The Canberra Cavalry have issued a call to arms following the loss of one of their star pitchers.
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Phil Pfeifer's been recalled to the USA by the Atlanta Braves to prepare for Major League spring training having played a massive role in getting the Cavalry to the ABL play-offs.
The Japanese pitchers are also gone, while the Chicago Cubs took back Jerrick Suiter a couple of weeks ago.
Now, for one of the biggest games at Narrabundah Ballpark since they won the championship there seven years ago, the Cavalry have called on Canberra to join the charge.
They'll host arch-rivals Perth Heat in the ABL wildcard game on Tuesday night.
If they get through that then the Cavalry face the Adelaide Giants in the semi-finals - the first game of which would be at The Fort on Friday.
"We really need people out there because this is going to be a really tough one," Cavalry boss Donn McMichael said.
"The players have commented continuously they've found the Canberra crowd really get behind the Cavs.
"They've got them across the line on a number of occasions and we're hoping they can do it again this time."
While they've lost Pfeifer, the Cavalry did cop a brake of sorts.
With Auckland beating Brisbane, their fourth-and-final game of the series against the Sydney Blue Sox became a dead rubber.
It meant they were able to rest starting pitcher Frank Gailey and hold him back to face the Heat.
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Cavalry manager Keith Ward also took the opportunity to give a couple of youngsters their ABL debuts and get extra game time into several players.
Pitchers Cooper Morgan and Stuart Tharle both played their first games in the Cavalry's 8-6 loss to the Blue Sox in Sydney on Sunday.
Ward also got extra at-bats into Lee Mills, Jack Middleton and Trent Buchanan.
"Losing last night's game meant we needed to rely on Brisbane beating Auckland today," Ward said.
"By the time we got to the field that result was done and dusted.
"We had a plan in place for that result. That included holding Frank back from today's start so he was fresh and ready to go at Tuesday's wildcard game.
"It was also a really good opportunity to throw the young kids out there in Morgan, Tharle and Buchanan - and also give Millsy and Middleton some more game time as well."
They lost their only series against the Heat 3-1 over in Perth, but Ward felt the Cavalry were a different team to the one that travelled across the Nullarbor.
Canberra have won 15 of their final 23 games, helping them climb to second in the north-east division behind Auckland.
"They're probably a similar-type team to us in the fact they've got some quality starters, they've got some quality arms," Ward said.
"They just pitch really, really well. As we do. And they've got some quality hitters as well.
"It's been probably eight weeks since we played them and it's fair to say we're a different team to what we were back then.
"And they've probably evolved a little bit more as a team as well ... and we're going to have to be on top of our game to get on top of them."
AT A GLANCE
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