Baseball Canada: Blain, Jacob, Kilshaw, MacDonald shine for JNT
From left to right: Maxime Blain (Repentigny, Que.),Zach MacDonald (Lacombe, Alta.) and Joseph Pereira (Etobicoke, Ont.) were standouts for the Junior National Team in their 9-8 loss to the San Francisco Giants DSL team on Monday. Photo: Baseball Canada
May 18, 2026
Baseball Canada
Game 1
The Junior National Team battled through a back-and-forth contest against the San Francisco Giants DSL squad on Monday, ultimately falling 9–8 during Dominican Professional Academy Camp action.
Maxime Blain (Repentigny, Que.) delivered one of Canada’s biggest swings of the game in the second inning, driving a two-run triple to left field to score Kadyn Armitage (Surrey, B.C.) and Jalen Jacob (Maple, Ont.) and give the Juniors an early 2–1 lead. Sam Ellis (La Peche, Que.) helped extend the advantage in the third, reaching with a single before coming around to score on a sacrifice fly from Austin Blair (Victoria, B.C.).
After the Giants tied the game in the bottom of the third, Canada answered again in the fourth when Jacob came through with a two-out RBI single that gave the Juniors a 4-3 lead. Zach MacDonald (Lacombe, Alta.) delivered the big blow in the game for the Canucks, launching a two-run home run after Robert Omidi (Mississauga, Ont.) was hit by a pitch to pull Canada even again at 6–6.
The Juniors continued to battle late, responding to another Giants’ rally with two runs in the seventh. Cohen Miller (Calgary, Alta.) and Aidan Kilshaw (Saskatoon, Sask.) delivered back-to-back doubles that tied the game at 8–8.
On the mound, Josh Mills (Leduc, Alta.) started for Canada and struck out five over three innings, while Damarcus Rideout-Carter (Brampton, Ont.) and Joseph Pereira (Etobicoke, Ont.) followed in relief.
The Giants pushed across the deciding run in the bottom of the seventh.
From left to right: Noah McIntosh (Dartmouth, N.S.), Sam Davis (Beaumont, Alta.) and Jalen Jacob (Maple, Ont.) had strong performances for the Junior National Team in their 6-3 loss to the Houston Astros DSL squad on Monday. Photo: Baseball Canada
Game 2
In their second game on Monday, the Junior National Team battled late but fell 6–3 to the Houston Astros DSL squad.
Jacob sparked the rally with a single before Blain and Kilshaw worked walks to load the bases. Wild pitches brought home Jacob and Blain before Noah McIntosh (Dartmouth, N.S.) lifted a sacrifice fly to score Kilshaw to cut the deficit to 6–3.
On the mound, Desmond Tregaskis (Delta, B.C.) started for the Juniors and struck out three over three innings. Sam Davis (Beaumont, Alta.) followed with a strong relief outing, recording five strikeouts across three innings of work. Austin Blair (Victoria, B.C.) tossed a scoreless frame, striking out one to close out the game.
The Canadians will now gear up for a game against the New York Mets DSL squad on Tuesday morning.