Brewers’ bullpen sinks Expos in season opener

The Sherbrooke Expos failed to find any rhythm on offense in their season opener against the Montreal Brewers at Stade Raymond Daviault on Sunday evening.
The Brewers defeated the Expos 7-2 thanks to a three-run double, a clutch two-run homerun and a solid performance from pitcher Samuel Bélisle Springer. Sherbrooke also performed well on the mound, but it wasn’t enough to hold off Montreal.
“Our pitching staff did great, they didn’t allow many walks, nor many hits, but I mean they did what we didn’t, which is hit the ball with runners on base,” said Expos manager Bruno Laurin.
Springer had an exceptional game, according to Laurin, so there wasn’t much they could have done, other than shoring up their defense. He added that his pitching staff only allowed eight hits; the problem is two of those hits were game busters.
Although the summer has just begun, Laurin says his team needs to find their game quickly. The Ligue de Baseball Majeur du Québec (LBMQ) brought the regular season back but they shortened it to 15 games, rather than a normal 32 or 33 game season.
The Expos have one important thing going for them this summer that wasn’t there in the past. They have a much larger roster and commitment seems much stronger than Laurin has grown accustomed to over the years.
“Our plan is to have a better season than the previous years,” he said. “I think this is a modest objective given that now we have more players. I don’t have to chase down guys one day or two before the game.”
Sherbrooke returns home to Stade Amédée-Roy this weekend to take on the Big Bill de Coaticook on Saturday evening and then face the reigning league champions Blue Sox de Thetford on Sunday afternoon.
Thetford is a strange beast, explained Laurin, because they rarely put up tremendous numbers during the regular season. However, when the playoffs come around, they’re nearly unbeatable. The Blue Sox have won six of the last seven championships.
“They have a good team, they have good pitching, but we do what we can. They’re not unbeatable, I mean, last year if I remember correctly in the playoffs all of their series went to seven games,” Laurin said.

For full story and others, subscribe now.