By Staff and Pat Shields
May 19th, 2016
BURLINGTON, ON
The Burlington Bandits (0-1) will have their fingers crossed for clear skies when the Brantford Red Sox (0-0) come to town on Thursday night.
The Bandits have played only one game in the Intercounty Baseball League (IBL) regular season thus far, thanks to inclement weather on the weekend. The Red Sox are in a similar position as both of their opening games last weekend were postponed.
Although the Bandits showed signs of rust in their home opener against the London Majors (1-0), simply getting back on the field and seeing live pitching should help their cause significantly.
Bandits would like to get out of the dugout and onto the field – 0-1 so far this year.
Burlington will have their hands full with the perennial powerhouse Red Sox, who have won 15 IBL championships since joining the league in 1934.
Brantford finished 3rd in the IBL last season with a solid 22-13 record. Their playoff run ended early though, as they fell in Game 5 of their first round matchup against the Toronto Maple Leafs.
The Bandits fared well against the Red Sox last year posting a 2-3 record in five closely matched meetings, including taking the final two contests.
To notch their first win of the 2016 season, the Bandits will need to get to Brantford pitcher Nathan Forer. The 4-year veteran finished 2nd in the IBL last season with a 2.51 ERA, to go alongside a 6-2 record.
Burlington and Brantford will begin play at 7:30pm at Nelson Park on Thursday. The Bandits will be back in action on Saturday, May 21 when they clash with the league-leading Kitchener Panthers (2-0).
Elsewhere in the league:
The Barrie Baycats and the Toronto Maple Leafs game saw the Baycats record an 8-5 win over the Toronto Maple Leafs Wednesday night.
Barrie and Toronto are both 1-1.
Upcoming games:
Thursday, May 19
Brantford at Burlington, 7: 30 p.m.
Friday, May 20
Hamilton at London, 7:35 p.m.
Saturday, May 21
Kitchener at Burlington, 1 p.m.
Toronto at Guelph, 1 p.m.
Hamilton at Brantford, 2 p.m.
