Back to Normal

Alex Call waits for a throw at second base against Cotuit earlier this week. The Firebirds clinched the East title Thursday.

It was back to regularly-scheduled programming in the Cape League’s East Division on Thursday night. After two losses and a tie in their previous three games, the Orleans Firebirds looked like their old selves as they clinched the regular-season division title with a 12-8 victory over Hyannis. With Brewster losing, Orleans now cannot be caught.

The Firebirds were not as sharp as usual on the mound, but their powerful offense was on target. The Firebirds hit two home runs in an eight-run second inning. They finished the night with 18 hits, five of which went for extra bases. Ten different players had at least one hit.

With All-Star Game West MVP Devin Smeltzer (San Jacinto) on the hill for Hyannis, you wouldn’t have predicted a slugfest. But after getting a run in the first, the Firebirds went wild in the second inning. Bobby Dalbec (Arizona) hit a grand slam and Kyle Lewis (Mercer) followed that with a solo shot.

Hyannis eventually found some of its offense, making it an 11-8 game in the eighth, but that was as close as it got.

Dalbec went 2-for-3 and the home run was his league-best 11th. I sound like a broken record, but his pace is incredible. Dalbec has played in 25 games. Eleven of his 26 hits are homers.

Lewis finished 4-for-5 with four RBI as he broke out of an 0-for-11 slump. Bryan Reynolds (Vanderbilt), Jeremy Martinez (USC), Daniel Pinero (Virginia) and Sean Murphy (Wright State) all chipped in two hits.

Corbin Burnes (St. Mary’s) was credited with the win in relief.

Orleans finishes its four-game season series against Hyannis with a 3-1 record. The Harbor Hawks are in line to win the West, but they aren’t there yet. In a season of Orleans success, it was fitting that the Firebirds got there first.

With three games remaining, the Firebirds could still match the record of the 2007 Y-D Red Sox, who went 31-12-1, the best record in the league in at least the last 15 years.

Y-D 2, Chatham 1

With fifth-place Harwich losing to Wareham, Y-D had a chance to get some breathing room in the East standings. A seventh-inning rally against Chatham did the trick. The Red Sox won 2-1 and moved four points ahead of Harwich for the final playoff berth and just two points back of Chatham for the third seed. The Anglers broke a scoreless tie with a run in the sixth on a Will Craig (Wake Forest) RBI double. But in the very next half-inning, Y-D pushed the tying run across on a passed ball and plated the go-ahead run on a sacrifice fly by Gio Brusa (Pacific). Ben Bowden (Vanderbilt), who had come on in the sixth, ran with the lead, striking out seven of the 13 batters he faced in 3.2 scoreless innings of relief. Y-D is now 21-20. Chatham is 22-19.

Falmouth 11, Brewster 7

Falmouth isn’t dead quite yet. The Commodores snapped a seven-game losing streak with a victory over Brewster. Coupled with a Cotuit loss, the Commodores are only three points out of the final playoff spot in the West. J.B. Woodman (Ole Miss) went 2-for-4 with a home run to lead the offensive breakout for Falmouth. Mitch Longo (Ohio), Evan Skoug (TCU) and Tate Blackman (Ole Miss) each drove in two runs. J.J. Matijevic (Arizona) had two doubles. Conor Costello (Oklahoma State) got the win, giving up two runs in five innings. Brewster scored five runs in the seventh against the bullpen but the game was called due to darkness after that.

Wareham 5, Harwich 2

The Gatemen inched closer to a playoff spot while Andrew Calica (UC Santa Barbara) inched closer to hitting .400 for the year in a win over Harwich. Wareham now has a two-point edge on Cotuit for third place in the West and is five points in front of last-place Falmouth. As for Calica, he went 1-for-2, walked once and was hit by a pitch. It’s hard to raise a .439 average, but that line did it — Calica is now at .440 with just three games remaining. If you assume he gets 12 at-bats over those final three games, he would need just one hit in 12 at-bats to finish over .400. His teammates had a good offensive night Wednesday, as well. Jay Jabs (Franklin Pierce) went 3-for-4 with two RBI. Gavin Stupienski (UNC Wilmington) had two hits and an RBI. Brett Hanewich (Stanford) struck out eight and allowed just one earned run in five innings for the win. Shaun Anderson (Florida) pitched four innings of one-hit relief.

Bourne 10, Cotuit 7

Bourne rallied from a 5-0 deficit and won 10-7 in a game that was called after the seventh due to rain. Nick Solak (Louisville) went 3-for-5 with four RBI to spark the comeback efforts. Brendan McKay (Louisville) and Reid Humphreys (Mississippi State) knocked in two runs apiece, while Jason Delay (Vanderbilt) and Jacob Robson (Mississippi State) both had two hits and scored three runs. Joseph Christopher (St. John’s) gave up two unearned runs in 2.1 innings of relief to help set the stage for the comeback. Kyle Driscoll (Rutgers) got the win in relief. Bourne is 20-19-2 and still has a shot at the West division title. Cotuit fell to 16-25 with its second straight loss.

What to Watch

Chatham can clinch a playoff spot and clear up much of the East postseason picture if it wins tonight at Harwich.

July 18, 2015July 18, 2015

Second Place Shutouts

Chatham players celebrate during a game earlier this season.

Second place has been a distant second for much of the Cape League season, but with shutouts last night – and losses by first-place Orleans and Hyannis – second place teams Chatham and Bourne made up a bit of ground.

The Anglers cruised past Wareham 8-0 and are now four games back of Orleans, while the Braves tipped Y-D 4-0 to get within two games of Hyannis.

Chatham got five strong innings from Daniel Castano (Baylor), who struck out three and gave up just two hits. Carl Burdick (San Diego), James Mulry (Northeastern) and Andre Scrubb (High Point) finished off the shutout.

Every Chatham pitcher was on the hill with a big lead as the Anglers scored all eight of their runs in the first four innings. It was a good breakout for a team that had scored only five runs in its last five games.

Nine different Anglers had hits. Aaron Barnett (Pepperdine) and Garrett Hampson (Long Beach State) led the way with two RBI apiece. Will Craig (Wake Forest) and Jake Fraley (LSU) each scored two runs. Nate Mondou (Wake Forest) had two hits and an RBI.

Chatham has won two in a row and is now 18-13.

Over at Doran Park, the Braves didn’t have quite as much offense, but the pitching was just as good. Alex Robles (Austin Peay) who had taken a loss in three straight starts, went a long way in securing a victory with six shutout innings. He scattered five hits and struck out two. Cooper Hammond (Miami) and Gavin Pittore (Wesleyan) did the rest.

Pete Alonso (Florida) and Vince Fernandez (UC Riverside) drove in runs to lead the offense. National Freshman of the Year Brendan McKay (Louisville) made his Bourne debut after a Team USA stint and went 1-for-4 with an RBI.

The Braves have won two in a row and are 14-15-2.

Brewster 10, Orleans 6

The Whitecaps scored more runs than anybody has tallied against Orleans all year in a 10-6 victory at Eldredge Park. Corbin Burnes (St. Mary’s) was touched up for three earned runs and the Orleans bullpen didn’t have much better luck, as Brewster racked up 13 hits. Nick Senzel (Tennessee) went 2-for-5 and drove in three runs to bring his league-best RBI total to 22. Cassidy Brown (Loyla Marymount) hit his third home run. Jack Meggs (Washington) went 3-for-4 with two RBI. Robbie Tenerowicz (California) and Kel Johnson (Georgia Tech) added two hits each. For Orleans, Bobby Dalbec (Arizona) hit his league-best sixth home run and Ronnie Dawson (Ohio State) smacked his fourth, but the Whitecaps kept the Firebirds off the board over the final three innings. Starter Jordan Sheffield (Vanderbilt) allowed two earned runs in five innings for the win.

Harwich 6, Hyannis 1

West-leading Hyannis also went down, as Harwich raced to an early lead against Harbor Hawks ace Nick Deeg (Central Michigan) and cruised to a 6-1 win. Sheldon Neuse (Oklahoma) and Preston Palmeiro (NC State) hit back-to-back home runs in the top of the first inning, with Neuse’s going for three runs. Mike Hernandez (Nova Southeastern) hit a solo home run in the second. The Mariners had only four other hits on the day, but the early burst was enough. Cam Vieaux (Michigan State) struck out seven and gave up just one run in seven innings, his second straight very strong start. Joe Ravert (La Salle) pitched the final two innings.

Falmouth 5, Cotuit 2

The Commodores moved into third place in the West with a 5-2 victory over Cotuit and Wareham’s loss. Tate Blackman (Ole Miss) homered in drove in three runs while Heath Quinn (Samford) went 3-for-4 with two RBI. Boomer White (Texas A&M) added two hits. Alex Phillips (San Jacinto) allowed one run in six innings for the win and Stephen Villines (Kansas) tallied his sixth save. Falmouth improved to 13-18 while Cotuit dropped to 11-20.

What to Watch

Orleans’ Mitchell Jordan (Stetson) takes his 5-0 record and 0.00 ERA to Veterans Field for his first meeting of the year with Chatham. The Anglers are slated to give the ball to Ty Damron (Texas Tech), who went six innings without allowing an earned run in his last start.

June 3, 2015June 3, 2015

Falmouth rebuilds after title trip

A veteran Falmouth team led by two-time batting champ Kevin Newman made a run at its first Cape League title since 1980 last summer but fell short against a red-hot Y-D team in the title series. The veterans are gone – with just one player set to return – but the Commodores will be looking for another run in 2015.

FIVE TO WATCH

1. Andrew Benintendi
2. Mitch Longo
3. Heath Quinn
4. Jon Duplantier
5. Keaton McKinney

NOTABLE

Rice’s Jon Duplantier was highly-touted as a freshman but missed all of this season with an injury. If he’s healthy, the summer could be a springboard for him.

The Commodores have three pitchers who saved at least eight games this spring. Zach Jackson had the most impressive numbers to go with the saves total, striking out 80 batters in only 52 innings pitched.

Jackson’s Arkansas teammate, Keaton McKinney, was projected to be a top-five round pick out of high school, but signing demands and a strong commitment to Arkansas kept him out of the early rounds. He jumped right into the weekend rotation this year and posted a 3.21 ERA.

Both catchers on the Falmouth roster will make the trip bring Big 12 award credentials with them. Michael Tinsley was a second-team all-conference pick and Evan Skoug made the all-freshman team.

Maryland has been one of the stories of the NCAA Tournament so far, and Brandon Lowe has led the offense. The redshirt sophomore is batting .333 with nine homers and 53 RBI.

Mitch Longo earned MAC Player of the Year honors at Ohio University and will likely anchor Falmouth’s outfield this summer.

Boomer White was a key part of Falmouth’s run to the championship series last year and will be back in the fold this year. He’ll also be chomping at the bit, after sitting out this spring due to NCAA transfer rules.

Arkansas’ Andrew Benintendi will be perhaps the best hitter coming to the Cape, but don’t count on him making it. A breakout year has pushed the draft-eligible sophomore into the first round of a lot of mock drafts.

PITCHERS

Jon Duplantier – SO – Rice – Big right-hander had promising freshman year but was sidelined in 2015
Morgan Earman – SO – Arizona – 21st-round pick in 2013 pitched in 10 games as a freshman but was limited to 2 IP this year
Zach Jackson – SO – Arkansas – Dominant reliever for two years saved 8 games this spring with 80 K in just 52 IP
Cobi Johnson – FR – Florida State – Late-round pick out of high school has high ERA but has struck out a batter an inning
Turner Larkins – FR – Texas A&M – Solid starter in debut season had 3.96 ERA, 43 Ks
Keaton McKinney – FR – Arkansas – Ranked in nation’s top 100 high school players last year, McKinney went 6-1 with 3.21 ERA in debut
Sean McLaughlin – JR – Georgia – Injured last year, returned to weekend rotation this year and had 4.67 ERA with 57 Ks
Alex Phillips – SO – San Jacinto – Baylor commit struck out 72 in 68 innings this season
Wyatt Short – SO – Ole Miss – Lefty closer saved 10 games this year with 1.38 ERA
Bo Tucker – FR – Georgia – Finished busy freshman year with 2.03 ERA out of the bullpen
Stephen Villines – SO – Kansas – Ranked second in Big 12 in saves with 13, to go with 3.40 ERA

CATCHERS

Evan Skoug – FR – TCU – Late-round pick in 2014 was Big 12 all-freshman honoree after hitting .282 with team-best 43 RBI
Michael Tinsley – SO – Kansas – Second-team all-Big 12 pick hit .337 with three homers, 39 RBI

INFIELDERS

Tate Blackman – FR – Ole Miss – 20th-round pick out of high school struggled as a freshman, finishing at .197
Tristan Gray – FR – Rice – Standout Texas high schooler had solid debut with Rice, hitting .247 with 10 extra-base hits
Brandon Lowe – SO – Maryland – Freshman All-American in 2014 has been terrific in 2015: .333, 9 HR, 53 RBI
J.J. Matijevic – FR – Arizona – Boston’s 22nd-round pick in 2014 hit .238 in first year as a Wildcat

OUTFIELDERS

Andrew Benintendi – SO – Arkansas – National player of the year candidate hit .390 with 18 HR, but is draft-eligible
Mitch Longo – SO – Ohio – MAC Player of the Year hit .357 with 7 homers, 49 RBI
Heath Quinn – SO – Samford – Freshman All-American stayed hot in sophomore year, with .340 average, 14 home runs
Boomer White – SO – Texas A&M – Returning Commodore sat out this spring after transferring from TCU
J.B. Woodman – SO – Ole Miss – Built on good freshman year with .274 average, 7 home runs