Regina Red Sox host Moose Jaw to kick off playoff run

The grueling 56-game regular season for Western Canadian Baseball League has come to an end, and now the fast-paced, best-of-three playoffs begin.

The Regina Red Sox find themselves back in the playoffs after finishing first in the East Division with a 38-18 record. The Red Sox will host the Moose Jaw Miller Express in Game 1 on Wednesday night at Currie Field.

“We were a little disappointed in our season last year. Our goal was to do much better, and we did,” said Red Sox president Gary Brotzel.

“Goal number one is accomplished. We had a good regular season, and now it’s time to move on and get ready for the playoffs.”

The Red Sox have been swept in the first round of the playoffs in back-to-back seasons.

“It’s a really quick playoff run,” said Brotzel.

“Each series is a best-of-three with a day off in between, so it’s ‘go, go, go’ now.”

In eight games against Moose Jaw this season, the Red Sox won six times, with four of the eight games decided by a single run.

Brotzel said the Sox also saw an increase in attendance this season, and noted that attendance has risen in every year since 2010.

“I think we’re on pace to set another record this year,” said Brotzel, adding that playoff ticket sales are going well, and he hopes to see a full house for the first playoff game.

The Red Sox also released some new merchandise this season.

“Hats, hoodies, T-shirts, sweatshirts. You name it, we got it,” Brotzel said.

“If you’re coming to the game, we have a really nice merchandise trailer there, and it’s fully stocked and ready to go.”

The Red Sox were able to put on a good performance on the field this year, while off the field there have been discussions about getting approval for a new ballpark.

“We’ve entered an agreement with DCG Philanthropic in Saskatoon, and they’re gonna do a report for us. I’m not exactly sure what the timeline is for that. I’m guessing it’ll be at least a month down the road,” Brotzel explained.

“They’re gonna come back and hopefully give us a number that they think they can comfortably raise through private donations, and if the number’s high enough then I think we can probably take a pretty good step forward. If it’s a low number, we might have to look at doing a little bit of a renovation at Currie Field.”

After Wednesday’s game, the series will shift to Moose Jaw on Thursday. And, if needed, Game 3 would be back at Currie Field on Friday.

The newly formed Saskatoon Berries also managed to break into the playoffs in their inaugural season. The team finished third in the East Division with a 31-25 record.

The Berries will travel to Medicine Hat on Wednesday night for the first game of their series.

Both the Red Sox and Berries’ first pitches are set for 7:05 p.m.