RIGHT FIELD FOG

If Luke Keaschall accumulates enough plate appearances for the Cape Cod Baseball League batting title, he may win it. 

Given his performance over the last week, I wouldn’t bet against him. 

Keaschall (San Francisco) is on an incredible hot streak at the plate, with eight consecutive multi-hit games to his name. He went 3-for-5 in a crucial Orleans win over Brewster on Tuesday and is now hitting .424 on the season. 

It’s been a remarkable ride for Keaschall, beginning in the spring. Lightly recruited out of high school, he was USF’s top hitter in his freshman season, finishing with a .320 batting average. 

Keaschall got an opportunity with Orleans a couple of weeks into the season, beginning his Cape League career on July 12. He had a hit in his debut, then took two 0-for-4’s. 

Since then, he’s been one of the hottest hitters in the league. 

A 2-for-3 night on July 16 started an 11-game hitting streak. The multi-hit streak began July 19 and hasn’t let up. He has totaled 20 hits in the eight game heater. 

On Tuesday, Keaschall had three hits and scored a run, part of a solid effort for the Firebirds. Jared McKenzie (Baylor) added two RBI and four other players knocked in one run each. Thomas Schultz (Vanderbilt) went five scoreless innings for the win. Jared Southard (Texas) earned the save. 

If Keaschall continues to get at-bats on his current pace, he likely will qualify for the batting title eventually. 

For now, he’ll just keep doing what he’s doing. 

Cotuit 13, Bourne 2

The Braves have lost three in a row, this one the toughest yet as Cotuit pounded out 14 hits and took advantage of three errors for a blowout win. Eric Brown (Coastal Carolina) led the Kettleer attack with two hits and five RBI. Noah Bridges (UNC Wilmington) added three RBI, and Brett Roberts (Florida State) homered. The top three hitters in the order – Jace Grady (Dallas Baptist), Carter Trice (Old Dominion) and Ryan Ritter (Kentucky) – all had multi-hit games, and every player in the Cotuit lineup had at least one hit. Ian Foggo (Lenoir-Rhyne) pitched four hitless, scoreless innings of relief for the win. Dalton Rushing (Louisville) hit his sixth home run for Bourne. Cotuit improves to 13-16-1 and is one point out of second place. Bourne is 21-6-3. 

Y-D 10, Harwich 3

To go with Orleans’ win over East-leading Brewster, Y-D topped second-place Harwich as the chase pack made some noise. Back from Team USA and swinging a hot bat again, Brooks Lee (Cal Poly) went 5-for-5 with a home run, two doubles and two RBI. Dominic Keegan (Vanderbilt) hit his fifth home run. Tanner Smith (Oregon) had two hits and three RBI. Wyatt Hoffman (Pacific) went 2-for-5 with two RBI. Zachary Jacobs (UC Riverside) allowed one run in six innings of relief for the win. Harwich finished with 10 hits, including a home run by Jordan Beck (Tennessee), but not enough to show for it. Y-D is 12-12-7, five points behind Harwich (16-10-4) for second place. 

Falmouth 10, Hyannis 5

The Commodores maintained their hold on second place in the West with a win over a Hyannis team that has been playing well lately. Three runs in the second, two in the fourth and two in the fifth staked the Commodores to a lead they never gave up. Taylor Smith (Texas A&M) paced with Falmouth with a 2-for-4 night and his fifth home run. Kristofer Armstrong (Florida) stayed hot, going 3-for-5 to raise his batting average to a team-high .318. Casey Harford (Tennessee Martin) and Luke Boyers (TCU) drove in two runs apiece. Antoine Jean (Alabama) pitched four solid innings and Charles Harrison (UCLA) got the win with two scoreless innings of relief. For Hyannis, Luke Mann (Missouri) had his third straight two-hit game. Clark Elliott (Michigan) ended a hot streak with an 0-for-4 but hit the qualifying mark for the batting title and now leads at .358. Falmouth is 13-14-2 and Hyannis is 7-23. 

Chatham 10, Wareham 5

No one is completely out of it in the East, not with Chatham winning two in a row. The Anglers topped Falmouth on Monday and handled Wareham on Tuesday. The Gatemen jumped to a 2-0 lead in the first inning, but Chatham answered with three in the second and padded the lead from there. Danny Serretti (North Carolina) went 3-for-5 with a home run and four RBI. Caeden Trinkle (Oklahoma State) also went 3-for-5 with a homer and three RBI. Lyle Miller-Green (Chipola) added three hits and an RBI. The Vanderbilt duo of Matthew Hogan and Maxwell Romero Jr. drove in one run each. Trevor Martin (Oklahoma State) got the win out of the bullpen. For Wareham, Jim Jarvis (Alabama) homered for the second straight night. Chatham is 12-17-3 and Wareham is 11-15-5. 

WHAT TO WATCH

Trey Dombroski (Monmouth) starts for Harwich against Falmouth. He ranks second in the league in strikeouts and fourth in ERA. 

The Cape League may want to slip the Outstanding Pitcher Award trophy into Bryce Hubbart’s suitcase before he leaves.

Though Hubbart will miss the stretch run on the Cape, he’s done enough to be labeled the Cape’s top arm.  

Hubbart made his final start for Brewster on Monday night and delivered more of the same. He pitched six shutout innings and allowed three hits as the Whitecaps won a key matchup with Harwich by a 4-3 score. 

The left-hander allowed three runs in his first outing of the summer, and has given up just one since then – which was unearned. That’s five straight outings of at least five innings, no earned runs and four hits or less. Hubbart leaves the Cape with a 0.87 ERA and a league-best 45 strikeouts. With about a week and a half left in the regular season, there’s a chance Hubbart wins the strikeout title even though he’s departing a bit early. 

The victories have been nice, too. Brewster has won Hubbart’s last four starts, and this one was significant. Harwich came into the night just a point back of the Whitecaps for first place in the East. The Mariners’ Andrew Mosiello (Oregon) also pitched great, going five shutout innings, but Brewster got an RBI single from Spencer Jones (Vanderbilt) and a three-run homer by Jake Thompson (Oklahoma State) to take control. 

After his team got the lead, Hubbart worked a perfect sixth inning, fittingly ending his Cape League summer with a strikeout of Brock Wilken (Wake Forest), one of the top hitters in the league. 

Harwich rallied with one run in the eighth and two in the ninth, before Dale Stanavich (Rutgers) stranded the tying run on base with a strikeout of the league’s leading hitter, Pres Cavenaugh (UNC Greensboro). 

Orleans 10, Bourne 5

Bourne has lost two straight for the first time all season, but still clinched the West Division title thanks to other results around the division. For Orleans, the win ends a three-game slide. Tyler Locklear (VCU) started things with a bang for the Firebirds, smacking a three-run homer in the first inning for his league-leading ninth long ball of the year. He finished with four RBI and also now leads the league in that category, as well. Trae Harmon (Stetson) also homered for Orleans. Luke Keaschall (San Francisco) added two hits and an RBI, as did Garret Guillemette (USC). Nathan Florence (Hartford) and Zack Morris (Arkansas) combined to shut out the Braves for the first six innings. Bourne made some noise late on home runs by Dalton Rushin (Louisville) and Colby Thomas (Mercer) but didn’t have enough.  

Hyannis 15, Cotuit 5

It’s a long road back to playoff contention but say this for the Hyannis Harbor Hawks – they are hitting and having some fun. Hyannis has scored 43 runs in its last three games, this time smacking 18 hits – eight of which went for extra bases – to pull away from Cotuit. It was the Kettleers who started fast, taking a 3-0 lead in the top of the third on a Luke Gold (Boston College) home run. But Hyannis answered with seven runs in the bottom half and never looked back. Luke Mann (Missouri) led the Harbor Hawks with his fourth home run of the season, plus a double and four RBI. Mitchell Hartigan (Florida Atlantic) was just a double away from the cycle, hitting a single, triple and a home run. Clark Elliott (Michigan) added three hits and Caleb Pendleton (Florida Atlantic) had two hits and three RBI. Daniel Gill (Valdosta State) allowed three earned runs in 5.2 innings for the win. Hyannis is 7-22 and Cotuit is 12-16-1. 

Wareham 12, Y-D 2

The Gatemen moved into second place in the West with a blowout of Y-D. Tres Gonzalez (Georgia Tech) went 4-for-5 with four runs scored to lead the onslaught. Kamren James (Mississippi State) hit a grand slam and Jim Jarvis (Alabama) also homered. The support was plenty for Adam Mazur (South Dakota State), who lowered his league-best ERA to 0.38 with five scoreless innings. He’s up to 23.2 innings with one run allowed. Wareham is 11-14-5 and Y-D is 11-12-7. 

Chatham 3, Falmouth 1

Two Chatham pitchers scattered five hits and combined for 14 strikeouts to shut down a streaking Falmouth team that had come in with four straight wins, including a walk-off victory over the Anglers the night before. Victor Mederos (Miami) struck out seven in six scoreless innings for his longest and best outing of the season. Cy Nielson (BYU) allowed just an unearned run in three innings, while also striking out seven. A two-run single by Lyle Miller-Green (Chipola) staked Chatham to a 2-0 lead in the first inning. They added a run in the fifth on an error. Taylor Smith (Texas A&M) scored Falmouth’s lone run on a wild pitch. Chatham is 11-17-3 and Falmouth is 12-14-2, one point behind Wareham for second place in the West. 

WHAT TO WATCH

Orleans will try to knock off a division leader for the second straight night as it visits Brewster. 

Nick Romano (Central Florida) hit an RBI double in the sixth inning of Sunday’s game for Hyannis. 

And that was just the beginning – for his family and for his team. 

Later in the inning, twin brother Ryan Romano (Florida State) crushed a grand slam as the Harbor Hawks put up seven runs and cruised to a 12-7 victory over Orleans. 

Natives of Tampa, the Romano brothers started their collegiate careers in the juco ranks at St. Johns River State College. They went their separate ways from there, Nick to Central Florida and Ryan to Florida State. Neither had great spring seasons, but reunited on the Cape, they’ve been solid contributors for the Harbor Hawks. 

Hyannis trailed 6-5 going into the sixth inning. After Dominic Johnson (Oklahoma State) singled and Zane Harris (Wright State) walked, Nick Romano started the scoring with a double that tied the game. A bases-loaded walk to Mitchell Hartigan (Florida Atlantic) plated the go-ahead run. Ryan Proto (UMass Lowell) added an RBI single before the big hit. After his brother started the scoring, Ryan Romano ended it with a flourish. He smacked the first he pitch he saw over the fence in left field for the grand slam. 

It was the first home run of the year for Romano, who is up to 11 RBI. For Nick Romano, the double was his third of the season and he’s at three RBI. 

Johnson added three hits, while Clark Elliott (Michigan) and Kyle Ball (Stetson) had two each. Cooper McKeehan (BYU) got the win with five strong innings of relief and seven strikeouts. 

After its brutal losing skid, Hyannis has won four out of its last seven. It lost a game Saturday in which it scored 16 runs. Twelve did the trick in this one. 

Falmouth 5, Chatham 4

Kristofer Armstrong (Florida) hit a walk-off solo home run to send the Commodores to a 5-4 win over Chatham. Falmouth has won four straight games and is now alone in second place in the West, with a one-point edge on Cotuit and Wareham. Armstrong has homered in the last two wins and has six on the year. On Sunday, Armstrong went 2-for-3, his first hit going for an RBI double in the fourth. At that point, Falmouth had a 4-3 lead but Chatham tied the game in the top of the fifth. It remained a deadlock until the ninth. Facing a pitcher in David Falco (Maryland) who hadn’t allowed a run since June, Armstrong fell behind in the count 0-2, worked it back to 2-2, then crushed the game-winning blast over the fence in right field. Kodie Kolden (Washington State) added three hits for Falmouth, and Andrew Hall (Oregon) had two. Jace Bohrofen (Oklahoma) scored two runs and had one RBI. Reliever Lucas Gordon (Texas) set the stage for the win with two scoreless innings of relief, all six of his recorded outs coming via strikeouts. 

Harwich 7, Bourne 4

Harwich also won its fourth straight and toppled league-leading Bourne to do it. The Mariners scored four runs in the fourth and three in the seventh. Its bullpen didn’t let the Braves get any of their usual magic going in the late innings. Dylan Phillips (Kansas State) stared the scoring with a bang, smashing a grand slam for the 4-0 lead. It’s his third consecutive game with a home run and he has his batting average up to .355. Brock Wilken (Wake Forst) also went deep for his sixth of the year, and Pres Cavenaugh (UNC Greensboro) went 3-for-5 for his third consecutive multi-hit game. Eric Reyzelman (LSU) pitched six strong innings for the win, allowing two runs and striking out seven. Owen Coady (Penn) picked up his fourth save with a scoreless ninth. Harwich is now 16-8-4, just one point behind Brewster for first place in the East. Bourne is 21-4-3. 

Wareham 1, Cotuit 1

Wareham and Cotuit entered the night as part of a three-way tie for second place. With their 1-1 deadlock and Falmouth’s win, they’re now tied with each other for third place. Wareham scored first in this one, going up 1-0 in the third on a Tommy Troy (Stanford) sacrifice fly. Mack Anglin (Clemson) pitched four scoreless innings to keep his team in front. It was zeroes for Cotuit until the seventh, when Luke Gold (Boston College) hit a solo home run to tie it. It was an impressive at-bat for Gold, who fouled off five pitches before hitting his fifth home run of the summer. Cotuit kept the game tied in the late innings, finishing off six scoreless innings by the bullpen. Two guys from George Washington did the honors. Trevor Kunci took the first three frames and Harrison Cohen handled the last three. 

Brewster 4, Y-D 4

Brewster and Y-D played to a tie for the third time this season. Y-D scored all of its runs in a big fourth inning, while Brewster scored single runs in the second, third and fourth, then forced the tie with one more in the sixth. Zach Lew (Cal State Fullerton) drove in two runs to lead the Red Sox. Tanner Smith (Oregon) and Cade Hunter (Virginia Tech) knocked in the other runs. Tyler Dellerman (Charleston) drove in Brewster’s first run. The second run scored on a passed ball, and the third came in on an error. Trey Faltine (Texas) tied the game in the sixth with an RBI single. Both bullpens finished strong. Christian Culpepper (Cal Baptist) went two scoreless innings for Y-D. Connor Staine (Maryland) and Hunter Owen (Vanderbilt) combined for four shutout innings for the Whitecaps. 

WHAT TO WATCH

Brewster and Harwich have really emerged in the East over the last two weeks, but they haven’t played each other in that time span. That changes Monday night as the Mariners host the Whitecaps. Harwich, just one game back, could vault into first place with a win. 

Come October, Major League teams may want to consider signing Michael Sansone.

In addition to being a very good pitcher, he’s quite the good luck charm. 

Sansone was a key part of the pitching staff for a fantastic Fairfield team in the spring. The story of college baseball in the northeast this spring, the Stags opened the season with 28 consecutive wins and finished 39-5, even making some noise in the NCAA regionals. 

Now, Sansone is pitching for the league-leading Bourne Braves, and he helped them improve to 21-3-3 with a win Saturday night. He tossed five scoreless innings as Bourne beat Chatham 2-1. Sansone is now tied for the league lead in wins.

His teams this year have gone 60-8-3, which is pretty ridiculous. 

On a pitching staff full of standouts in Bourne, Sansone has been among the best, just as expected after his spring success. He went 9-2 for Fairfield while pitching mostly as a starter. He had a 2.58 ERA and finished second on the team in strikeouts. When Fairfield upset Arizona State in the regionals, Sansone was the winning pitcher. 

With Bourne, Sansone started the summer in a long relief role. He was good in that spot and has been even better since jumping into the rotation. He’s gone five shutout innings in each of this two starts with nine total strikeouts. 

On Saturday, Sansone allowed three hits – all singles – and got stronger as the game went on. After giving up two hits to start the second inning, he retired the next three batters in a row, the beginning of a streak of 12 straight retired. 

Sansone lowered his ERA to 0.78. 

Cole Chudoba (UConn) pitched well in relief and Sansone’s Fairfield teammate Bryson Cafaro completed the all-Connecticut effort with the save. 

Two early runs were enough for the Bourne pitchers. Zach Agnos (East Carolina) hit a home run that made it 1-0 in the second inning. Max Anderson (Nebraska) singled and scored on an error for the other run. 

Harwich 18, Hyannis 16

The highest scoring game in the league this year went to Harwich. The Mariners knocked 18 hits and drew seven walks as they took over the league lead in runs scored. Dylan Phillips (Kansas State) stretch his hit streak to five with three hits, including a home run. Brock Wilken (Wake Forest) went 2-for-5 with his fifth homer. Max Cotier (Virginia) had three hits and five RBI and Pres Cavenaugh (UNC Greensboro) took over the league lead in hitting at .348 by going 3-for-6 with three RBI. Josh Hood (Penn) chipped in three RBI. Hyannis trailed 18-6 before scoring eight runs in the eighth and two in the ninth. Clark Elliott (Michigan) reached base seven times and had three RBI. Luke Mann (Missouri) had two hits and two RBI. Danny Wilkinson (Villanova) eventually stopped the rally after the two runs in the ninth, striking out the last two batters he faced, with the tying runs on base. Harwich has won three straight and is 15-8-4. Hyannis is 5-22. 

Brewster 5, Y-D 2

Scoreless for the first five innings against dominant pitching, Brewster scored five runs over the final four innings for a comeback win. That outcome was hard to imagine early, as Y-D starter Adam Maier (British Columbia University) – a rare Cape Leaguer from a Canadian college – struck out 12 of the first 19 batters he faced. He didn’t allow a run until Spencer Jones (Vanderbilt) hit a two-out home run in the sixth inning. At that point, the Brewster comeback was on. Against the Y-D bullpen, Chad Castillo (California Baptist) gave Brewster the lead with a solo home run. Jake Thompson (Oklahoma State) added an RBI triple in the eighth and Will Simpson (Washington) hit a solo home run in the ninth. Dylan Simmons (Florida State) pitched four scoreless innings of relief to make the comeback count. For Y-D, Dominic Kegan (Vanderbilt) hit his fourth home run in just seven games. Brewster is 17-8-2 and Y-D drops a little off the pace in the East at 11-11-6. 

Wareham 6, Orleans 4

Tyler Locklear (VCU) and Chase DeLauter (James Madison) each hit their league-best eighth home runs for Orleans, but it was Wareham getting the win. Returning after a Team USA stint, Paul Skenes (Air Force) allowed two runs in three innings before strong relief work by Garrett Schmeltz (Louisville), who struck out five in four scoreless innings for the win. Kamren James (Mississippi State) homered for the Gatemen, while Kellum Clark (Mississippi State) and Tommy Troy (Stanford) each had two hits. Luke Keaschall (San Francisco) added two hits for Orleans. Wareham is 10-14-4 and Orleans is 10-12-4. 

Falmouth 9, Cotuit 4

With Wareham’s win and this Falmouth victory over Cotuit, it’s now a three-way tie behind Bourne for second place in the West. Kristofer Armstrong (Florida) went 2-for-3 with a home run and four RBI to lead the Commodores. Jace Bohrofen (Oklahoma) had three hits and three RBI. Luke Boyers (TCU) drove in two runs, while Anthony Hall (Oregon) and Michael Curialle (UCLA) chipped in two hits each. Carter Trice (Old Dominion) homered for Cotuit but the Kettleers couldn’t quite keep up. Anthony DeFabbia (Stetson) got the win with 2.1 scoreless innings of relief. 

WHAT TO WATCH

Harwich’s only loss in its last 11 games came against Bourne. The Mariners will try to avenge it Sunday as they visit Doran Park in a matchup of two of the league’s top teams.  

As pitching combinations go, you could do worse than a pair of Mississippi State Bulldogs. 

The College World Series champs know a little something about winning. 

Falmouth trotted out Mikey Tepper and K.C. Hunt on Friday night. With a little help from Charles Harrison (UCLA), the duo pitched a shutout in a 2-0 victory over Yarmouth-Dennis. Tepper got the win and Hunt picked up the save. 

For the champs this spring, Tepper posted a 5.25 ERA in his freshman season. He’s been great with Falmouth, with no earned runs allowed across his first three appearances. On Friday, he tossed five scoreless innings and gave up just one hit. 

Harrison went two shutout frames before Hunt picked up the Mississippi State torch and struck out four over two scoreless frames. Hunt had a 4.80 ERA in 15 relief appearances for the Bulldogs in the spring. Like Tepper, he also has a 0.00 ERA so far on the Cape. The save he earned Friday is his first of the season. 

Y-D pitchers were pretty good, too. Jared Lyons (George Mason) allowed two runs in 4.2 innings and struck out eight. But Falmouth got a home run from Taylor Smith (Texas A&M) and an RBI from Douglas Hodo (Texas) to back the strong pitching. 

The win is the second straight for Falmouth, which sits at 10-13-2. Y-D is 11-10-6. 

Bourne 4, Orleans 3

Even when things don’t go well for the Bourne Braves, they go well. Eric Adler (Wake Forest) allowed a run for the first time all season as Orleans tied the game in the ninth. But Bourne won on a walk-off in the bottom half, the second walk-off in their last four games. Peyton Chatagnier (Ole Miss) was the momentary hero for Orleans, his homer in the top of the ninth ending Adler’s 11-game scoreless streak. A single and a walk kept the threat alive, but Adler escaped further trouble with the help of a great catch by Dalton Rushing (Louisville), which set the stage for more Brave heroics. Joe Lampe (Arizona State) and Zach Agnos (East Carolina) walked and Peter Burns (Boston College) knocked a single to center field for the game-winning hit. Tanner Schobel (Virginia Tech) added three hits for the Braves, while Christian Knapczyk (Louisville) had two. Orleans’ Luke Keaschall (San Francisco) went 4-for-5 for his fourth straight multi-hit game.  Bourne is the first team in the league to 20 wins at 20-3-3. Orleans is 10-11-4. 

Harwich 5, Wareham 2

Harwich gave up an early lead but got it back with a late push en route to a win over Wareham. Josh Hood (Penn), Dylan Phillips (Kansas State) and Zack Prajzner (Notre Dame) drove in one run each for the Mariners, while Pres Cavenaugh (UNC Greensboro) had two hits. Spencer Giesting (Charlotte) started and tossed four shutout innings. Matthew Pushard (Maine) was lights out from the bullpen, striking out five in 3.1 scoreless frames. Jim Jarvis (Alabama) led Wareham with three hits. Harwich has won two straight and goes to 14-8-4. Wareham is 9-14-4. 

Brewster 3, Chatham 1

After a loss to Orleans on Thursday, it was a quick bounce back Friday for the Whitecaps, who remained two points clear of Harwich for first place in the East. Three early tallies were plenty for Brewster pitchers, who didn’t allow a run until the eighth. Brain Fitzpatrick (Rutgers) struck out six across four scoreless innings, Michael Prosecky (Louisville) struck out eight of the 12 batters he faced, and Dale Stanavich (Rutgers) tossed 1.2 scoreless innings for his fourth save. He now ranks second in the league in saves. Chris Lanzilli (Wake Forest) had two hits and an RBI, and Will Simpson (Washington) drove in a run to lead the Brewster offense. Brewster goes to 16-8-2 and Chatham falls to 10-15-3. 

Cotuit 6, Hyannis 1

Somebody’s got to take that second playoff spot in the West. Despite five straight losses, Cotuit stayed in contention. And in snapping that skid Friday, the Kettleers moved back into second palace. Cotuit was hit hard by the draft but still has some pieces and they were on display in this one. Jace Grady (Dallas Baptist)m Luke Gold (Boston College), Noah Bridges (UNC Wilmington) and Ryan Ritter (Kentucky) each had one RBI as Cotuit’s full lineup got in on the act. Quinn Matthews (Stanford) allowed one run in 4.1 innings. After a lightning and rain delay, Harrison Cohen (George Washington) shut the door before darkness called it, pitching 1.2 scoreless innings. Cotuit is 12-14, while Hyannis is 5-21. 

WHAT TO WATCH

Falmouth visits Cotuit in an important West matchup. The Commodores are two points back of the Kettleers for second place. 

Vanderbilt players arrived late to Cape Cod after their team’s runner-up finish at the College World Series, but they’re having an outsize impact. Spencer Jones is rolling for Brewster, Dominic Keegan is blasting home runs for Y-D, several pitchers are turning in great performances. 

Maxwell Romero Jr., had all his fellow Commodores beat on Wednesday night. 

In the first four innings of Chatham’s game against Cotuit, Romero Jr. got three at-bats and hit home runs in all three of them. He came up empty in his next two at-bats, but the three homer night still ties a Cape Cod Baseball League record. He’s the 11th player to do it. No player in the league’s modern history has ever hit four in one game. 

The list includes Baseball Hall of Famer Frank Thomas. So even though the mark has been hit a few times in recent years – this is the fourth instance since 2018 – it’s still select company. 

Romero Jr. started early. On a 2-1 pitch in the first inning, he smashed a three-run blast. He came up again in the second inning and took an 0-1 pitch out of the park for a two-run homer. With a runner on in the fourth, another 0-1 pitch was sent flying for a two-run shot. 

Five innings still remained, giving Romero Jr. a better chance than most to make a run at a new record, but it wasn’t to be. He popped out in the sixth. When a runner reached in the bottom of the eighth, Romero Jr. got one more chance but struck out. 

Romero Jr. finished 3-for-5 with six RBI. Entering the game, he had one home run on the season and was in a bit of a slump, with just one hit in his last three games. Safe to say he’s feeling good now. 

The big night was part of an easy win for Chatham, which smacked 13 hits en route to a 12-3 win over the Kettleers. Another Vandy player, Matthew Hogan, had two hits and an RBI, while Caeden Trinkle (Oklahoma State) drove in two. Trevor Martin (Oklahoma State) got the win with 3.2 lights-out innings of relief, striking out six. 

Harwich 11, Y-D 1

When you give up one run and your ERA goes up, it’s been a good season. That was the case for Harwich’s Trey Dombroski (Monmouth), who allowed one run in six innings and struck out nine in a big Mariner win over Y-D. He now has a 1.10 ERA, good for fifth in the league. And his 38 strikeouts rank second behind only Brewster’s Bryce Hubbart. Dombroski started the summer in the bullpen. He has struck out 25 in his three starts. In this one, Dombroski scattered six hits and gave up just the one run. He had plenty of support as Harwich took an early lead, then pulled away late. Jordan Beck (Tennesse) homered, while Carter Putz (Notre Dame), Josh Hood (Penn), Dylan Phillips (Kansas State) and Max Cotier (Virginia) all had multi-hit, multi-RBI nights. Liam Simon (Notre Dame) followed Dombroski to the hill and finished off the win. The teams began the night in a second-place tie in the East standings. Harwich now has a two-point edge. 

Falmouth 4, Bourne 2

Falmouth had lost five straight. Bourne had won eight in a row. The Commodores stoppe dboth streaks with a 4-2 win at Doran Park. Adam Hall (Oregon) went 2-for-4 with two RBI for Falmouth, Kodie Kolden (Washington State) hit a solo home run and Jace Bohrofen (Oklahoma) drove in one run. Jack Jasiak (South Florida) went six shutout innings, allowing just two hits and striking out six. Chase Jeter (Sacred Heart) gave up two runs over the final three innings as Bourne threatened to tap into a little more of its magic, but there would be no comeback this time. Falmouth goes to 9-13-2 while Bourne is 19-3-3. 

Orleans 8, Brewster 6

The Firebirds won a wild one to knock off first-place Brewster. The game seemed headed for an Orleans win from the middle innings on. The Firebirds took a 5-0 lead in the fourth and shut-out Brewster until the seventh. The Whitecaps came roaring back with two runs in the seventh, then got a pinch-hit grand slam from Will Simpson (Washington) in the eighth to take the lead. To their credit, the Firebirds were undeterred. Justin Miknis (Kent State) hit an RBI double in the bottom of the eight to quickly tie the game back up. Luke Keaschall (San Francisco) put the Firebirds in front with a two-run triple. Jared Southard (Texas) wouldn’t allow another Brewster comeback as he pitched a scoreless ninth to finish off the win. Keaschall also had a home run and finished with six RBI to lead the Firebirds. Miknis had two hits and one RBI. Orleans has won two in a row and is 10-10-4. Brewster drops to 15-8-2 with its first loss since July 14. 

Hyannis 5, Wareham 4

The Harbor won for the third time in their last four and did so in dramatic fashion. With the game tied 4-4 in the bottom of the ninth, Luke Mann (Missouri) delivered a walk-off infield hit to score Nick Romano (Central Florida) with the winning run. Wareham had won 12-1 over Hyannis just a night earlier and tied this one with two in the top of the ninth before the Harbor Hawks came through. Dominic Johnson (Oklahoma State) and Mitchell Hartigan (Florida Atlantic) knocked in one run each for Hyannis. David Furtado (Wake Forest) pitched six strong innings. For Wareham, Tommy Troy (Stanford) stayed hot with a 3-for-4 night. Starting pitcher Adam Mazur (South Dakota State) pitched five shutout innings and took over the league ERA lead at 0.48. 

WHAT TO WATCH

League-wide off day on Thursday. When the action resumes Friday, should be a good one in the East as Brewster hosts Chatham.  

Comebacks and dramatic victories are often a sign of something special for a baseball team. 

We didn’t need much more proof that the Bourne Braves are special, but now the Cape League’s best team has that going for it, too. 

On the heels of a walk-off win Monday, the Braves broke a 4-4 tie against Harwich on Tuesday with six runs in the top of the ninth inning. The surge led to a 10-4 victory, Bourne’s eighth in a row. 

The Braves are now 19-2-3. They could lose every single one of their remaining games and still finish with a winning record. I would not bet on them doing that. Bourne is finding many ways to win, with the clutch heroics as the latest method. 

Harwich has been on a streak of its own and rallied from an early 4-0 hole to tie the game. After a strong start, Bourne was shut-out for six innings, but making it seven was easier said than done for the Mariners. 

The rally began with three straight walks. Tanner Schobel (Virginia Tech) hit a two-run single to break the tie, and the Braves didn’t stop there. Christian Knapczyk (Louisville), Dalton Rushing (Louisville) and Braylen Wimmer (South Carolina) added RBI as the recently-tied game turned into an easy win. 

Eric Adler (Wake Forest) struck out two of the first three batters he faced in the bottom of the ninth to make sure Harwich didn’t get its own rally going. 

Knapczyk finished with two hits and three runs scored to lead Bourne. Rushing, Wimmer and Schobel each had two RBI. 

Harwich got home runs from Chris Newell (Virginia) and Zack Prajzner (Notre Dame) but it wasn’t enough. 

Against the Braves – particularly the clutch Braves – that’s nothing new. 

Brewster 7, Falmouth 1

The hottest team besides Bourne is Brewster, which won its fourth straight on Tuesday. It was a 1-1 game until the sixth inning, then the Whitecaps broke out with three runs. They piled on with two runs in the seventh and one in the ninth. Spencer Jones (Vanderbilt) stayed hot with his third consecutive multi-hit game, getting two hits and three RBI. After a solid start by Brendan Girton (Texas Tech), Pete Hansen (Texas) struck out five in four shutout innings. Luke Boyers (TCU) homered for Falmouth. Brewster is 15-7-2 and Falmouth is 8-13-2. 

Orleans 5, Cotuit 1

Chase DeLauter (James Madison) didn’t let Wareham’s Owen Diodati sit alone atop the league’s home run list for long. DeLauter moved into a tie for the league lead with his seventh homer, and he had some help as Tyler Locklear (VCU) went deep for the second time this summer. Peyton Chatagnier (Ole Miss) and Luke Keaschall (San Francisco) had three hits each. Thomas Schultz (Vanderbilt) allowed one run in five innings for the win. Jack Filby (UCLA) and Nick Wallerstedt (Arizona State) pitched scoreless baseball out of the bullpen. Orleans goes to 9-10-4 and Cotuit drops to 11-13. 

Wareham 12, Hyannis 1

Bourne is currently the only team in the West with a winning record. Wareham has won straight to emerge as the best of the rest. A five-run second inning and a four-run third set the course for this one as Wareham rolled to victory. Tres Gonzales (Georgia Tech) went 2-for-4 with four RBI, Anthony Frechette (George Washington) went 2-for-4 with three RBI and Tommy Tory (Stanford) followed up Monday’s 4-for-4 day with his second CCBL home run. Wareham pitchers scattered eight hits and limited Hyannis to one run. Carter Rustad (San Diego) got the win with three scoreless innings of relief. Wareham moves to 9-12-4 and Hyannis is 4-20. 

Y-D 4, Chatham 3

Y-D broke a 3-3 tie with a run in the top of the ninth for a win over Chatham. Crew Robinson (San Diego CC) was the hero with a solo home run to make it 4-3. Tanner Smith (Oregon) added three hits for the Red Sox, while Dominic Keegan (Vanderbilt) went 2-for-4 for the third straight night. Reliever Christian Culpepper (California Baptist) allowed a run for the first time all summer but got the win thanks to the ninth inning heroics. Reid McLaughlin (BYU) picked up his third save. Chatham drops to 9-14-3 while Y-D moves into a tie for second place with Harwich at 11-8-6. 

WHAT TO WATCH

League ERA leader Trey Dombroski (Monmouth) starts for Harwich in a big game against Y-D.  

Dominic Keegan was a late-round pick in the Major League Baseball Draft last week but has already made the decision to return to Vanderbilt.

That also means the Massachusetts native should be on the Cape for the rest of the summer, and if his first three games are any indication, it’s going to be a good run. 

Keegan went 2-for-4 with two home runs for Yarmouth-Dennis on Monday night against Harwich. He also homered on Sunday.

Vanderbilt players have started to have a big impact on the Cape after the team’s runner-up finish at the College World Series. Keegan figured to leave a big mark. He was Vandy’s leading hitter with a .345 batting average. He also had 15 home runs, good for second on the team, and led the team with 57 RBI.  

Back in 2019, Keegan played briefly for Orleans in the Cape League and had a rough go of it, finishing the season hitless in 11 at-bats. He made his return with Y-D last Friday and took an 0-for-4 in his debut. 

His first career Cape League hit was a home run on Sunday, a two-run blast that helped the Red Sox beat his former team, Orleans, 11-9. 

It was more – and more – of the same on Monday. Keegan went deep in the first inning. With Y-D later trailing 2-1 in the ninth, Keegan went yard again, his solo shot tying the game. That’s where it ended as the Red Sox played to a 2-2 draw with the Mariners. 

Harwich had won three in a row coming into the game. Chris Newell (Virginia) homered for the Mariners and Max Cotier (Virginia) had an RBI. 

Keegan’s second homer made certain that a strong pitching performance wouldn’t go for naught. Luis Ramirez (Long Beach State) allowed two runs in five innings and moved up to second in the league in strikeouts. Jacob Meador (TCU) was even better, tossing four one-hit innings with five strikeouts. 

Y-D remains two points back of Harwich for second place in the East. 

Bourne 9, Falmouth 8

I don’t even know what to say anymore. Bourne gave up a late lead but won in the bottom of the ninth on a walk-off home run by Colby Thomas (Mercer). It’s their sixth consecutive win. Their league-best record is now 17-2-3. Yes, more than halfway through the 40-game season, they have lost just twice. Falmouth gave it a shot at handing the Braves loss number three, rallying from an 8-6 deficit with two runs in the eighth. But Thomas played hero in the ninth. With two outs, he smacked an 0-1 pitch over the fence for his third home run of the summer. Zach Agnos (East Carolina) also homered for the Braves. Dalton Rushing (Louisville) and Cayden Wallace (Arkansas) had two RBI each. A rare off night in the pitching department for Bourne ended on a high note as Cade Smith (Mississippi State) pitched 1.2 scoreless innings to set the stage for the game-winner.  

Hyannis 13, Orleans 1

Break up the Harbor Hawks. Their 12-game losing streak ended on Sunday, and on Monday, they started a win streak with an emphatic victory over Orleans. Adrian Siravo (Weatherford) pitched six shutout innings, one of the club’s best starts of the summer, and reliever Sam Beck (San Francisco) went two scoreless frames in his first CCBL appearances. There was plenty of back-up from the offense as Hyannis totaled 14 hits for a season-high 13 runs. Luke Mann (Missouri) went 3-for-5 with five RBI. Kyle Ball (Stetson) drove in two runs. Mitchell Hartigan (Florida Atlantic) had three hits and scored a run, while college teammate Caleb Pendleton had two hits and scored two runs. Hyannis is 4-19 and Orleans is 8-10-4. 

Brewster 2, Cotuit 1

Bryce Hubbart (Florida State) dominated again and Brewster had just enough for its fourth consecutive win. Hubbart struck out nine and didn’t allow a hit in five innings. Cotuit scratched an unearned run across but nothing else. Hubbart hasn’t given up an earned run since his season debut, a string of 22 innings. He leads the league with 41 strikeouts. Hubbart ended up taking a no-decision, leaving with the game tied, but Brewster scored a run in the seventh to take the lead. Dale Stanavich (Rutgers) recorded his third save of the summer to finish off the win. Spencer Jones (Vanderbilt) had three hits to lead the Whitecaps. Cotuit finished with just one hit agains three Brewster pitchers. The Kettleers got solid pitching from Dalton Rogers (Southern Miss) and Ian Foggo (Lenoir-Rhyne). Brewster is 14-7-2 and Cotuit is 11-12. 

Wareham 8, Chatham 1

The Gatemen stopped a six-game losing streak with a bang, knocking 13 hits and riding great pitching from three arms to a win over Chatham. Tommy Troy (Stanford) went 4-for-4 with a run scored and an RBI to lead the offensive burst. Sean McClain (Arizona State) had two hits, including a homer, and Kade Kern (Ohio State) had two RBI. Owen Diodati (Alabama) hit his seventh home run and now leads the league in home runs and is tied for the top spot in RBI. Mack Anglin (Clemson) allowed only an unearned run in four innings of work. Out of the bullpen, Cole Kirschsieper (Illinois) was tremendous in his first CCBL appearance, striking out nine in four scoreless innings. Jack Noble (Long Beach State) closed it out with a scoreless ninth. Wareham is 8-12-4 and Chatham is 9-13-3. 

WHAT TO WATCH

Harwich hasn’t lost since July 11. Bourne never loses. Those two meet at Whitehouse Field in an East-West matchup. 

Home team wins in the final inning. Walk-off right? 

Well, maybe not when the darkness closes in at Red Wilson Field. 

The Y-D Red Sox rallied from a 9-5 deficit in the bottom of the seventh inning against Orleans on Sunday, working back to a tie, then going ahead on a two-run single by Zach Lew (Pepperdine). Orleans got two more outs to end the inning, but the game was called there due to darkness. 

Before the rally – and the darkness – Orleans seemed to be in complete control. The Firebirds scored three runs in the first inning and one in the second. Three more in the fifth made it a fairly comfortable lead heading into the seventh. 

The trouble started on an error, then a base hit. Chase Luttrell (Long Beach State) tied the game with a two-run single. Lew played hero, working back from an 0-2 deficit for the big hit. 

Lew, Luttrell and Crew Robinson (San Diego CC) all finished with two RBI for the Red Sox, as did Dominic Keegan (Vanderbilt) who hit his first home run in his second appearance on the Cape. 

Tyler Locklear (VCU) hit his fifth home run and drove in four to lead the Orleans offense. 

The win puts Y-D at 10-8-5. Orleans is 8-9-4. 

Hyannis 5, Falmouth 1

The Harbor Hawks are finally back in the win column, thanks to a fantastic pitching performance. Jonah Scolaro (Florida State) and Nolan Crisp (Georgia) combined for a three-hitter as Hyannis snapped a 12-game slide with a win over Falmouth. Scolaro struck out 10, walked two and allowed just one run on one hit in six innings of work. Scolaro pitched out of the bullpen early in the summer but has delivered two impressive starts since transitioning into the rotation. He has struck out 17 and allowed one run as a starter. Crisp finished the job with three scoreless innings. Dominic Johnson (Oklahoma State) hit a two-run home run for the early lead. Ryan Romano (Florida State) and Ryan Proto (UMass Lowell) added one RBI each. 

Bourne 3, Cotuit 1

Bourne wins again. That’s six straight and a 17-2-3 record. Three runs in the fifth inning provided all the offense the Braves needed. It came against Cotuit standout Jake Brooks (UCLA), who came in with a 0.44 ERA and tossed four scoreless frames. But the Braves eventually got to him. Christian Knapczyk (Louisville) hit an RBI double for the first run and Max Anderson (Nebraska) followed with a two-run homer. Jordan Patty (Central Michigan) tossed five shutout innings, allowing just three hits. Benjamin Ethridge (Southern Miss) gave up one run in three strong innings of relief. Eric Adler (Wake Forest) recorded his sixth save with his 10th consecutive scoreless outing. Joseph Gieg (Boston College) was strong in relief for Cotuit, which dropped to 11-11. 

Brewster 8, Wareham 4 

Brewster fell behind 3-0 but came back with a vengeance for its this consecutive win. A five-run fourth inning got the comeback in gear, and the Whitecaps added three more in the fifth. Mac Bingham (Arizona) went 2-for-5 with three RBI. Spencer Jones (Vanderbilt) added two hits and one RBI. Mason Barnett (Auburn) allowed three early runs but settled in to pitch five solid innings, and the comeback made a winner out of him. Hunter Owen (Vanderbilt) gave up one run in two innings before Samuel Bello (Maryland) slammed the door with two perfect frames. The Whitecaps remain the best team in the East at 13-7-2. 

Harwich 3, Chatham 2

The Mariners stayed hot, too, keeping pace with Chatham thanks to its own third straight win. The Anglers led 2-1 into the late innings but Harwich took the lead back in the eighth on a two-run single by Carter Putz (Notre Dame). Pres Cavenaugh (UNC Greensboro) and Brock Wilken (Wake Forest), who scored on the play, both finished with two hits. Armed with the lead, Owen Coady (Penn) came on for the bottom of the eighth and delivered two perfect innings to finish off the win. Alex Rao (Notre Dame) was credited with the win. For Chatham, Texas standout Tanner Witt allowed one run in four innings with six strikeouts. Joshua Rivera went 2-for-4 with a home run. Harwich is 12-7-3 and Chatham goes to 9-12-3. 

WHAT TO WATCH

CCBL strikeout leader Bryce Hubbart (Florida State) gets the ball for Brewster as the Whitecaps host Cotuit.  

Hitting. Pitching. Defense.

The Bourne Braves clearly have it all. 

And if they get to the ninth inning with a lead? Good luck.

Eric Adler (Wake Forest) has been lights-out as Bourne’s closer this summer, one more piece to the puzzle for the best team in the league. With his ninth consecutive scoreless outing, he closed down a 1-0 victory over Wareham on Saturday night for his league-leading fifth save of the season. 

The 6-foot-3 right-hander has picked up where he left off in the spring, when he had six saves and a 2.00 ERA for Wake Forest. He recorded his first summer save on opening night and hasn’t slowed down. 

In that first save, Adler allowed two hits but pitched out of trouble in a 3-0 win over Hyannis. Since then, he’s surrendered only one more hit on the season, which came in his third appearance. In the six appearances since, he’s been nearly perfect, while striking out at least two batters in all those outings. He’s up to 19 Ks in just nine innings pitched. 

Adler wasn’t alone in dominating on Saturday. Michael Sansone (Fairfield) tossed five scoreless innings for his third win of the summer. Three relievers kept the shutout intact. 

Bourne got the lead in the fifth. Dalton Rushing (Louisville) hit an RBI double for the game’s lone run. 

The slim lead was no problem for Adler, who got Wareham standout Owen Diodati (Alabama) to ground out for the first out in the ninth. He then struck out the next two batters to end the game. 

Brewster 7, Cotuit 3

It’s Brewster and Harwich atop the East Division now, after they both won their second straight games on Saturday. The Whitecaps broke a 2-2 tie with four runs in the seventh for a win over Cotuit. A sacrifice fly by Mac Bingham (Arizona) plated the go-ahead run, before an RBI double by Jake Thompson (Oklahoma State) and a two-run single by Nick Biddison (Virginia Tech). Michael Prosecky (Louisville) got the win in relief and Griffin Green (Virginia Tech) pitched a scoreless ninth. Bingham and Biddison each finished with two RBI to lead the offense. Chris Lanzilli (Wake Forest), who hit four homers for Harwich in the 2019 Cape League season, made his Brewster debut and went 1-for-4 with two RBI. For Cotuit, Luke Gold (Boston College) hit his fourth home run. Brewster is 12-7-2, Cotuit 11-10. 

Harwich 4, Falmouth 1

As for the Mariners, they also beat a West Division foe, handling Falmouth 4-1. They fell behind 1-0 in the third but quickly rallied and didn’t give up another run. Brock Wilken (Wake Forest) tallied his league-leading 18th RBI. Carter Putz (Notre Dame), Pres Cavenaugh (UNC Greensboro) and Jordan Beck (Tennessee) had one RBI each. Starter Billy Seidl (Duke) allowed one run in 2.1 innings ahead of dominant relief work. Spencer Giesting (Charlotte) struck out six in 4.2 scoreless innings and Danny Wilkinson (Villanova) struck out five of the six batters he faced in two shutout frames. Harwich goes to 11-7-3 and hasn’t lost since July 11, with a tie mixed in. Falmouth drops to 8-10-2. 

Chatham 4, Hyannis 1

Chatham had only four hits but made them count. Maxwell Romero, Jr. (Vanderbilt) hit a two-run homer to bring Chatham back from an early 1-0 deficit, and Garrett Martin (McLennan CC) blasted a solo shot one inning later. Lyle Miller-Green (Chipola) chipped in an RBI fielder’s choice and that was enough for the Anglers. Dylan Carmouche (Mississippi State) allowed one run in four innings. Cade Winquest (Texas Arlington) tossed four shutout innings, and Zachary Maxwell (Georgia Tech) picked up the save with a scoreless ninth. Caleb Pendleton (Florida Atlantic) homered for the only Hyannis run. Chatham is 9-11-3 and Hyannis drops its 12th straight to fall to 2-19. 

Orleans 3, Y-D 3

Both looking to make a move in the East, Orleans and Y-D had to settle for a 3-3 tie. The Firebirds came back from a 3-1 hole with single runs in the fifth and sixth innings, and both teams were held off the board from there. Luke Keaschall (San Francisco) hit the game-tying home run for the Firebirds. David Marcano (NJIT) also went deep for Orleans. Garret Guillemette (USC) chipped in an RBI. Y-D’s offense was led by Chase Luttrell (Long Beach State), who hit a two-run triple and scored on an error on the same play. Reid McLaughlin (BYU) pitched two scoreless innings for Y-D to stop Orleans’ comeback. Zack Morris (Arkansas) gave up the triple to Luttrell, then was lights out, allowing just one more hit and striking out eight in 5.2 innings. Orleans is 8-8-4 and Y-D is 9-8-5. 

WHAT TO WATCH

Jake Brooks (UCLA) and his 0.43 ERA will try to slow down red-hot Bourne as Cotuit visits Doran Park. 

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