Cardinals set franchise win record with 6-4 victory over London

LONDON — The Hamilton Cardinals made history on a sun-soaked Sunday afternoon at Labatt Park, knocking off the London Majors 6-4 and setting a new franchise record for wins in a single season. The victory was the Cardinals' 23rd of the year, pushing them to 23-12 and past the previous club record of 22 wins set back in 2002. That Cardinals squad finished 22-14 before falling to Toronto in five games in the league final. Hamilton wasted little time taking control, scoring three times in the top of the fourth. Jaden Brown started the rally with an RBI single, Evan Magill followed with one of his own, and Brandon Nicoll capped the inning with an RBI double. Brown finished a perfect 4-for-4 with two runs, two RBIs and a stolen base. London responded in the bottom half of the fifth. Jordan Lewis drove in a run with a single, Maikol Escotto added another on a fielder's choice, and Trent Lenihan lifted a sacrifice fly to right to tie the game at 3-3. The Cardinals broke the deadlock for good in the eighth. Brown singled home Darlin German, and Magill reached on a throwing error that allowed two more runs to score, giving Hamilton a 6-3 cushion. Magill finished 2-for-4 with two RBIs and a stolen base behind the plate. Nicoll went 3-for-5 with a double and an RBI. Tyler Duncan scored twice, and Dario Borrero chipped in a run. Luis Ramirez worked six innings for the Cardinals, allowing three runs — two earned — on seven hits with five strikeouts and no walks. Caleb Seroski picked up the win with a scoreless seventh, Connor Cory got the final two outs of the seventh, and Freisis Adames closed it out for the save despite surrendering a run in the ninth. The Cardinals now trail the first-place Majors by just two games in the standings and have won five straight.