The Lethbridge Bulls opened the 2026 Western Canadian Baseball League season with a strong 2-1 record, earning back-to-back home victories over the Brooks Bombers and Swift Current 57’s before running into a hot-hitting Okotoks Dawgs club on the road Saturday night at Seaman Stadium.
On Thursday night, the Bulls earned an 8-3 victory over Brooks. Lethbridge product Shaye McTavish set the tone on the mound, working six solid innings while limiting the Bombers offense to six hits, striking out four and only walking one along the way.
Offensively, Lethbridge was led by first year Bull Joshua Milton. The Richmond, Texas native went 4-4 with two RBIs and a walk. Another Lethbridge product, Bulls second baseman Kalem Haney, returned to the Spitz Stadium field after taking a hiatus from the league in 2025. Haney went 3-4 in the Bulls’ victory. Pitching coach for the Bulls, Josh Burgmann, was extremely excited about the start from MacTavish.
“Shaye did exactly what we were hoping for from an opening day starter. He set the tone right away by getting ahead of hitters, not afraid of pitching to contact and then had the ability to put guys away when he needed to. He was in control right from pitch one and we are looking forward to hopefully a really good summer from Shaye,” Burgmann said.
MacTavish was awarded the Sisters Pub player of the game for his outstanding effort on Thursday night.
On Friday night, the Bulls welcomed a retired Toronto Blue Jays great to Spitz Stadium as part of the Canadian Grand Slam of Baseball Showcase and Festival. Kevin Pillar’s appearance at the Canadian Baseball Legends Gala and Celebrity Kids Camp, and throwing of the ceremonial first pitch, helped create a memorable start to the summer baseball season in Lethbridge. As Pillar was signing autographs on the Spitz Stadium concourse, the Bulls offence exploded with 20 hits on the field in a 21-6 victory over the Swift Current 57’s. Milton once again had the hot hand at the plate, going 5-6 with three doubles and five RBIs.
Burgmann said on Milton’s hot start to the season at the plate, “Josh has been really good for us through the first three games. What we’ve learned so far is that he’s a really tough out at the plate, even with two strikes he finds a way to put the ball in play and if you make a mistake in the middle of the plate he’s looking to do damage”.
Fifth year Lethbridge Bull Carter Claerhout went 2-4 on the night, including his first home run of the season. He also chipped in three RBIs. Brett Getz got the win on the mound for the Bulls in his first start of the season, striking out five while walking two in five innings of work.
Things were a lot different for the Bulls on Saturday night as they were handed their first loss of the season in a 26-1 drubbing at the hands of the Okotoks Dawgs. The Dawgs led by a score of 2-0 after three innings of play before exploding for 10 runs in the fourth and nine more in the fifth. It was a forgettable night all around for the Bulls, who only mustered up seven hits on the night. The Bulls sent out seven pitchers overall, with Adryen Teitz taking the loss after going three innings and giving up only two earned runs and striking out four.
“Teitz gave us a really good start on the mound through the first couple of innings and then a couple walks in the third led to a couple runs. Little bit of snowball effect from there on the mound. Just struggled with giving up free bases with walks and a few hit by pitches,” said Burgmann.
“One thing about playing in Okotoks is you can’t give them free bases and you have to play the game clean in order to give yourself the best chance to win. [It was a] learning moment for a lot of our guys that haven’t pitched in that kind of environment with that many fans. On the bright side, we have some reinforcements coming in this week especially on the position player front that just finished up their college seasons and we are excited to get those guys back with the group and get rolling here.”
The Bulls were to return to Okotoks to take on the Dawgs on Sunday afternoon to try and avenge Saturday night’s loss, but the game was rained out and will be played on Wednesday, June 3.
Monday’s match-up against Okotoks has also been rescheduled due to rain in the forecast, with that game now set to take place on Tuesday, June 16.
The Bulls are home this weekend with a four-game set beginning Thursday, June 4 against Fort McMurray. Game time is 7 p.m.
–By Brent Radlinsky, Lethbridge Bulls
