For the past week, the collective gaze of the Vancouver faithful has been trained on the scoreboards of the Eugene Emeralds and the Everett Aquasox. Due to the eccentric Northwest League Playoff format the Canadians, who finished the season 7 games off the pace in the second half standings, still managed to find their way into the playoffs after Everett failed to catch Eugene on the last day of the season. The runoff for a scenario where the same team clinches both playoff pennants is that the team with the best overall season record not already in the playoffs would clinch the final spot. Enter the first half C’s record that tied for the best in the league.

And so, while on the long bus ride home from Boise, Idaho on Saturday night the Canadians, huddled around Bryan Longpre with cellphone in hand, anxiously awaited pitch by pitch updates through a tense 9th inning stand that saw the Aquasox down two with the bases loaded and none out.  After three agonizing at bats, the ‘Sox had seen their season go down on strikes and the Canadians’ bus erupted in euphoria and a party shuffle from Jesse Hernandez.

The Canadians will try to improve on their 5-7 season record versus the Emeralds in the first of the best-of-three series this afternoon at The Nat. Vancouver will be in tough against the Eugene side that powered through both half seasons but will try to stay to the same ‘one pitch at a time’ mentality that has produced a playoff birth. Fans can likely look for an appearance from flamethrower Noah Syndergaard who was reacquired from Lansing last week.

You can listen to all three games of the Western Division Playoff Series live with Vancouver’s own Rob Fai at www.canadiansbaseball.com