The last time Cotuit and Orleans played in the regular season, the Firebirds won a 2-0 shutout. They came into the Cape League championship series with a little extra rest and with their pitching lined up. They had won 15 of their last 18.
Cotuit, as always, was undeterred.
The Kettleers broke a 2-2 tie with two runs in the eighth and out-pitched Orleans pretty much the whole way en route to a 4-2 victory yesterday in game one of the Cape Cod Baseball League championship series. Cotuit is one win away from its second championship in four years.
Cotuit took a 2-0 lead in the first inning of Wednesday’s game on a home run by Caleb Bryson (Samford), who has to be one of the greatest late-season pick-ups in Cape League history. Bryson has six home runs in nine games with the Kettleers.
For a while, it looked like the lead would hold up. While Orleans starter Bobby Poyner (Florida) kept it from growing by escaping two bases-loaded jams, Cotuit’s Evan Beal (South Carolina) kept it from shrinking for four innings. Beal, who pitched five strong innings in a start in the Falmouth series, was even better this time, scattering five hits in six innings.
But the Firebirds came on. A base hit by Geoff DeGroot (UMass-Lowell) that was mis-played in left field allowed a run to score in the fifth. Orleans then tied it in the seventh when Ross Kivett (Kansas State) drew a bases-loaded walk.
Both teams missed chances after that, with Cotuit coming up empty after a failed squeeze bunt in the seventh and Orleans’s Austin Davidson (Pepperdine) getting thrown out trying to stretch a double into a triple in the top of the eighth.
At that point, the vaunted Orleans bullpen was in action, but Cotuit broke the tie anyway. In the bottom of the eighth, Cotuit loaded the bases on a walk, a double by Logan Ratledge (NC State) and an intentional walk. Orleans went lefty-lefty against Bradley Zimmer (San Francisco) with Brian Clark (Kent State), who hadn’t allowed a run since July 16, but Zimmer delivered. He chopped a single up the middle and two runs scored to put Cotuit ahead.
Needing just three outs, Cotuit reliever Wesley Cox (Texas San Antonio) cruised, getting two groundouts and a strikeout to end it.
Game two is set for tonight at 7 p.m. in Orleans. The Firebirds were down 1-0 in their first-round series to Harwich before coming back to win, while Cotuit was up 1-0 in its West finals series with Bourne before getting pushed to a third game. I don’t think anybody would be surprised to see the Cape League summer continue for one more day after tonight.