington), go talk to Mullen, see what they've been doing. Get stretched out.’ And I’m sure he’s probably thinking, ‘We’re still way behind here, what are you doing?’ I thought we could still win this.
Majors manager Roop Chanderdat. (Photo: Matt Hiscox Photography).
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Unfortunately, Majors fans who’d stuck around to see if London could mount an improbable comeback were suddenly left in the dark. With a 2-1 count on Mullen, the Maple Leafs’ YouTube broadcast shut down. A technical issue of some sort. That’s right, much of the Majors’ historic comeback was not seen on video by fans – instead, they scrambled and pulled up the Poinstreak link to get updates on the game they could no longer see.
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Byron Reichstein
I had a bunch of people that were watching, and they were messaging my dad because he was at the game. They’re like, ‘What happened? Our broadcast cut out.’ My mom ended up having to follow the gamechanger live feed.
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Moments later, Reichstein’s mom saw ‘home run’ on the Pointstreak play-by-play. Her son had belted a first pitch fastball off Castro for a two-run homer to centre to make it 7-5. It was a big-time hit, and one that got the attention of both dugouts.
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Byron Reichstein
I think that was the moment that switched me to think that, you know, we could still win this. When I hit that ball, it started carrying and I could hear the guys on the bench yelling, ‘That’s gotta go!’
Taylor Wright
That was a big swing in the game. We’re down four runs and then, all of a sudden, he cuts the lead in half with one swing and the next guy gets on base. So, the momentum kind of built and built and built.
Roop Chanderdat
Even after Mullen singled, the guys were pretty amped up. But if you had to pick a moment when the guys are feeling, deep down, we can do this, I think it’s Byron’s home run.
Braeden Ferrington
Obviously, there’s gonna be doubt in your mind [that you can come back] when you get shelled the whole game and you have no idea what’s going on. But I’ll say this … and there’s a lot of verifying on this one … When Byron came up, I turned to our bullpen catcher and I said, ‘Hey, if Byron hits one here, it’s going to get interesting.’ And then he did. And I was like, ‘Ah shit, I gotta get warmed up now. This thing is interesting.’
Byron Reichstein
I saw the ball hit the light standard, but I don’t even think I had a jog … I didn’t skip a beat, I was running out of the box, I ran around all the bases, and I got to home plate. There was a part of me that hesitated … it was either I touch home plate and I do a big fist pump and I look right at the catcher, [Justin] Marra, and I put it right in his face, like, we’re here. Or I just touch home plate, go give the high fives and just kind of let the momentum take itself. I let the momentum take itself and, yeah, the rest is history.
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Starling Joseph, who’d hit a two-run homer earlier and was 2-for-3 in the contest, then singled off Castro to bring the tying run to the plate – with nobody out. Austin Wilkie, who followed, worked a seven-pitch walk – Castro’s first of the game. At 132 pitches, the right-hander’s day was done.
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Braeden Ferrington
Right after Byron hit the home run, I thought … you know, this team all year has had that one big inning where we put up an absurd amount of runs. And I was like, alright, we haven’t had that. This is gonna be the inning. And all of a sudden, it was just one after another. After Joseph singled, I’m thinking, ‘I gotta get hot, because this is about to happen right now. I’m probably going to get in in the ninth inning.
Cleveland Brownlee
Everything we’d worked on all season, we put it all together in that 9th inning. That little hit, that walk, moving that man over, all of those things. In three outs, everything we’d worked for played out in that inning.
Taylor Wright
That walk was when I started thinking about us winning the game, I would say. Up until that point, you're just trying to do your immediate job. You’re thinking about the task you have at hand. But when Wilkie got on base … he was the tying run. As soon as you get the tying run on base, that’s when it starts kind of getting serious … alright, let’s find a way to score this guy. Because up until that point, we just needed to get a lot of hits, we needed to get guys on base, to even get close. But once you have that tying run on, you can do some things. You can steal, you can bunt, you can move guys around.
Braeden Ferrington during the Finals series. (Photo: Matt Hiscox Photography).
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The Majors opted to bunt. Chanderdat pinch-hit for slugger Dan Perrier. He subbed in Gibson Krzeminski, whose job it was to lay down a sacrifice bunt and put two runners in scoring position with one out. But the Majors got an even better outcome. As had been the case in Game 4, two nights before, Franklin Hernandez, Toronto’s top arm out of the bullpen, struggled with his command. He uncorked a wild pitch to advance the runners – deeming the sac bunt unnecessary. Then he threw another, which brought home Starling Joseph to make the game 7-6. After an eight-pitch at-bat, Krzeminski walked to put the go-ahead run on base.
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Roop Chanderdat
We were going to bunt, right? I told (Krzeminski), ‘Look, you’re bunting. But make sure you’re bunting strikes, because this guy is wild.’ And Gibby had a great at-bat … a phenomenal at-bat.
Taylor Wright
Gibson was in the 8-hole, and I was in the 2-hole. That’s kind of my routine when I’m coming up to bat. I start locking in when I’m fourth in line, and then when I’m third in line I start putting my equipment on, my leg guard, my elbow guard, my batting gloves … Gibson was up to bat, we got a (wild pitch), which was kind of lucky, and then good things just kept happening and runners kept advancing.
Braeden Ferrington
It was, like, walk, passed ball, single, we score a couple runs and I’m like, alright, this is real right now. It’s really happening.
* * *
Chris McQueen, who had pinch hit for Keith Kandel in the 8th inning, struck out, but another Hernandez wild pitch brought home Austin Wilkie with the game’s tying run. The Majors had come back from down five two innings before to tie Game 6 in the ninth. Krzeminski moved up to second base on the wild pitch, the go-ahead run now in scoring position with leadoff hitter Jakob Newton at the plate.
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Taylor Wright
(Wilkie scoring) was a great moment because there’s a massive difference between coming up trying to drive in the tying run and trying to drive in the winning run. It’s a much different feeling. It kind of took a little bit of the pressure away. I knew I was just gonna be able to focus on getting a good pitch and winning the game for us and not worrying about losing if I didn’t get a hit or didn’t drive the run in.
Cleveland Brownlee
As each run crossed the plate, you could just feel the energy in that stadium just dropping, dropping, dropping.
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Newton smacked a ball the other way into left-centre, but Krzeminski had to hold for a moment to make sure the ball was going to fall in. That held him at third base, putting runners at the corners with one out and Wright coming up to the plate …
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Taylor Wright
I was standing in the on-deck circle and Gibson was the winning run on second base. (Newton) hit it really hard, but it was hit low, so the shortstop had a bit of a chance to make a play on it. It eventually did get over his head, but that caused Gibson to not be able to score on the play. When I got up to the plate, I mean, once you get into that moment, you kinda just have to let it ride. There’s nothing more you can do. You just gotta play and do your best at that point.
All I was really trying to do when I went up to the plate there was get a fastball that wasn’t on the inside corner and be on time to it. That was my only real objective. I wasn’t trying to hit a homer, I wasn’t trying to hit a single, I wasn’t trying to do anything specific other than just get a fastball over the heart of the plate and get my swing off on time. The first pitch I got that at-bat was a fastball in. Inner black, right on the inside corner. I had gotten a really similar pitch from (Hernandez) in a similar situation with a runner on third and one out earlier in the series. And I swung at it and popped it up into the infield and the run didn’t score. So, I got that same pitch, and I took it this time. So, I got down 0-1 in the count.
And then the next pitch he tried to throw it again, but it just caught a little bit more of the plate. It was a little bit more to the middle than to the inside corner, and I was able to kind of poke it out to centre there and score Gib.
Cleveland Brownlee
When that tying run came across the board, and then that next run to put us ahead, you could have heard a pin drop in Christie Pits. Christie Pits was loud the entire game, but when that last run put us ahead, you could hear a pin drop in there. You know, they got the infamous bushmen on the hill. That was the first time I ever saw anybody silence those guys. All the momentum had shifted to us. We had taken over at Christie Pits for the first time that night.
Byron Reichstein
Watching the whole thing go down, it was almost like a dramatization … like, in a movie or something. You know, it’s like slow motion, everything’s just working out right, every puzzle piece is fitting perfectly right now as we go … Their one pitcher we wanted to stick it to more than anyone was Castro [the right-hander had been ‘trash-talking’ the entire series]. And for them to bring him back out for the ninth and for it to just start crumbling right before him … it was the most magnificent thing.
Byron Reichstein. (Photo: Matt Hiscox Photography).
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It wasn’t over yet, of course. After Brownlee struck out to end the Majors’ half of the ninth, the team needed to get three outs on defense to make the comeback complete. Both Ferrington and left-hander Fernando Fernandez had been warming up in London’s bullpen since Reichstein’s home run, but Chanderdat stuck with Lewington to open the inning. After the Maple Leafs’ YouTube stream had been down throughout the Majors’ rally, it came back on air with Lewington on the mound. Majors fans were able to nervously watch the bottom of the ninth.
As Lewington was in his windup on the first pitch of the inning, the broadcasters came back on air: “Welcome back here to Dominico Field. The London Majors taking the lead, and the Maple Leafs will need a run to try and send this one back to London [for Game 7].”
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Roop Chanderdat
After Byron’s home run, I went down (to the bullpen) and I said to Ferrington and Fernandez, ‘Hey, here’s where we’re at in the order when they come up, so be ready. Bo’s going back out, but we’ll have both of you ready.’ And then when we took the lead, I went back down and said, ‘I’m still going with Bo, but you guys gotta be ready.’ Bo had been very effective. He was really going well, and he’s an emotional pitcher, too, so I just said, you know what, let’s ride that emotion.
Braeden Ferrington
It was either going to be myself or Fernando. We were both up. We kind of joke, it’s kind of like the double-headed monster out of the bullpen right now. Whatever we do, we’re going to do the exact same. It just depends on matchups [Ferrington being a right-handed pitcher, Fernando a lefty].
Taylor Wright
As soon as (our inning) ended, I didn't really have any moments of, alright, hell yeah, we got this. I didn’t relax. I just kind of stayed even-keeled, the same kind of mood I was in for the whole game, and I just tried my best to focus on the defensive inning that we had.
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With the substitutions the Majors had made, in both the eighth and ninth innings, Wright had moved from third base to shortstop, Chris McQueen was in at third, Gibson Krzeminski was at first base, and Kieran Bowles was behind the plate. Far from the usual defensive alignment. After setting down each of the six batters he faced in the 7th and 8th innings, Lewington walked Grant Tamane, the leadoff man in the ninth, on four pitches. The reliever’s night was done. With the left-handed hitting Greg Carrington due up, Roop Chanderdat summoned Fernando Fernandez.
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Roop Chanderdat
It’s a lefty, the No. 9 hitter. I had both Fernando and Ferrington warming up. I said, ‘Fernando, how do you feel?’ He goes, ‘Well, you know, tired. But if you want me …’ I go, ‘I want you. You’re my guy. Go get this lefty.’
Cleveland Brownlee
You know what the funny thing is? I didn’t even see Fernando throw a warmup pitch. I looked down and all I saw was Braeden Ferrington there. When Roop called time and I saw Fernando skip across the line, my first reaction was, what the hell is going on?
* * *
Brownlee wasn’t the only one surprised. After all, Fernandez had thrown five innings just two days prior. He’d been the Game 5 starter in London, allowing just a run on three hits in the outing. He’d also pitched out of the bullpen in Game 4 (one inning), Game 3 (three innings) and Game 1 (two innings). How much gas did he have left in the tank?
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Braeden Ferrington
Knowing Fernando had gone, what, five innings two days ago, I figured I’m now it. But while we were throwing, he said, ‘I’m good.’ And it’s about matchups, right? That’s where it kind of clicked. I said, ‘Alright, let’s go.’ I think the plan was for him to face the lefty and then (maybe) Vinicio, and then for me to face Castaldo, because I’ve thrown to him very well the last, I don’t know, four years. I think that’s what the ideal matchups were.
Cleveland Brownlee
Once he got on that mound, you could just see that the kid had a fire in his eyes. He was ready. There was nothing you could say to him. It was just him and the catcher’s mitt. There was nothing else in front of him.
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The Maple Leafs’ play-by-play man was surprised to see the lefty come out of the pen: “Fernando Fernandez pitching in this game is quite incredible. It makes sense from a tactical standpoint, but to bring him in in this spot after throwing 80 pitches two days ago, it really is quite something.”
Carrington squared to bunt on the first pitch and took a ball. Still looking to advance the leadoff man on a sac bunt, he squared on pitch two and took a strike. Pitch three brought the same result. Now, he had to swing away. Carrington then battled, fouling off four straight pitches and taking a ball to even the count. On the 2-2 pitch, he hit a ball hard on the ground – but right at second baseman Jakob Newton. Newton corralled it, flipped it to Taylor Wright coming across the bag at second, and then watched his teammate complete the double play with a strike throw to Gibson Krzeminski at first.
* * *
Braeden Ferrington
It was huge.
Roop Chanderdat
Massive. Any time you’re in the ninth inning of a championship game and you get a ball hit to you, yeah, there’s nerves … and that’s a fast runner going down the line, too, so it’s not exactly a routine play. But we’ve worked on that Wright-Newton combination. It’s not like, okay, this is a one-off [with Wright at shortstop]. We do that for practice. And they turned it. That’s a massive play for both of them.
Taylor Wright
It’s interesting, because to the outside observer, it’s like, they moved their third baseman over to shortstop and he managed to turn a double play. But I’ve been taking ground balls at shortstop every single day that I’ve been here. So, it was really sweet to have those months of work pay off in that final moment. It’s rare that the game blesses you like that, where you get that satisfying moment of getting to do the specific thing you’ve worked on hundreds of times and you execute it in the big spot.
Cleveland Brownlee
That was Toronto’s fastest runner. We got out Carrington on a double play. That’s one of the hardest things to do, turn a double play on those fast guys. That was a shocker for them. But our guys were ready, and they turned that double play.
Taylor Wright
To Newton’s credit, he’s been playing second base mostly since he got here, but he came in without having played the infield since he was in high school, I think. So, he put in just as much work as I did over the course of this year. Every time I was taking reps at shortstop, he was the one there feeding me balls at second base so I could turn my double plays. He was just as much a part of that play as I was. He gave me a perfect feed, right to my chest. He set me up as well as you could possibly ask for for me to turn the double play and make a good throw.
Cleveland Brownlee
Once Fernando got that double play, he had the ball in his court. He had all the energy he needed. We stood there behind him. You can go back and hear the audio … we yelled at every pitch he threw from then on out.
* * *
With the switch-hitting Jose Vinicio coming up, Chanderdat took a trip to the mound and the Majors’ infielders joined the gathering. The manager left Fernandez in the game, turning Vinicio around to hit from the right side. Pitch one: Swing and a miss. Pitch two: Swing and a miss. Pitch three: A pitch on the inside corner. Everything stood still. A delayed call by the umpire: Strike three looking. The Majors poured onto the field, now back-to-back IBL champions.
* * *
Cleveland Brownlee
We didn’t know it was a strikeout at first. If you go back and look at it, you’ll see our catcher. He stood there. The batter stood there. The umpire didn’t say anything. But then … the umpire threw his hands up and he took his mask off. And we just took off running. It was a delayed response, but it was well worth it. A late call, but it was on time for us.
Taylor Wright
It was just a sweet moment all around for everybody. A big relief when that final strike got called, for sure. You’re just trying to focus on the game and go from moment to moment, not getting wrapped up in it, and that takes a lot of focus to do that. You’re cranked up to a 10 out of 10 intensity level. So, when it finally ends and you can just turn your brain off and relax, it’s like a big relief. And you go, ‘Holy shit, we just won the championship.’
Roop Chanderdat
It was kind of an exhale relief. We did it, you know? We did it. And now we can enjoy it. But as soon as we won, my first reaction, rather than to run out and celebrate and shake hands with the guys, was to go over to the league officials. I didn’t know who they were picking for MVP, but I said, ‘Hey, Fernando Fernandez is the MVP.’ And that’s who they went with. To ask a guy to do what he did and actually to perform, it’s amazing. He just started two days ago.
Braeden Ferrington
When there was two strikes on Vinicio, I took off my glasses. I knew what was about to happen here. I had a lot of confidence. I wasn’t going to run out there and spare my $800 glasses on a (celebration) dogpile. No shot that was happening (laughs). I put them in my glove, I put my glove in my bag, and the rest is history.
* * *
For Reichstein, the celebration was a bit more complicated. He’d just returned from a one-game absence due to COVID-19. Yes, the outfielder had missed Game 5 and, earlier in the week, had spent around 45 hours during a 72-hour span recovering in bed. Luckily, his bout with the virus was a short one, and, per provincial guidelines, he’d been cleared to play by Thursday night. But he’d lost seven pounds, and he still wanted to be cautious around his teammates. He didn’t travel on the team bus, for that reason, and all night, when the Majors were hitting, he was off to the side, 10 or 15 feet down from the dugout, with his helmet, his glove and his water bottle.
* * *
Byron Reichstein
I had been trying to keep everything as sanitary as possible. Like, when I ran the bases, I didn’t take off my batting gloves so that if someone wanted to give me a high five, it wasn’t my skin. So, after that third strike, my first reaction was, how am I gonna celebrate when I’m supposed to keep my distance? (laughs). That was the first thing. I’m running in (from left field) and thinking, Okay, how do I celebrate yet keep my distance … because I know these guys are just so jacked up right now that they don’t care. I wore a mask, but they told me to take it off for the photo.
I was lucky. A bunch of people had been saying when COVID hit them, they were out for a day or two and then they were back at it. And I was like, well, I hope that’s what’s gonna happen … Sure enough, luckily, that’s what happened.
* * *
Everything had happened so fast. The Majors had spent eight innings mustering almost nothing, seemingly destined for a Game 7 the next night. But it had all changed so quickly. London had dealt Toronto its first loss at Christie Pits during the 2022 playoffs – and in doing so had become back-to-back champs. Did it sink in right away?
* * *
Braeden Ferrington
There was a feeling of disbelief, especially because of where it happened. It hasn’t really sunk in yet, honestly. My phone has been blowing up all day.
Cleveland Brownlee
It sunk in right away. It was well overdue, and I was excited.
Byron Reichstein
Strike three happened and it was like everyone’s hearts dropped. We were just like, ‘Wow, that last 30 minutes just happened.’
Roop Chanderdat
It didn’t. Even on the bus home. It didn’t sink in until I got some quiet time alone by myself. When I finally get home at four in the morning or whatever, then you go, ‘We won. We won the championship …’
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There are some familiar faces, but there’s a sense of renewal in London as the Lightning embark on a new season. With a new coach and several new players, is a new era upon us? What to expect in 2024-25 …