After three straight losses, the Yorkton Cardinals put together a win Monday night at Jubilee Park in the city.
The win put the Cardinals into double digits with 10 Western Major Baseball League wins, against 19 losses for a winning percentage of .345.
Yorkton sits last in the WMBL's East Division, 11.5 games back of Regina in top spot. Melville sits second 7.5 games off the pace, with Weyburn eight games back.
The win came over the Moose Jaw Miller Express who led 3-1 after scoring a trio of runs in the fourth. However, Yorkton added a run in the fifth, then scored twice in the sixth for the win.
Sean Gavin started on the mound for Yorkton going five innings, but was not around for the decision as Robert Rivers picked up the win on the basis of two innings of relief work.
Mac McDonald finished the game earning a save on 1.1 innings of work.
On offence Jake Bailey pounded a pair of doubles, scored twice and had a run batted in.
James Green also had a double and stole a pair, bringing to 24 his WMBL leading total.
Bailey said the win Monday was a much needed one after three losses.
"Today's win was a big win," he said, adding a comeback win helps build some confidence heading into a pair of big games against Melville this week.
"We're just trying to take it one at a time," offered Bailey, adding the team is confident, and has been playing some good baseball. "We've just had some tough breaks.
Cardinal head coach Bill Sobkow agreed the win was a big win.
"It was a very important win tonight. We were pondering all day how we could squeeze this one out," he said.
While the Cardinals managed a win, there were times they looked shaky on defence, admitted Sobkow. He said the box score would show that as the team committed five errors.
"You can't get away with committing errors like that night after night after night and win ball games," he said. "We can't play lackadaisically."
As for his own performance Monday Bailey, who was named Cardinal Player of the Game, said two of his at-bats were not particularly good, "but the other two felt pretty good."
Road swing
The Cardinals had an important road swing last week, heading west to face the cellar dwellers in both the central and west divisions of the WMBL.
It was a four-game trip which could have put the Cardinals back in playoff contention with wins over Saskatoon and Edmonton, but that didn't happen.
Yorkton dropped decisions in Saskatoon Wednesday and Thursday, then travelled farther west to be rained out Friday and Saturday in Edmonton.
Wednesday the Yellowjackets beat up on the Cardinals, winning 9-4.
Yorkton did strike first, scoring twice in the first inning, but Saskatoon equalled that in the third.
The big inning for the Yellowjackets was the seventh when they plated five runs.
Luis Lora started and went six for Yorkton, scattering eight hits and allowing four runs, all of them earned to be tagged with the loss.
Max McDonald tosses two innings in relief, giving up five hits, and five runs, three of those earned.
James Green had his 22nd steal of the season, plus a double and a run scored.
Thursday the score was closer but Saskatoon again won 6-3.
Yorkton again managed to score in the first inning, getting a lone run, but the Yellowjackets would score in four different innings for the win.
Ghazaleh Sailors started for Yorkton and took the loss. She went 5.2 innings allowing 11 hits and five hits, all of them earned.
Gabriel Molina had two hits for Yorkton to hold his batting average at .400 in four games since joining the team.
Up next
The Cardinals were scheduled to host Melville Tuesday, but results were not available at press time.
Tonight (Wednesday) Yorkton heads to Pirie Field in Melville for the last regular season meeting of 2011, for the rival franchises.
"We have to win both," said Sobkow.
The Cardinals then enjoy a rare three days off before hosting Regina Sunday for a 2 p.m. start, then host Swift Current next Tuesday and Wednesday.
