Sloppy defence, free passes cost Mavs in loss to Swift Current

jtubb@medicinehatnews.com @ReporterTubb The Medicine Hat Mavericks put themselves on the wrong side of the baseball Monday. The Mavs committed a pair of errors and issued 12 free passes in walks and hit by pitches en route to an 11-10 loss at Athletic Park to the Swift Current 57’s. Head coach Ryan Reed counted a few The post Sloppy defence, free passes cost Mavs in loss to Swift Current appeared first on Medicine Hat News .

Sloppy defence, free passes cost Mavs in loss to Swift Current By James Tubb on July 13, 2026. NEWS PHOTO JAMES TUBB A throw from third base flips out of the glove of Medicine Hat Mavericks first baseman Frankie Giacalone in the third inning of an 11-10 loss Monday at Athletic Park to the Swift Current 57's. jtubb@medicinehatnews.com

@ReporterTubb The Medicine Hat Mavericks put themselves on the wrong side of the baseball Monday. The Mavs committed a pair of errors and issued 12 free passes in walks and hit by pitches en route to an 11-10 loss at Athletic Park to the Swift Current 57’s. Head coach Ryan Reed counted a few more plays that could have been scored errors in what he described as a slop fest from his team.

“A couple mistakes where we just have to keep the ball in front of us in the outfield or PFP (pitcher fielding practice), things like that we have to be better at,” Reed said. “When you give up 11 runs, you beat yourselves and it was mainly from the walks. If we limit the walks, we probably control that game and cruise through it.”

He says the loss, in which they surrendered six runs in the eighth inning to blow 7-5 lead, is a blow to the gut. Reed says it also reflected what has cost them throughout the season, a continuation of falters they’ve tried to shake. “Everybody was pretty hurt by that one, everybody’s feeling it,” Reed said.

“It’s just the same thing over and over. No matter what we’ve changed as staff, like rotation, bullpens situations, it seems like we keep finding ourselves in those scenarios. We’re going to keep trying different things and find what clicks and try to build momentum going into the final stretch.”

The Mavs scored first, Blake Dale plating Evan Morrison who led off the bottom of the first with a triple. Swift Current scored a pair in the third inning for a one-run lead before the Mavs grabbed their advantage. A four-run fifth inning for the Mavs saw Morrison drive in a run with a single before Frankie Giacalone drove in a pair with a bases-loaded double.

The inning rounded out with Dale scoring on a groundout for the 5-2 lead. The 57’s scored three runs in the sixth inning to tie the game up at 5-5, with a pair of runs scoring on a miss-timed dive in the out field and a third crossing on an error off a bunt. Medicine Hat grabbed another lead, with a pair of runs in the seventh.

Dale tripled in a run, later scoring on an infield single off the bat of Giacalone. Swift Current tallied six runs in the eighth inning, with blooping singles dropping in front of out fielders as the 57’s ended the frame with an 11-7 lead. The Mavs drew within one in the bottom of the inning, Josh Stark plating a pair on a double before making his way to third and scoring on an errant throw that found the Medicine Hat dugout.

The Mavs had a chance to push for the tie and the lead after Stark’s hit, with Dale on first and one out. Giacalone and Carter Roth struck out, sending the contest to the ninth. They were bailed out by a runner interference call at second base, keeping a 12th Swift Current run off the board.

In the bottom of the ninth, the Mavs fell on a groundout, fly out and strikeout to end the game. Jackson Miles started the game on the mound, working 4.1 innings allowing two unearned runs on four hits and four walks, striking out three. Miguel De Jesus pitched a frame, charged with three runs on three hits and a walk, recording one strikeout.

JJ Harnett finished the sixth inning, allowing a walk and strikeout. Adam Vulcano took over on the bump to start the seventh, working into the eighth, charged with four runs on three hits and a walk, striking out a pair. Levi Tibbetts surrendered two runs on two hits and a walk, striking out a pair.

Davin Hinote pitched the ninth, surrendering a pair of hits. The Mavs (16-20) host a doubleheader Tuesday, facing the Sylvan Lake Gulls at 1 p.m. and the Weyburn Beavers at 6:45 p.m. 18 -17