MAPLE LEAFS LOSE BY 16 TO LONDON

Written by: Olivia Byrne

LONDON, Ont. — The Maple Leafs dropped their fifth straight game tonight in a rough 17-1 loss against the London Majors. 

Wilgenis Alvarado was on the bump for Toronto, and ran into trouble almost immediately, giving up a homer on just his second pitch of the night to give London an early lead. A few singles later, the Majors put another run on the board off of a soft grounder to right field.

In the 2nd, Alvarado gave up a 2-run homer that doubled London’s lead to 4-0. His woes continued into the 3rd inning, where a throwing error caused another runner to score. 

Needing to get back into a groove, Alvarado threw one pitch before the ball was put in play again, plating another runner to make it a 6-0 ballgame. After an error from Brando Leroux resulted in another Major getting on base, a single to right field brought two more London players home, making the score 8-0. 

A pitching change for Toronto brought in Yadian Martinez, who got through the rest of the 3rd inning, along with the 4th and 5th unscathed. Martinez’s day was done after 2.1 innings, recording 2 hits and 2 strikeouts. 

Unfortunately, the final nail in the coffin for the Maple Leafs came in the 6th, when London exploded offensively, scoring nine runs over 13 at-bats. 

For Toronto, the lone run came in the top of the 9th. JJ Dutton had singled, and then advanced from first to second base on a wild pitch thrown to Dennis Dei Baning. Eventually, Dei Baning would ground out, but the fielder’s choice successfully plated Dutton, bringing the final score to 17-1.

Both offensively and defensively, Toronto struggled tonight. The Maple Leafs ended the game with 4 errors and 8 hits.

UP NEXT: The Leafs head home to play the Chatham-Kent Barnstormers on Sunday, June 28. First pitch is scheduled for 2:00 p.m.