So many times this season, I’ve come home and checked scores, wondering if anything big happened. And so many times, something big did happen, from Phillip Ervin and Harwich hitting bombs to Sean Manaea striking everybody out to Cotuit winning again.
The trend continued last night. Tyler Horan (Virginia Tech) has been scorching for Wareham. His two home runs Saturday put him one away from tying the Cape League’s wood bat record.
I checked the Wareham score around 7:15 on Sunday night. I scrolled through the live stats, checking the most recent inning. And there it was.
Tyler Horan homered again. The record of 16 had officially been tied.
I wrote a lot about Horan yesterday. All of that still stands — the list of accomplishments just grows.
Kyle Schwarber (Indiana) hit a home run for the Gatemen in the fifth, and Horan went back-to-back with the first pitch he saw. The home run was his third in his last six official at-bats and his sixth in six games.
Horan now has two games left to break the record, which was set in 1988 by Brewster’s Dave Staton, a Cal State Fullerton star who went on to play in the majors.
The Gatemen, who hit four home runs last night in addition to Horan’s record-tying blast and won 9-8 over Falmouth, end the season with back-to-back games against Bourne. The Braves, despite having one of the highest ERAs in the league, have given up the fewest home runs in the league.
I don’t think Tyler Horan will worry about it. When I check scores tomorrow night, I wouldn’t be shocked to see him deliver again.
Clinching
The playoff race looked for a while like it might come down to the final day, but instead, it ended a little early.
Bourne beat Hyannis 4-2 last night to clinch the final spot in the West and eliminate the Harbor Hawks. In the East, Chatham beat Harwich 6-4 to clinch the fourth spot and end Brewster’s hopes.
Had Bourne lost to Hyannis last night, things would have gotten complicated and the race probably would have gone to the final day. Instead, the Braves made things easy. Chad Green (Louisville) came up with his best performance of the year when the Braves needed it most, striking out nine and scattering six hits in six scoreless innings.
And the Braves backed him. Facing Hyannis all star David Garner (Michigan State), they scored two runs in the first inning, added to the lead with single runs in the third and the fifth and never really looked back.
Colin Moran (North Carolina) went 2-for-4 with three RBI, bringing his league-leading total to 41. L.J. Mazzilli (Connecticut) knocked in the other run. The bullpen had some anxious moments, as Hyannis scored two in the seventh, but John Farrell (William & Mary) slammed the door with two perfect innings.
As for the East, Brewster — who needed to win out, and have Chatham lose out — continued doing its part with an impressive 3-2 victory over Cotuit in a 4:30 game. But Chatham made it a moot point later on, beating Harwich 6-4 at Veterans Field to clinch the spot.
Chatham scored two in the third thanks to RBI singles by Dale Carey (Miami) and John Hennessey (Boston College). Then in the fifth, Adam Engel (Louisville) hit a grand slam to blow the game open and put Chatham well on its way.
Aaron Brown (Pepperdine) came up big on the mound for the Anglers, taking a no-hitter into the fifth in just his second start of the year. He struck out 10 and ended up allowing just one hit in 6.1 shutout innings.
Harwich made a game of it with four runs in the eighth, but Jaime Schultz (High Point) delivered a huge performance out of the bullpen, striking out five of the seven batters he faced to finish off the victory.
Chatham will be in the playoffs for the first time since 2007.
Elsewhere
What to Watch
Nothing too interesting as far as playoffs, but you’ll want to keep an eye on Horan’s quest. Wareham visits Bourne at 6 p.m.