Jeff Hoffman won’t have the kind of season Sean Manaea had last year. He was a late arrival, so he won’t be on the same innings pace, and he had a tough outing in his last start that shot his ERA through the roof.
But Hoffman is getting plenty of love and for one night, he wowed fans and scouts at McKeon Park just like his former Hyannis teammate did last summer.
The East Carolina righty turned in the most dominant pitching performance of the Cape summer last night, striking out 11 and giving up just three hits in 7.2 scoreless innings as Hyannis beat Orleans 3-0. He walked one and needed just 90 pitches to get into the eighth.
Hoffman is no stranger to summer success. He was quietly solid in the shadow of Manaea last summer, finishing with a 2.40 ERA and 30 strikeouts in 30 innings. And the quiet turned very loud when he lit up radar guns at the All-Star Game. Baseball America rated him the Cape League’s seventh-best prospect.
After a pretty good spring at East Carolina, he returned to Hyannis and made his 2013 debut on July 4. He struck out eight in six innings that night.
His next start looked like a classic in the making – his power vs. the power bats in the Falmouth lineup. It didn’t pan out. Hoffman was chased in the fourth inning and then Hyannis came back to win.
But on Wednesday, Hoffman was firmly back on track. He struck out the side in the second and third innings, tossed a four-pitch inning in the sixth and struck out the first two batters in the eighth. According to Perfect Game’s Frankie Piliere, Hoffman’s fastball reached 98 and consistently sat between 94 and 97. Piliere calls Hoffman a new candidate for the No. 1 overall pick in the 2014 draft.
With Hoffman’s performance in the books, Sarkis Ohanian (Duke) sealed the victory for the Hawks with 1.1 scoreless innings. He has now made nine appearances without allowing a run.
Orleans starter Josh Sborz (Virginia) did his best to match Hoffman, striking out eight in five innings, but the Hyannis offense did enough to get control. Skyler Ewing (Rice) went 1-for-4 with two RBI and Dominic Jose (Stanford) drove in the other run.
Bourne 11, Wareham 3
In the only other game of the night, the Braves had 15 hits, only three more than Wareham, but scored eight more runs in an easy victory. Every player in the Bourne lineup had a hit. Mark Laird (LSU), who made his Cape League debut last week, had his best game yet, going 3-for-5 with three RBI. Jeff Gardner (Louisville) went 3-for-4 with two RBI and Matt Gonzalez (Georgia Tech) also drove in two. Kris Gardner (Wichita State) got the start for the Braves and gave up a run in four innings. Jacob Lindgren (Mississippi State) got the win in relief. Cole Sturgeon (Louisville) led Wareham with three hits.
What to Watch
Division leaders Cotuit and Chatham will square off at 7 p.m. at Veterans Field. Evan Beal (South Carolina), who tossed six shutout innings against Falmouth in his last start, goes for the Kettleers. Andrew McGee (Monmouth), who had his first bad outing of the summer last time after a terrific beginning, is slated to go for Chatham.