The Capitals of Quebec Face Off Against the New Jersey Jackals in the Frontier League Semi-Final

The Capitals of Quebec took the road to New Jersey, Wednesday noon. For them, there was no doubt where the first game of the Frontier League semi-final would take place. Skylands Stadium will host the first game on Thursday, but it won’t be against the team that plays all its games there.

The New Jersey Jackals earned the ticket to this series 2 of 3 with a win over the Sussex County Miners on Tuesday night. A game where the Jackals were the host club on the field of their one-night rivals.

Keon Barnum has hit 30 homers with the Jackals this season. (Caroline Grégoire/The Sun)

The Jackals did not have access to their ground (Hinchliffe Stadium) in the last stretch of the season. Same thing for the playoffs. They borrowed the Miners stadium, mainly because the two teams belong to the same owner.

“I watched both games [ceux de l’Est et de l’Ouest]. Jackals are really hard to rate. The good news is that we won’t be playing in their high school stadium. »

— Patrick Scalabrini, manager of the Capitals of Quebec

195 home runs (1st in League)Champions: 5 (2019, 2004, 2002, 2001, 1998)122 home runs (3rd in League)Champions: 8 (2022, 2017, 2013, 2012, 2011, 2010, 2009, 2006)

“It would have been flat for the series to be decided in this stadium. When I say they [les Jackals] are hard to assess, that’s because the statistics can be misleading. Their stadium clearly favors hitters, but conversely, it does not really help pitchers. In Sussex, he’s going from a batting stage to a pitching stage, I can’t wait to see what happens. »

The Capitals went 6-3 against the Jackals on the season, winning five of six in Quebec City, including a sweep during the team-record 14-game winning streak.

“I would love to go steal the first game there [jeudi]. At the same time, we had lost game number 1 in Ottawa, last year, and we came back to win the next two in front of our supporters”, likes to recall the one whose troop would savor their eighth title, shortly after. .

With the addition of Greg Bird and Jesmuel Valentin, manager Patrick Scalabrini bets on two players who know how to react when the stakes demand it. (Patrice Laroche/The Sun)

Scalabrini doesn’t expect an easy series against the Jackals. After all, both teams have been battling for the top spot for the past few weeks. The Capitals secured the top spot due to the record between the two teams as Quebec and New Jersey maintained the same record of 60-35 after 95 games.

“They’re also fielding the league’s most valuable player and it’s not even their 30 homer hitter,” he noted of James Nelson and Keon Barnum, two powerhouse hitters with huge batting seasons.

The former received the most votes for the title of most valuable player with his 30 bombs, 82 RBIs and his offensive average of .388 against his teammate’s 30 homers and 87 RBIs. He could also have spoken of Josh Rehwaldt’s 27 home runs, Alex Toval’s 24, Rusber Estrada’s 22.

“It remains to be seen if they can count on all their players for the return to Quebec. I think their receiver [Estrada] didn’t play in Canada this season, just like their pitcher who shut out the Miners on Tuesday,” Scalabrini said of Jorge Tavarez, who pitched a full game.

For its part, two pitchers did not accompany the team to New Jersey, but the reason was quite different.

Steven Fuentes and Ruben Ramirez, who will start games 2 and 3 of this series, stayed in Quebec to be well rested.

TJ White at the post

He will also count on the presence of TJ White in the lineup, even if the most popular player on the team is annoyed by a broken finger from a ground ball hit in his direction last Thursday.

TJ White doesn’t lose his smile even though he plays with a broken finger. (Erick Labbé/The Sun)

“It’s better, but I can’t hit with as much power as usual. There’s no way I’m not playing, I’m going to do my best to help the team get through it,” White said.

The author of 22 home runs and 67 RBIs had another great summer in Quebec. The camaraderie in the team was perfect, and on the field, the group knew how to go up the slope, the arrival of the receiver Ruben Castro, on June 1, proving the spark to relight the flame.

“We already had a good base, but the addition of Castro allowed us to get going. The support of the crowd was also a factor”, underlined the number 3.

White preferred to dwell on the present moment instead of projecting himself into the future. The 31-year-old therefore did not dwell on his future with the Capitals.

“At my age, I have less to do. It’s not over, we still have two series to win. »

If the loss of Marc-Anointe Lebreux and Kyle Crowl hurt at the end of the season, the Capitals were able to replace them with experienced players in Greg Bird and Jesmuel Valentin.

“They have already been there, it seems. They are calm and know what they have to do,” added White, who also shows great confidence in the starters who will climb the mound in this series, starting with Abdiel Saldana, who was mandated to start the first game. , Thursday (7 p.m.).

Not the same rivalry

The Jackals and the Capitals have played against each other since the birth of independent baseball in Quebec. The rivalry once was intense, even explosive, but it’s not what it used to be.

In another era, the Jackals were managed by Joe Calfapietra. (The Sun Photo Library/The Sun Photo Library)

“Things have changed. Back then their coaching staff was the same season after season, now we hardly know their manager [PJ Phillips] and there is a mutual respect between us and Bobby Jones, who manages the team on an administrative level. We suspect that there is a bit of him in their success.

2023-09-07 08:06:28
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