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Wins have been in short supply for the Moose Jaw Dragons in recent seasons but on Tuesday May 12th, 2020 an event occurred that Dragons fans hope heralds a new beginning for the once mighty franchise, top pitching prospect Rafael Brown, collected his first CBL victory.
Brown's victory, a 2-1 squeaker in 10 innings, handed the Farmers League East division leading Regina Pirates their sole loss in their past 10 games. Brown did not just pitch good enough to win, he dominated. Brown allowed a homer to Pirates star Jackie Dent to lead off the second inning and other than that one mistake was in charge the rest of the night scattering just 2 other hits and 3 walks over 9 and 1/3 innings before giving way to reliever Eric I'anson who recorded the final two outs. Brown needed just 103 pitches to get into the 10th inning.
The Dragons wanted to let him finish the game but Brown is on a pitch count to avoid damaging his young arm. "He clearly had enough in the tank to keep going but he has a long career ahead of him. He's only 22.", said Dragons pitching coach Clifton Saban after the game, "The Pirates came into the game on a roll but other than that one pitch he left in Dent's power zone they never hit a ball hard the whole game."
When the Moose Jaw Dragons selected Brown with the 14th overall pick in the 2018 draft management felt they had gotten lucky. Team owner and General Manager Torin Stefanson said in a post draft interview at the time, "I could not believe this guy was still available. "
Some analysts did not like Brown's extremely deliberate move to the plate saying things like, "His wind-up takes so long runners won't need to stop at second when stealing against him they will just carry on and go to third." But Caden Sharif, former Dragons ace and current Special Assistant to the General Manager, saw something in Brown and persuaded the team to put the UBC Thunderbirds ace near the top of their draft list. Sharif's argument was essentially, "His ability to hold runners is irrelevant. If this kid can get even close to reaching his potential it just won't matter. There won't be anyone on base to run!"
This spring the Dragons decided that Brown deserved a shot in the rotation (or maybe it is more correct to say that the rotation needed a shot of something) and called him up to the show. When the press spoke with Rafael after his first start he admitted to having some butterflies, "The Dragons are a franchise with a proud tradition of great pitching and I think I was a little nervous out there. The team has been really hurting the last few seasons and I think I was pressing to much trying to show that I belonged." Now it seems he has gotten comfortable in his new role and realizes that the team's hoped for turn around does not rest solely on his shoulders.
This comfort level turned into a victory Tuesday evening and Dragons management and fans hope it keeps on coming.
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