Jacob Palisch is the Cape League’s Pitcher of the Week award winner and one of his Harwich teammates may well be the next honoree.
After Palisch tossed the first complete game shutout in the league since 2017 on Saturday, Connor McCullough was just as dominant Tuesday night, striking out nine in eight scoreless innings as Harwich beat East-leading Chatham 2-0.
Harwich has won four of its last five and is sitting at 12-13. Pitching has set the course – the Mariners rank last in the league in runs scored but first in runs allowed. They also lead the league in strikeouts and opponents batting average.
Palisch owns the team’s best performance, but McCullough actually pitched deeper into his gem. The complete game designation for Palisch came because he was pitching in a doubleheader, with seven-inning games.
McCullough started the summer with two relief appearances. He made his first start against Chatham last week and pitched well, striking out five and allowing just an unearned run in 4.1 innings. Matched up with the Anglers again on Tuesday, he was tremendous, allowing just three singles and nothing else, facing just two batters over the minimum. He struck out nine and didn’t walk a batter.
Interestingly, this summer is serving as McCullough’s collegiate debut. He spent the fall semester of 2018 at Arkansas then transferred to Kansas State before he played game, but still had to sit out this past season under NCAA transfer rules.
Jared Wetherbee (Elon) pitched the ninth to preserve the shutout and the win. Zarion Sharpe (UNC Wilmington) took a shutout into the fourth for Chatham but Niko Kavadas (Notre Dame) hit a two-run homer for the game’s only offense.
For another Harwich ace, it was enough.
Falmouth 8, Hyannis 1
Zach DeLoach (Texas A&M) is also worthy of being the lead item here. The emerging star for the Commodores has been scorching hot lately and kept rolling Tuesday, going 3-for-4 with two home runs and three RBI. His batting average that was already the league’s best is up to .400. He also has three homers and 12 RBI. DeLoach is riding a four-game hitting streak and has logged five multi-hit games in his last 10. THe Falmouth win also featured two RBI from Baron Radcliff (Georgia Tech) and six strong innings by Samuel Strickland (Samford), who struck out seven. Robert Ahlstrom (Oregon) worked the final three innings for the save.
Wareham 13, Y-D 2
The Gatemen are in the midst of a wild stretch – they gave up 13 runs in a loss Saturday, scored 12 in a win Sunday, gave up 11 in a loss Monday and now scored 13 in Tuesday’s win over Y-D. The latest explosion was powered by two home runs from Matthew Rudick (San Diego State), who finished 3-for-5 with three RBI. Matt McClain (UCLA) added three hits and two RBI, while Dallas Beaver (Central Florida) also had three hits. Three pitchers went three innings each for Wareham, with Coy Cobb (Texas) earning the win and Jeremy Williams (Nova Southeastern) getting the save.
Bourne 6, Cotuit 4
Bourne’s Jud Fabian (Florida) hit a home run on the first pitch of the game then blasted a three-run shot for the final blow in the eighth inning as Bourne beat Cotuit. Fabian finished 3-for-5 with four RBI and is now hitting .333. Jimmy Glowenke (Dallas Baptist) also drove in a run for the Braves. Harrison Rutkowski (Rutgers) allowed one run in five innings for the win. Cotuit’s Oraj Anu (Wallace CC) hit a home run and drove in four in the loss.
Orleans 6, Brewster 3
The Firebirds snapped a six-game losing streak with a win over Brewster. Adam Seminaris (Long Beach State) allowed three runs in three innings but left with the lead thanks to six early runs. Isaac Esqueda (USC) starred out of the bullpen, pitching the final six innings without allowing a run. He struck out eight, didn’t walk a batter and gave up only three hits. Tanner Murray (UC Davis) had two RBI to lead the attack for Orleans. Zach Britton (Louisville) had an RBI double. Orleans also got two runs on wild pitches and another on a balk.
What to Watch
Ian Bedell (Missouri) puts his 0.91 ERA on the line as Wareham visits Chatham.