Le Cactus de Victoriaville won the Ligue de baseball majeur du Québec championship on September 30, sweeping the Castors d’Acton Vale in four games with a 6-4 victory at Stade Rémi-Deshaies. Despite finishing the regular season with a 14-16 record, the Bois-Francs squad dominated the postseason with a 14-3 record to claim its second title in three years and third in seven seasons.
Stade Rémi-Deshaies hosts title-clinching sweep
A packed crowd filled Stade Rémi-Deshaies on Wednesday night, September 30, to watch the home team complete its playoff run. The 6-4 win in the final game secured the series sweep over Acton Vale and sealed the PhysioExtra Cup for Victoriaville. The championship marked a remarkable turnaround for a club that struggled through the summer schedule before finding its peak form in the autumn elimination rounds.
Roster resilience overcomes regular season struggles
Head coach Rylan Sandoval pointed to external doubts as fuel for his team’s postseason surge. Critics had written off the roster as aging and dismissed their chances after a sub-.500 regular season. Beaucoup de personnes nous comptaient pour battus après notre saison,
Sandoval said, noting the confidence within the clubhouse before the tournament began. General manager and pitcher René-Dave Pelchat praised the unique team chemistry and winning culture built since his arrival in 2016, emphasizing that players competed for the jersey rather than individual statistics.
Josué Peley delivers historic postseason performance
Utility player Josué Peley earned the postseason most valuable player award after a dominant two-way performance. Over 58 playoff at-bats, Peley collected 20 hits, including four home runs, and drove in 15 runs while batting .344. On the mound, he secured three wins and five saves without allowing an earned run, striking out 11 batters. LBMQ Commissioner Daniel Bélisle called the performance historic, noting it stood out as the best postseason run in the league over a 25-year span.
Path through Drummondville and Coaticook
The championship run required winning against tough competition in earlier rounds. Unlike previous title runs that followed top-tier regular-season finishes, Victoriaville fought through a best-of-three series before facing elite pitching against Drummondville. They subsequently defeated regular-season champion Coaticook to reach the final series against Acton Vale for the fourth year, avenging a heartbreaking seven-game loss to the Valois from the previous season.
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