Akron RubberDucks open 2023 with expectation of second Eastern League title in three years
The temperature at Canal Park on Thursday for the first pitch was 53 degrees and it was partly cloudy.
Ask the 3,858 in attendance for the Akron RubberDucks season and home opener against the Erie SeaWolves and it may as well have been 85 with nothing but sun.
Hope always springs eternal when the Ducks begin the season and this year — the 26th opener on the corner of King James Way and Exchange — isn’t any different.
The Ducks lost 5-0, thanks to a four-run seventh inning by Erie that blew things open.
It's the fourth time in fives seasons the RubberDucks opened with a loss, but if you're a history buff you know two of last four previous seasons the Ducks made the Eastern League final.
"It's very fun to play to play on opening day," RubberDucks starter Gavin Williams said. "You get your adrenaline going. It's the first game. You don't know what to expect from everybody. We did pretty good overall."
That's usually the view from a Ducks organization now in its ninth season since the name changed from the Aeros in 2014.
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An organization that has the most Eastern League titles (six) since the turn of the century, the RubberDucks are used to being in the hunt when all is said is done.
In 2021, the Ducks won it all. Last season, Akron wasn’t eliminated until the third-to-last day of the season and still had the second-best record in the league at 79-59.
"Opening day is already a great day for everybody," said RubberDucks fourth-year manager Rouglas Odor. "It's great to play these type of games, but it's great to play in games where every pitch means something. We have a great group of kids that have an opportunity to play in the postseason.
"We have players like Steven Kwan, Oscar Gonzalez and Bo Naylor (who all played for Cleveland in the 2022 MLB playoffs). They got a taste what it was like to play in the postseason here, and it made it easier to make the transition to go up to another level like Columbus or the big leagues."
With seven of the top 30 best prospects in the Cleveland organization and 15 returners, those expectations probably won’t change.
The key, as it is every season, is to roll with the punches with call-ups to the next level and beyond.
Last season, the organization made 117 transactions that impacted the Ducks.
On top of that, 14 RubberDucks from the 2022 team made their Major League debut with the Guardians last season, so to say success is expected at the Double-A level would be an understatement.
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Although the game didn't go like the Ducks wanted, there was yet another incredible performance by Williams.
The right-hander, who didn't figure in the decision, struck out the side in the third and allowed just two hits in 4⅓ innings. He finished with nine strikeouts against a single walk.
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“There’s a lot of talent in the organization and that shows how good it is,” Ducks second basemen Angel Martinez said. “With all the talent, honestly, for me it feels pretty good. I’m really good friends with a lot of these guys. I’ve played with a lot of them. That makes me feel really good.”
Contact Brad Bournival at bbournival@gannett.com and follow him on Twitter at @bbournival
This article originally appeared on Akron Beacon Journal: RubberDucks relish opening day, contending for Eastern League title
