A wild opening night of the 2025 WCBL Postseason featured East Division upsets and flexing from the defending league champions.

Perhaps the biggest surprise from the Wednesday slate of action saw the fourth-seeded Moose Jaw Miller Express topple the Saskatoon Berries at NexGen Patch at Cairns Field by a 6-4 score.

It was a high-event game that saw Millers ace Westin Walls - the WCBL leader in strikeouts and innings pitched during the regular season - pick up the victory after going 6.1 innings and allowing four runs, just one of them earned. Moose Jaw overcame seven fielding errors and ran wild on the basepaths with five stolen bases. Shortstop Thomas Soto led a 14-hit attack by going 3-for-5 with two runs and a pair of runs batted in (RBI). The Miller Express also got meaningful at bats from veteran first baseman Austin Gurney (three hits, two RBI, two stolen bases), designated hitter Robert Estrada (three hits, two runs), and outfielder Pacey Phillips (three hits, two runs, one RBI, two stolen bases). After Walls departed the game, Nathan Pisio pitched a scoreless inning before handing the ball to Ethan Merk, who shut the door with a five-out save.

Calvin Junek, the starting pitcher for the Berries, was touched up early, allowing four earned runs in 1.1 innings in front of a crowd of 1,858 fans. Saskatoon was chasing the game from there and got within two runs of the lead but no closer. Second baseman Abiam Medina was the only batter on the Berries to get more than one hit on the night. He went 3-for-5 with two runs scored. Saskatoon set a record for victories in one regular season by going 46-9 ahead of the playoffs. The Berries, who face the Miller Express at Ross Wells Park in Moose Jaw at 7 p.m. on Thursday, Aug. 7th, are now facing elimination in the best-of-three opening round series.

While the East Division leader stumbled in Game 1, the top team in the West Division reminded the rest of the league that they're the three-time defending champs. The Okotoks Dawgs fell behind the Brooks Bombers 1-0 in the first inning at Seaman Stadium before third baseman Connor Crowson - the 2024 WCBL Playoff MVP - smashed a grand slam to give the home team a second-inning lead they would not relinquish. The Dawgs got solid hitting from shortstop Ricardo Sanchez (three hits, two RBI), designated hitter Leo Cote (three hits, two RBI), and outfielder Zane Skansi (two hits, one RBI). On the mound, starting pitcher Brady Baltus went five innings and gave up four runs to earn the win. Relievers Brody Forno, Chase Tucker, Reid Madariaga and Ryan McFarland allowed no runs the rest of the way. When the dust settled, the Dawgs finished the night with an 11-4 triumph.

The depleted roster of the Bombers, now without WCBL stolen base leader CJ Snowden, will attempt to extend the best-of-three series when they welcome the Dawgs to Elks Field. The game starts at 7 p.m. on Thursday, Aug. 7th.

Meanwhile in Medicine Hat, the third-seeded Regina Red Sox picked up a 6-2 win over the No. 2 Mavericks. The Mavs outhit the Red Sox by a 12-10 margin but they stranded a dozen runners. The 1,717 fans at Athletic Park were teased with run production all night and the game was close through seven innings until Regina scored three times in the eighth frame to seal the victory. Winning pitcher Landon Riley allowed 10 hits but only two earned runs in 6.1 innings on the mound for Regina. Ayden Page pitched 2.2 scoreless innings to earn the save. Outfielder Rafael Jackson had a two-run homer for the Red Sox to get the scoring started in the third inning and first baseman James Wright blasted a solo shot in the seventh. Shortstop Matthew Fox also collected two hits and a run.

Luis Diaz - the starting pitcher for the Mavericks - was solid on the bump in a losing cause, logging seven innings and allowing three earned runs while striking out six batters. Second baseman Carter Roth had two hits and a pair of RBI for Medicine Hat, while third baseman Ty Vanneste, first baseman Aaron Vulcano and outfielder Adam Vulcano all picked up two hits in the game.

The Mavericks will need a road win at Currie Field in Regina to force a third and deciding game back at Athletic Park. Game 2 starts at 7 p.m. on Thursday, Aug. 7th.

The opening game of the West Division semi-final between the Sylvan Lake Gulls and Lethbridge Bulls was rained out. Game 1 will now take place at Spitz Stadium in Lethbridge at 7 p.m. on Thursday, Aug. 7th. The second game of the best-of-three series goes at 7 p.m. at Gulls Field on Friday, Aug. 8th and, if a third game is required, it will take place in Sylvan Lake on Saturday, Aug. 9th.