The featured image is a snap from the Edmonton Prospects social media of the team practicing on Thursday at their home field in Sherwood Park. The bus trip to Fort McMurray is about 5 hours and was made on gameday. The excuse writes itself for a team to struggle in its first game, especially since in collegiate baseball the players are not on their home field all that long before playing that first game.

No coach or player on the team will admit it was a factor in their Opening Day loss because it is all "part of the grind". What is important is the response. The beauty of baseball is that response comes tonight in game two of the 3-game series against the Giants.

657 days between games, this was your starting lineup with 6'7" righthander Travis McDougall starting on the mound. McDougall would be the defender who began the first double play turned by the Club.

Your first Prospects baserunner of the season was first baseman Zach Barnao with a walk. Your first Prospect hit was a double by Spruce Grove's own Gavin Fraser. Jonluke Hobdy collected the first, and second, RBI of the game driving home Fraser and Xander Hernandez who had led the third inning off with a walk. Hobdy would once again drive in Hernandez with a single in the 7th inning. Hobdy, Fraser and Hernandez all were recruited from Cerro Coso Community College in Southern California.

Eli Smock came into pitch in the bottom of the third for the Prospects in a dicey loaded bases, 2-out situation. Three pitches, three strikes, crisis averted. Smock would pitch 3.1 innings striking out 5 along the way. Calgarians Karter Anderson and Cooper Mitchell would finish out the game on the mound each pitching an inning.

Onward we go!