It’s a new-look lineup, for sure, but the London Majors have resumed their winning ways from last year, when they brought the sports city alive by winning the city’s first post-COVID championship. By the end of June, just over a third of the way through the 2022 season, the club held a 12-5 record, good for second place in the Intercounty Baseball League (IBL) standings, just a half-game behind the Welland Jackfish.
Some familiar faces certainly helped the team get out to a good start, including long-time veteran Cleveland Brownlee, 37, who turned back the clock and got off to a huge start, hitting safely in each of his first 15 games. At the time of this writing, in the final days of June, the slugger was batting an impressive .423 (second in the IBL) with a league-best seven home runs and 28 runs batted in.
Likewise, veteran Owen Boon was getting the job done on the mound, going 5-0 with a 3.19 ERA in his first six starts this season. His 45 strikeouts were third best among starting pitchers in the IBL.
But it was several new faces who contributed significantly to the Majors’ winning ways early. That includes catcher Robert Mullen, an import player, who had exceeded all expectations and led the IBL in hitting with a .448 batting average by the end of June (knocking out seven home runs and collecting 21 RBIs by that time). Third baseman Taylor Wright had a .392 batting average, while local product Drew Lawrence was hitting .318 and another import player, Starling Joseph, was at .310.
On the mound, the difference-maker had been Jose Arias, a Santo Domino, Dominican Republic native, who was nearly unhittable in his first seven outings (six starts). By the end of June, the right-hander led the league with an elite 0.40 ERA in over 44 innings. He had a record of 5-0 (plus a save), and his 63 strikeouts were second-most in the IBL.
With plenty of baseball left, throughout July and August, and into the playoffs come September, there will be plenty of exciting baseball at Labatt Park as the Majors try to get back to the finals and perhaps win back-to-back titles. It’s a new team, but that goal certainly remains.
Contributions by London Majors and photos by Matt Hiscox Photography
