Category: Daily Fog

I was all set to write about Falmouth today. The Commodores had won two in a row heading into last night. With a match-up against Brewster, I figured it’d be three in a row, which would possibly put them in a tie for the best record in the league.

But I should have known that you can’t count on anything when it comes to Brewster.

The Whitecaps have won eight games, fewest in the East, but they’ve made a lot of them count. Six of their eight wins have come against Orleans, Harwich, Falmouth and Wareham — the teams sitting one-two in their divisions.

Falmouth had beaten Brewster 6-4 on Friday, but the Whitecaps got back in with the trend on Saturday, beating the Commodores 9-1 to improve to 8-12 on the year.

Falmouth still looks like the best team in the West, but on this night, Brewster was better.

Sam Moll (Memphis), who had posted great strikeout numbers but had given up nine earned runs in his first three starts, put it all together this time. He struck out six, didn’t walk anybody and scattered five hits in six shutout innings. Chase McDowell (Rice) and Jake Kalish (George Mason) finished off the victory with solid relief outings.

At the plate, the Whitecaps were led by Trevor Mitsui (Washington) and Jason Monda (Washington State), who each had a home run. Monda drove in two while Mitsui drove in one. Aaron Judge (Fresno State) added two hits and an RBI.

Brewster gets another shot at an impressive win tonight when it takes on Wareham.

Elsewhere

Cotuit moved into a second-place tie with Wareham thanks to a 5-2 victory over the Gatemen. The Kettleers pounded out 17 hits and got a second straight dominant performance from Kevin Ziomek (Vanderbilt). Ziomek struck out six and allowed four hits in seven shutout innings. Hw now ranks second in the league in strikeouts and he has an ERA of 1.19. James Roberts (USC) led the Cotuit offense with four hits while Jacob May (Coastal Carolina) had three. Daniel Aldrich (College of Charleston) went 2-for-5 with a home run, giving him eight hits and three home runs in four games since coming over from Orleans.

Orleans snapped a three-game losing streak with a 4-3 victory over Y-D. The Firebirds trailed 3-2 going into the top of the ninth, but got an RBI single from Conrad Gregor (Vanderbilt) to tie the game and Reed Gragnani (Virginia) sac fly to take the lead. Kyle Crockett (Virginia), who looks like he’ll be the closer in the absence of Trevor Gott, then worked a scoreless bottom half of the inning to finish off the comeback win. Dylan Clark (Elon) got the win with his most impressive performance in a season full of them. He went five shutout innings, allowing just three hits, striking out three and walking nobody. Clark now has a 0.47 ERA and hasn’t walked anybody all year. Gregor had two RBI to lead the Orleans offense while Pi’ikea Kitamura (Hawaii) had three hits. Carlos Asuaje (Nova Southeastern) went 4-for-4 to lead the Red Sox.

Harwich kept pace with Orleans thanks to a 4-3 victory of its own, over Chatham. The Mariners took a 4-2 lead in the fifth and held off a ninth-inning charge to seal the win. Zane Evans (Georgia Tech) got out of a two-on, two-out jam with a strikeout to finish it off. Eddie Campbell (Virginia Tech) struck out eight in six innings for the win. Eric Jagielo (Notre Dame) hit his sixth home run and JaCoby Jones (LSU) drove in two to power the offense.

Bourne bounced back from a Friday loss to Hyannis to beat the Harbor Hawks 10-7. The Braves are now a game back of Hyannis for fourth in the West. The Braves hit three home runs and got at least one hit from every spot in the lineup. Chase McDonald (East Carolina), Colin Moran (North Carolina) and John Murphy (Holy Cross) hit the home runs, while Mason Robbins (Southern Miss) went 4-for-5 and Murphy went 2-for-3.

What to Watch

East leaders Harwich and Orleans get together again at 7 p.m. at Eldredge Park. Jarrett Arakawa (Hawaii) and his 0.60 ERA get the ball for the Firebirds, with Corey Littrell (Kentucky) scheduled to start for Harwich.

Good pitching beats good hitting.

Sometimes that’s even true in the very offensive 2012 Cape Cod Baseball League season.

Hyannis standout Sean Manaea (Indiana State) struck out nine and didn’t allow a run in six scoreless innings as the Harbor Hawks beat Bourne 9-2, while Chatham’s Ryan Thompson (Franklin Pierce) struck out 11 and gave up two runs in 5.1 innings to lead the Anglers past Harwich 5-3.

Great starting pitching performances have been hard to come by this season. Seven teams have ERA’s over four.

Manaea and Thompson have been consistently breaking the mold.

Manaea will likely end up as one of the top pitching prospects on the Cape. The 6’5 lefty had a huge spring for Indiana State and has picked up where he left off with the Harbor Hawks. He struck out 11 in his last start, but this performance was probably his best. He didn’t give up an earned run and scattered six hits, five of them singles.

The Harbor Hawks backed him with a second straight big offensive day. Brad Zebedis (Presbyterian) went 3-for-5 with two RBI, while Mitchell Garver (New Mexico) and Brandon Trinkwon (Cal) also had two RBI. The win moved Hyannis two games ahead of Bourne for fourth in the West.

Chatham’s Thompson has taken a winding path to the Cape. He hails from Calgary and started his college career at UConn. He’s posted two strong seasons at Franklin Pierce, and is now turning some heads on the Cape.

Last night was also his best start. He allowed just three hits, struck out 11 and walked just one in 5.2 innings. He now has a 1.62 ERA to go with 21 strikeouts and only four walks.

And he did it against Harwich, as Chatham scored a key victory. Chad Morgan (Virginia Tech) had three hits to lead the Anglers, while Alex Calbick (Maine), Mike Fransoso (Maine) and John Martinez (Michigan State) all drove in runs.

Chatham has all of a sudden won three in a row and sits just two games back of second-place Orleans.

Elsewhere

Two victories for West teams over East teams last night as Wareham toppled Orleans 7-4 and Cotuit beat Y-D, also by a 7-4 score. The Gatemen, who are quickly rising up the team home run total ranks, got the fifth home run from Tyler Horan (Virginia Tech) and the fifth and sixth from Daniel Palka (Georgia Tech) on their way to the win over East leader Orleans. The Gatemen touched up Orleans starter Brandon McNitt (Stony Brook) for five runs, four of which were unearned. Palka finished with four RBI. Kurt McCune (LSU) got the win with seven solid innings.

As for Cotuit, the Kettleers held a hot Y-D team largely in check, with three relievers finishing the job after Adam McCreery (Arizona State) allowed three earned in four innings. Daniel Aldrich (College of Charleston) continued his hot start in a Cotuit uniform with a 2-for-5, three RBI day that included a home run. Mike Ford (Princeton) drove in two, while Patrick Biondi (Michigan) went 2-for-4 to raise his average to .420. Dan Slania (Notre Dame) picked up his fourth save with his seventh scoreless outing in nine appearances.

Falmouth won for the second straight time, beating Brewster 6-4, and is now just one game behind Orleans and Harwich for the best record in the league. Sean Hagan (St. John’s) allowed one earned run in six innings for his second win in a row and John Simms (Rice) notched his fourth save. Jake Rodriguez (Oregon State) led the offense with two hits and two RBI. Coty Blanchard (Jacksonville State) added two hits and an RBI.

What to Watch

Vanderbilt standout Kevin Ziomek gets the ball for Cotuit as the Kettleers visit Wareham at 7 p.m. Ziomek struck out nine and allowed three hits in his last start.

Last Thursday, the hype for the Harwich Mariners reached its crescendo when they put up a four home run inning in a marquee win over Orleans.

This Thursday, as the Firebirds came to town for another meeting, the Mariners were coming off back-to-back losses to Brewster, the second of which was a 19-1 defeat. They had fallen a game behind Orleans. The hype engine was losing a little steam.

Hype or no hype, the Mariners won anyway.

On the heels of the 19-run debacle against Brewster, four Harwich pitchers combined on a shutout and the offense turned in a workman-like performance as the Mariners beat Orleans 4-0 to move back into a tie for first place in the East with the Firebirds.

Harwich starter A.J. Reed (Kentucky) set the tone. He only lasted 3.2 innings when he faced the Firebirds last week. This time he struck out seven and scattered four hits in five scoreless innings. The Missouri State tandem of Tyler Burgess and Grant Gordon followed him to the mound and combined on three scoreless innings before Zane Evans (Georgia Tech) finished it off with a quick ninth. Orleans was limited to seven hits.

At the plate, the Mariners again went without a home run and only had eight hits themselves, but they got some big ones and took advantage of an uncharacteristically bad defensive night for the Firebirds. Orleans has the fewest errors in the league but made three last night, and Harwich scored three unearned runs.

Austin Wilson led the way for the Mariners, going 3-for-4 with a double and two RBI. Phillip Ervin (Samford) and JaCoby Jones (LSU) had two hits each while Austen Smith (Alabama) drove in a run with a sac fly.

Conrad Gregor (Vanderbilt) had two hits to lead the Firebirds. Arkansas standout Dominic Ficociello picked up the first hit of his young Cape League career.

Harwich is now 2-1 against Orleans this season.

Elsewhere

The team that knocked Harwich off twice this week got a taste of its own medicine. Chatham topped Brewster 9-1 in one of its best offensive games of the season. Pat Valaika (UCLA) went 2-for-5 with five RBI, and Andrew Knapp (Cal) went 3-for-4 with a homer and three RBI. It was the first time Chatham had double-digit hits since the last time it played Brewster, on June 30. Pitching was also strong for the Anglers, with Thomas Lawrence (Maine) striking out five in 6.1 shutout innings. Chatham has now won two in a row, and the East now has four teams at 10-8 or better. The West has one.

Y-D joined Chatham at 10-8 with a lopsided victory of its own, 10-4 over Wareham. Robert Pehl (Washington) continued to surge, going 3-for-5 with four RBI and raising his batting average to .449. Sam Travis (Indiana) and Tanner Mathis (Ole Miss) had three hits and two RBI apiece, while Alex Blandino (Stanford) and Zak Blair (Mercyhurst) added two hits each. All of those aforementioned players are hitting .342 or higher. On the mound, Aaron Blair (Marshall) had his worst start of a great summer — but it was still pretty good. He allowed three runs on six hits and struck out four in 6.1 innings. His ERA is still just 1.48.

Hyannis scored double-digit runs for the first time this season in a 14-3 victory over Cotuit. Brandon Trinkwon (Cal) went 4-for-5 with five RBI and homered for a second straight night, while Brett Michael Doran (Stanford) had two hits and drove in three. Zac Zellers (Kentucky) also homered and Mitchell Garver (New Mexico) drove in two. Matt Maurer (Pepperdine) got the win in relief as the sometimes shaky Hyannis bullpen pitched 5.2 innings of one-hit baseball.

And one last lopsided game — Falmouth beat Bourne 10-4. Austin Anderson (Ole Miss) went 2-for-5 with a home run and five RBI, while Casey Turgeon (Florida) went 4-for-5 with a home run and three RBI in his third game of the summer. On the mound for the Commodores, Jonathan Dziedzic (Lamar) allowed one run on three hits in six innings of work.

What to Watch

Lots of good pitching on the docket tonight. Cape League strikeout leader Sean Manaea (Indiana State) goes for Hyannis in a 6 p.m. game at Bourne. Sean Hagan (St. John’s), who was dominant in his last start, gets the ball for Falmouth at 5 p.m. in Brewster. And Karsten Whitson (Florida), perhaps the best pitching prospect on the Cape, will make his first start for Orleans after two good relief appearances. That game is in Orleans at 7 p.m., with Wareham coming to town.

It seems like every year around the Fourth of July, I title a Daily Fog post “Fireworks.” I can’t help myself on such things. And the Cape League always seems to cooperate anyway.

Last night might have offered the best fireworks yet.

Brewster scored a 2012 league-high 19 runs in demolishing Harwich (!) 19-1, while Bourne’s Colin Moran hit two home runs and drove in seven runs to lead the Braves over Wareham 11-6.

If I had picked a team to produce some fireworks in the Brewster-Harwich match-up, I would have picked the Mariners, even with Brewster’s win the night before. But Whitecaps pitchers Austin Voth (Washington), Eric Rutter (Rice), Jake McCasland (New Mexico), Erik Schoenrock (Memphis) and Dylan Davis (Oregon State) limited the Mariners to just one hit, a single by Phillip Ervin (Samford) in the sixth inning. Voth, the starter, didn’t allow a hit in five innings, while striking out six. Harwich scratched a run across off him thanks to a walk, two JaCoby Jones (LSU) stolen bases, and an RBI groundout. But other than that, the Mariners were held completely in check. For a second straight night, they didn’t hit a home run.

The Brewster offense, on the other hand, had the best night any Cape League team has had this summer. They finished with 22 hits, six of which went for extra bases. They led 5-1 in the seventh inning, when they broke the game wide open with 11 runs. Every player in the starting lineup had a hit and a run scored, and six players had multi-hit games. Ryon Healy (Oregon) had a second straight big night, going 3-for-4 with a home run and three RBI. Trevor Mitsui (Washington) went 3-for-5 with three RBI, while Jason Monda (Washington State) and Jeff McNeil (Long Beach State) also went 3-for-5. Derek Campbell had a double, a triple and three RBI.

The Whitecaps have now scored 27 runs in their last two games, since getting shut-out by Orleans on Sunday. Before these two games, the Whitecaps had scored 67 runs for the season.

Mr. Firework

Maybe I should take this fireworks thing to a new level and give out a Fourth of July Award.

Moran would be the inaugural winner.

In helping Bourne snap a four-game losing streak, Moran led the way with probably the best individual offensive performance of the season. The North Carolina star had been hitting well this season but hadn’t shown a lot of pop, with only four extra-base hits through his first 15 games. Last night alone, he had three extra-base hits, as he blasted two home runs and a double on his way to a seven RBI night. He’s now hitting .333 with three home runs and 15 RBI for the season. His grand slam in the eighth blew the game open.

Chase McDonald (East Carolina) also had a big game for the Braves, going 2-for-5 with two RBI. Jack Reinheimer (East Carolina) added three hits and an RBI, while Justin Leeson (Georgetown) had three hits and two runs scored.

On the mound for the Braves, Kent State standout Tyler Skulina made his first start and scattered nine hits in five innings, while allowing three runs. He struck out three.

Elsewhere

The other three home-and-home series featured a reversal from the night before. In Orleans, Chatham came back from a tough-to-swallow 5-4 loss on Tuesday to beat the Firebirds 5-1. Mike Wagner, who was a great closer for San Diego this spring, continued his summer to transition to a starting role with his best performance yet. He struck out seven and allowed just an unearned run on two hits in 5.2 innings. Nick Burdi (Louisville), who has an high ERA because of one bad outing, was dominant this time, striking out five of the nine batters he faced in 2.1 scoreless innings. Kurt Schluter (Stetson) then worked around two hit-batsmen and a walk to pitch a scoreless ninth. Chad Pinder (Virginia Tech) led the Chatham offense, driving in four to give him a league-high 20 RBI for the season.

Cotuit won for the third time in four games, beating Falmouth 7-6. The game was low-scoring early before Cotuit scored four runs in the seventh and two in the eighth. Falmouth came back with three in the ninth off Cotuit closer Dan Slania (Notre Dame), but with the tying run on base, Slania got Jared King (Kansas State) to ground out for the final out. Daniel Aldrich (College of Charleston), who was released by Orleans to make room for contract players, was wisely picked up by the Kettleers and had a huge debut, going 3-for-5 with a home run and four RBI. Patrick Biondi (Michigan) added four hits, while James Roberts (USC) drove in two.

Y-D rallied from a 7-4 deficit to beat Hyannis 9-7. Alex Blandino (Stanford) hit a home run and drove in three to lead a 15-hit attack. Robert Pehl (Washington) went 3-for-5, raising his league-leading batting average to .438 after an 0-for-4 the night before. Tanner Mathis (Ole Miss) also had three hits. After struggling on the mound in the early going, the Red Sox got impressive relief work from Preston Hatcher (Western Carolina), Brian Gilbert (Seton Hall) and Brian Verbitsky (Hofstra), who didn’t allow a run over the final four innings.

What to Watch

Y-D’s Aaron Blair (Marshall), who’s been the league’s best starting pitcher, will make his fourth start of the summer in a 7 p.m. game at Wareham.

Orleans and Harwich will renew their rivalry with a 7 p.m. game at Whitehouse Field. Austin Kubitza (Rice) will go for Orleans against Harwich’s A.J. Reed (Kentucky), the same pitching match-up as last Thursday’s game between the teams, which Harwich won.

The Wareham Gatemen stretched their winning streak to four games with a 4-2 victory over Bourne last night.

It looked a lot like the others.

Outside of a lopsided win over Cotuit on Saturday, every win in the streak has come on the strength of a late comeback. It was two in the eighth and three in the ninth on Friday against Hyannis, and two in the eighth against Hyannis on Monday. Last night, it was two in the eighth again.

Bullpens beware.

The Gatemen were held largely in check by Bourne starter Mike Mayers (Ole Miss), who made his third start of the summer and turned in his best performance. He struck out 10 and didn’t walk anybody while allowing two runs on four hits in seven innings.

Mayers’ Ole Miss teammate Hawtin Buchanan came on for the eighth, and Wareham — as usual — went to work. A walk to Ethan Gross (Memphis) and a base hit by Tyler McFarland (James Madison) put runners on first and third with one out. Buchanan responded by getting Kyle Schwarber (Indiana), Wareham’s top hitter, for the second out, but the Gatemen weren’t done. Claude Johnson (Arkansas State) walked to load the bases, which chased Buchanan. Facing John Farrell (William & Mary), Tyler Ross (LSU) doubled to bring two home runs and give Wareham the lead.

Bourne tried staging its own rally in the ninth, putting two men on, but Colby Suggs (Arkansas) got out of the jam to finish off the victory.

Joe Filomeno (Louisville) got the win in relief for the Gatemen after a strong start by Kendall Graveman (Mississippi State), who struck out six and allowed two runs in six innings.

Ross had the two RBI and Schwarber had two hits to lead the Wareham offense. The Gatemen are now 9-7 and sitting comfortably in second place in the West, just a game back of Falmouth.

Elsewhere

Orleans won for the third game in a row, beating Chatham 5-4. Coupled with a Harwich loss, the win gives the 13-3 Firebirds sole possession of first place in the East. The Firebirds didn’t have much offense early on and trailed 4-2 going into their last at-bat. A walk, a single and an error loaded the bases before the Firebirds got a run home on a groundout. Down to their last out, Jake Hernandez (USC) singled to score two and give Orleans the lead. Kyle Crockett (Virginia) then worked a scoreless bottom of the ninth to seal the Orleans win. The clutch hit was part of a big day for Hernandez, who hit a home run drove in four of Orleans’ five runs. He has six hits in his last three games and is the latest Firebird to step up when needed.

Brewster knocked off Harwich 8-2 thanks in part to one of the most impressive pitching performances of the season. Tom Windle (Minnesota) struck out nine in six innings and allowed just an unearned run against the league’s most powerful team. Windle and three relievers also didn’t allow a home run. Harwich had hit a home run in 13 consecutive games. The last — and only time — they didn’t hit a home run was in the second game of the season against Falmouth. Brewster’s offense was led by Ryon Healy (Oregon), who went 2-for-5 with a home run and four RBI. Windle’s Minnesota teammate Dan Olinger added three hits.

Falmouth rebounded from a tough-to-take loss to Harwich on Sunday with a steady 3-1 victory over Cotuit. Craig Schlitter (Bryant), who had been solid in two starts, was even better on this night, striking out seven and allowing just three hits in five shutout innings. Relievers Kyle Ruchim (Northwestern), Johnny Magliozzi (Florida) and John Simms (Rice) picked up where Schlitter left off, allowing just one hit in the final four innings. Florida standout freshman Casey Turgeon hit a home run in his first Cape League game to pace the offense.

Hyannis, which was winless until last Sunday, beat Y-D 9-8 in 10 innings for its third win in four games. The Harbor Hawks are now out of the basement, sitting one game ahead of Bourne for fourth place. Brandon Trinkwon (Cal) was the hero this time, as his single brought home Blake Austin (Auburn) with the winning run in the bottom of the ninth. Brett Michael Doran (Stanford) also had two RBI for the Hawks, who trailed 7-1 but came back with five runs in the sixth and two in the seventh. Walter Wijas (Kentucky) got the win with two scoreless innings of relief.

What to Watch

For the Fourth of July, your present is a full slate of rematches of Tuesday’s action. For a good pitching match-up, keep an eye on the 5 p.m. Wareham at Bourne game. Brad Kuntz (Baylor) has pitched well for the Gatemen and he’ll square off against Tyler Skulina. The Kent State star will be making his first start with the Braves.

It wasn’t the smoothest two-day stretch they’ve ever had, but it was exactly what the Cotuit Kettleers needed.

Playing back-to-back games against Bourne — who was two games behind them coming in — the Kettleers posted a pair of victories to improve their record to 7-8 and go four games up on the Braves. Neither game was a work of art. A pitchers’ duel turned into an extra inning slugfest on Sunday and Cotuit had to outlast the Braves 12-11 last night, but the Kettleers don’t mind. In a division where four of five teams have had their struggles, two wins like that will go a long way.

The Kettleers got it done last night thanks to a 17-hit attack and one last surge when they needed it. Cotuit built an 11-5 lead but watched the Braves score six runs in the top of the seventh to tie the game.

But in the bottom of the seventh, Raph Rhymes (LSU) smacked a solo home run with one out to put the Kettleers back on top. Dan Slania (Notre Dame) then pitched a scoreless top of the eighth — the only Cotuit pitcher of the day to throw a scoreless inning — and the game was called for darkness after the bottom of the eighth.

Cael Brockmeyer (Cal State Bakersfield) led the Cotuit attack with four hits and an RBI, while Patrick Biondi (Michigan), Jacob May (Coastal Carolina) and Adam Nelubowich (Washington State) had three hits each. James Roberts (USC) drove in three runs.

The Kettleers ranked seventh in the league in team batting average before last night, but moved all the way to fourth with the big offensive day. Their average jumped from .255 to .268.

Cotuit improved to 7-8 while Bourne fell to 3-12.

Elsewhere

In the only other game of the night, Hyannis traveled to Chatham and left with its third victory of the year, 8-4 over the Anglers. Mitchell Garver (New Mexico), a late arrival who had a big season for the Lobos, went 2-for-5 with three RBI to lead the charge. Brandon Trinkwon (Cal) added two RBI, while Zach Alvord (Auburn) and Brett Michael Doran (Stanford) had two hits each. Tyler Barnette (UNC Charlotte) got the win after allowing three runs in 5.1 innings. Florida State teammates Gage Smith and Peter Miller followed each other out of the bullpen and combined to allow just one hit and one run in the final 3.2 innings. Chatham was led by Chad Pinder (Virginia Tech), who hit a home run and drove in two. He’s now tied for the league lead in RBI with 16. Chatham fell to 8-7.

What to Watch

Tonight is the first of two nights of rivalry games, with the same teams meeting again tomorrow. The best rivalry for my money is always Chatham and Orleans. Tonight’s game is at Veterans Field in Chatham at 7 p.m. Jerad Grundy (Kentucky) takes the hill for the Firebirds. He’s pitched pretty well in two five-inning starts. Louie Lechich (San Diego) is set to make his first start for the Anglers after two pretty good relief appearances.

Even when they’re not doing it with home runs, the Harwich Mariners are catching a lot of eyes.

Harwich did hit two more home runs last night, but the real story was its ninth inning rally. West leader Falmouth went into the bottom of the ninth with a 6-4 lead on the Mariners. With closer John Simms (Rice) coming in, it looked like Falmouth was well on its way to its second victory of the year over the nation’s No. 1 summer collegiate team.

But Simms had to get through the middle of Harwich’s order. And that is proving to be a very difficult task this season.

With an error and a walk opening the door, the Mariners seized the opportunity. Austin Wilson (Stanford) doubled home a run to make it a 6-5 game before Brian Ragira (Stanford) smacked a single off the glove of a diving Jon McGibbon (Clemson) at first, allowing two runs to score and giving Harwich a 7-6 victory.

The Mariners haven’t needed a lot of heroics this season. This was their third one-run victory out of 12 wins. They’ve averaged about a four-run margin in their other wins.

But they got just what they needed on this night. The meat of their order is about as intimidating a group as I remember on the Cape. Whether the balls are flying out of the park or not, that group is a very tough one to deal with.

Harwich’s two home runs came early on, with Wilson and Eric Jagielo (Notre Dame) both hitting their fifth of the season. Matt Reida (Kentucky) went 3-for-5 at the top of the Mariner order.

Drew Dosch (Youngstown State) led Falmouth with two hits and two RBI. Before Harwich’s ninth-inning rally, the Commodores got great relief work, with Ryan Moore (UConn), John Colella (Holy Cross), Kyle Ruchim (Northwestern) and Sam Paterson (Montana State-Billings) combining for six innings of one-hit, shutout baseball.

Elsewhere

Orleans turned in one of the most impressive all-around games of the season with a 12-0 dismantling of Brewster, the team’s second win in a row since two straight losses on Thursday and Friday. Kevin Brown (Bryant) hit a grand slam in the second inning on his way to a huge six RBI night, and the Firebirds blew the game wide open with six runs in the fourth. J.T. Riddle (Kentucky) had three hits for the Firebirds, while Daniel Aldrich (College of Charleston) and Pi’ikea Kitamura (Hawaii) each had an RBI. On the mound, Jarrett Arakawa (Hawaii) turned in his third impressive start in as many tries, allowing just two hits and striking out four in five shutout innings. That line is identical to the line from his last start. Arakawa now has a 0.60 ERA. The bullpen was also impressive, with Karsten Whitson (Florida), Dylan Covey (San Diego), Pat Christensen (La Salle) and Kyle Crockett (Virginia) giving up just one more hit in four innings.

Y-D also blew past an East rival, powering past Chatham 12-2. The win puts Y-D into a tie for third in the East with Chatham. The Red Sox finished with 11 hits, including three home runs. Robert Pehl (Washington), Alex Blandino (Stanford) and Justin Shafer (Florida) had the blasts, with Blandino and Pehl both finishing with two hits. Wayne Taylor (Stanford) added two RBI. For Chatham, John Martinez (Michigan State) hit a home run, but the Anglers didn’t get much else. Y-D starter Alex Gonzalez (Oral Roberts) allowed two runs in four innings before Anthony Montefusco (George Mason) and Joey DeNato (Indiana) finished it off.

Cotuit and Bourne have both had their struggles this season, but they were duking it out for 12 innings last night. The Kettleers eventually prevailed 7-4 thanks to a rally in the top of the 12th. James Roberts (USC) cleared the bases with a two-out double to give Cotuit the 7-4 lead. Jacob Stone (Weatherford College) then tossed his second straight scoreless inning to seal the victory, which moved Cotuit to 6-8. The long game happened despite strong starting pitching performances on both sides. Kevin Ziomek (Vanderbilt) struck out nine and allowed just a run on three hits in 6.1 innings for the Kettleers. He now ranks third in the league in strikeouts. On the other side, Bourne’s Chad Green (Louisville) struck out eight and allowed two runs on three hits in 5.1 innings.

Wareham pulled off a comeback win over Hyannis for the second time in three days. On Friday, Wareham had rallied from a 6-2 deficit against the Harbor Hawks with two in the eighth and three in the ninth. This time the Gatemen posted a 4-3 victory thanks to two runs in the eighth. A two-run home run by Tyler Horan (Virginia Tech) was the difference, and Cole Sturgeon (Louisville) pitched a scoreless ninth once his team got the lead. Claude Johnson (Arkansas State) also had two RBI for the Gatemen, who finished with just four hits. Hyannis was also limited to four hits. Brandon Trinkwon (Cal) had a hit and an RBI to lead the Harbor Hawks.

What to Watch

Just two games on the slate today. Bourne visits Cotuit at 5 p.m. in a rematch of last night’s 12-inning affair, and Hyannis travels to Chatham for a 7 p.m. start. If you’re looking for a pitcher to watch, Chatham starter Eric Stevens is your guy. The Boston College righty struggled in his last start, but his first time out, he was perfect through five innings.

If the Hyannis Harbor Hawks could find a way to get Will Callaway to the plate in the ninth inning every game, they might be in better shape this season.

The Harbor Hawks beat Harwich 9-6 last night on a walk-off three-run home run by Callaway (Appalachian State). That’s his second walk-off hit of the year, and his heroics have led to the Harbor Hawks’ only two victories. He had a walk-off single RBI single in a 7-6 victory over Bourne last week.

This time, Hyannis trailed the streaking mariners 6-5 going into the ninth, with Harwich closer C.K. Irby (Samford) on the mound. An error and a single put two men on, but Irby also struck out two, getting Hyannis to its last out. But Brad Zebedis (Presbyterian) came through on the first pitch he saw from Irby, hitting a single to score Brandon Trinkwon (Cal). Callaway then fell behind 0-2 before finding his pitch and crushing it for the game-winning three run homer.

It was a shocking way for the Mariners’ nine-game winning streak to come to an end. It looked for a lot of the game like they were going to find a way to win in a tough spot. Hyannis starter Sean Manaea (Indiana State) struck out 11 and allowed just two hits in 5.1 innings against the most intimidating lineup on the Cape. The Mariners bided their time, touched Manaea up for solo home runs by JaCoby Jones (LSU) and Brian Ragira (Stanford), and then hit two more home runs when Manaea left the game. Austin Wilson (Stanford) had one and Phillip Ervin (Samford) hit the other, his eighth of the summer.

When you’re 1-11 and you’ve just seen the best team on the Cape hit four more home runs, I think it would be easy to pack it in, but Hyannis kept coming, making it a one-run game in the bottom of the eighth before the ninth-inning heroics.

Hyannis, for all its struggles, has now beaten Harwich and pushed Orleans to 14 innings.

Elsewhere

Orleans moved right back into a tie for first with the Mariners thanks to a 5-1 victory over Bourne. The Firebirds broke open a 1-1 game with a run in the sixth, two in the seventh and another in the eighth. Conrad Gregor (Vanderbilt) hit his fifth home run and J.T. Riddle (Kentucky) knocked in two runs. Jimmy Reed (Maryland) struck out eight in 5.2 innings and allowed just a run. Dylan Clark (Elon) got the win with two scoreless innings of relief and Chase Johnson (Cal Poly) got the save in the absence of Trevor Gott (Kentucky), who has left the Cape with an injury.

While the East’s top teams have had the spotlight, Falmouth has quietly won four games in a row to move to 9-5 in the Western Division. The Commodores continued the streak with an 8-2 victory over Y-D last night. Andrew Thurman (UC Irvine) struck out nine in six innings, but Falmouth managed to get three runs off him and then went to work against the Y-D bullpen, scoring five more runs. Mike O’Neill (Michigan) hit a grand slam in the seventh, while Drew Dosch (Youngstown State) went 2-for-3 with two RBI. Ben Wetzler (Oregon State) made his first appearance of the summer and was impressive on the mound for Falmouth, striking out eight in six innings while allowing just one run.

It was a good night for Wareham as well, with the Gatemen rolling over Cotuit 11-2 for their second straight win. The Gatemen pounded out 17 hits, led by Cole Sturgeon’s enormous day. The Louisville sophomore went 5-for-6 with a double and two RBI, raising his average from .294 to .351. Tyler McFarland (James Madison) added three hits while Kyle Schwarber (Indiana), Daniel Palka (Georgia Tech) and Tyler Horan (Virginia Tech) all hit home runs for the Gatemen, who have averaged almost eight runs per game since getting shut-out by Orleans last Sunday. Pitching was also strong for Wareham as Jared Ruxer (Louisville) struck out seven and allowed just an unearned run in 4.2 innings. Nick Rumbelow (LSU) and Joe Filomeno (Louisville) finished off the win. Wareham is 7-7 while Cotuit fell to 5-8.

Chatham beat Brewster 6-5 in a 10-inning thriller to move to 8-5 on the year. After a Tanner Nivins (Stony Brook) home run gave Brewster the lead in the top of the 10th, Dante Flores (USC) had a two-run single to tie things up in the bottom half. An error on a ball off the bat of Pat Valaika (UCLA) then allowed Andrew Knapp (Cal) to score the game-winning run. Jake Joyce (Virginia Tech) picked up the win in relief after a quality start by Kurt Schluter (Stetson), who struck out six and allowed two runs in six innings. Brewster starter Sam Moll (Memphis) struck out eight in 4.1 innings but allowed nine hits.

What to Watch

West leader Falmouth travels to Harwich for a 5:30 p.m. start. The Commodores have won four in a row and they beat Harwich earlier this season. Benjamin Ballantine (Michigan), who struggled in his last start is scheduled to go for Falmouth against Harwich’s Corey Littrell (Kentucky), who has a 3.24 ERA and 14 strikeouts in 8.1 innings.

Harwich and Phillip Ervin have taken a lot of the headlines in the Cape Cod Baseball League this season. Chicks dig the long ball, and apparently so do Cape League fans.

But this is shaping up to be a very offensive summer, and it’s not all because of Ervin and his crew with the Mariners. We shouldn’t lose sight of the other stand-outs.

Robert Pehl and the Y-D Red Sox are at the top of that list.

Pehl went 2-for-3 last night and got on base to start two rallies as the Red Sox beat Orleans 11-10. Pehl is now hitting a league-best .447 with 13 RBI, and the Red Sox have a league-best .318 team batting average. The next closest teams are Harwich and Falmouth at .274.

The Red Sox haven’t quite hit their stride as a total unit yet. Despite having the fourth-best team ERA to go with the best batting average, they’re only one game over .500.

But they’re dangerous, and Pehl has been most dangerous of all.

Undrafted out of high school, Pehl just finished his freshman year at Washington, where he hit .293. He’s been on the Cape since the first day of the season, when he went 1-for-4, and he hasn’t slowed down. While everyone else’s averages have slowly trickled down into the reasonable range as we’ve gotten deeper into the season, Pehl’s has remained in the unreasonable range. He’s hit in five straight games, and four of those have been multi-hit performances.

When a player — and a team — hit that much, they’re not easy to put away, and the Firebirds found that out last night. Orleans, coming off the streak-busting loss to Harwich, seemed to be putting the Red Sox away when Conrad Gregor (Vanderbilt) hit a grand slam in the seventh to put the Firebirds on top 10-7.

But Pehl led off the bottom of the inning with a single and came around on a Sam Travis (Indiana) base hit. The Red Sox added another run in the eighth on a home run by Zak Blair (Mercyhurst).

Then in the ninth, with Orleans lights-out closer Trevor Gott (Kentucky) on the mound, the Red Sox kept swinging. Pehl walked, Alex Blandino (Stanford) singled and Travis brought pinch runner Tyler Sciacca (Villanova) home with a base hit. After a walk, Blandino raced home on a sacrifice fly by Blair to score the winning run.

The runs were the first ones Gott has allowed this season, and the blown save was just the second of his stellar two-year career. Interestingly, the only other blown save came in last year’s playoffs, in another 11-10 loss to Y-D.

The Red Sox finished with 14 hits, and six players had two each. Blair had four RBI, while Blandino and Travis had two apiece.

Elsewhere

Harwich had only three hits, but two were three-run homers and those were enough in a 7-2 victory over Cotuit, the team’s ninth in a row. Eric Jagielo (Notre Dame) hit his fourth home run and Mike Connolly (Maine) hit his first. Both buried the Kettleers early. Jagielo’s blast was in the first inning and Connolly’s in the second. The Mariners now have 26 home runs, more than any team hit in 2010 and only two fewer than the league-leading total of 28 from last year. JaCoby Jones (LSU) had the only other hit for the Mariners, who benefited from seven Cotuit walks. On the mound, David Whitehead (Elon) allowed two runs in four innings. Eric Skoglund (Central Florida) pitched two perfect innings of relief for the win. Cotuit starter Kyle Finnegan (Texas State) struck out eight in four innings but four walks and the two home runs were his undoing.

Falmouth beat Chatham 2-1 for its third straight win. Sean Hagan (St. John’s), a 29th-round pick this year who had made only two relief appearances, got his first start and promptly went seven strong innings. He struck out five and allowed just one run on two hits. Johnny Magliozzi (Florida) delivered his second scoreless relief appearance since arriving from the College World Series, and John Simms (Rice) closed it out with his second save. Ryan Thompson (Franklin Pierce) matched Hagan for six innings, allowing a run and striking out five, but Falmouth scored the eventual game-winning run in the seventh on an RBI double by Coty Blanchard (Jacksonville State). Jon McGibbon (Clemson) had the other RBI for the Commodores, while Andrew Knapp (Cal) delivered Chatham’s only run with a homer.

Wareham rallied from a 6-2 deficit with two runs in the eighth and three in the ninth to beat Hyannis 7-6. Kyle Schwarber (Indiana) started the comeback with a home run, and Mott Hyde (Georgia Tech) had an RBI single to make it 6-4 in the eighth. In the ninth, Tyler Horan (Virginia Tech) tied the game with a two-run single. With Schwarber on third, Horan broke for second on a stolen base attempt, and when Hyannis threw down, Schwarber raced home with the go-ahead run. Jonathan Holder (Mississippi State) slammed the door with a scoreless bottom of the ninth.

Bourne also won a close one, 8-7 over Brewster. Two runs in the bottom of the seventh were the difference, and both came on a two-run homer by Josh Dezse (Ohio State). Dezse then took the mound for the ninth and pitched a scoreless inning for his second save. Tyler King (Nebraska) got the win for the Braves. Chase McDonald (East Carolina) joined Dezse with two RBI and Colin Moran (North Carolina) to bring his average to .333. Jeff McNeil (Long Beach State) went 3-for-3 to lead the Whitecaps, while Trevor Mitsui (Washington) had two hits and two RBI. Tanner Nivins (Stony Brook) hit a home run in his second game of the summer.

What to Watch

Harwich and Hyannis are at opposite ends of the spectrum in terms of standings, but with Sean Manaea (Indiana State) on the mound for the Harbor Hawks, it should be a good match-up. Manaea has a 2.19 ERA and 18 strikeouts in 12.1 innings. Eddie Campbell (Virginia Tech) is scheduled to start for Harwich. The game is in Hyannis at 7 p.m.

If you’ve been following the Cape Cod Baseball League this season, you know the Harwich Mariners are just crushing the ball.

On the biggest stage yet, we shouldn’t have expected anything different.

Hosting first-place Orleans last night in the biggest marquee match-up of 2012, the Mariners hit four home runs in one inning on their way to a 5-3 victory over the Firebirds. It was their eighth straight win, it snapped the Firebirds’ eight-game winning streak and it moved Harwich into a first place tie.

In a season full of impressive showings, this one may have been the best for the Mariners.

I was watching the Harwich broadcast online and just shook my head when Philip Ervin (Samford) homered on a 1-2 pitch to lead off the fourth inning. He’s been ridiculous — seven home runs in 12 games. Seven is the number that won the Cape League home run title the last two years. And Ervin is there in about one-third of the season.

But that was only the beginning. After an out, Austin Wilson (Stanford) smacked a home run. Then Brian Ragira (Stanford) belted one on the very next pitch. Austen Smith (Alabama) followed with another home run.

A 2-0 deficit was now a 4-2 lead — and a season of long balls had its signature moment.

I don’t remember four home runs in an inning. I don’t remember one player hitting seven in the first two weeks of the season. I don’t remember a team averaging two home runs per game.

In short, Harwich may be the most powerful team we’ve seen on the Cape in a very long time.

And the Mariners are winning, too. Armed with the lead, the bullpen didn’t allow another earned run over the final five innings. Anthony Tzamtzis (North Carolina State) struck out the side in the seventh and C.K. Irby (Samford) did the same in the ninth to clinch the victory. That’s eight in a row, and Harwich’s only losses of the season have been to Orleans and Falmouth.

Wilson and Ragira each had two hits for the Mariners. Matt Reida (Kentucky) knocked in the only run that didn’t come via the home run.

For Orleans, Daniel Aldrich (College of Charleston) had a home run and a double.

In the midst of getting carried away with the Harwich love, we can’t forget that Orleans has the same record as Harwich, beat the Mariners in their first meeting and looks like a great team in its own right. It was a true showdown last night. I can’t wait for the next one.

Pitching In

Aaron Blair (Marshall) has won the first two Cape League Pitcher of the Week awards, in part because starters haven’t been turning in the best outings. But it’s also because Blair has been great.

And he may just win that honor again.

The Y-D righty struck out 10 and allowed one run on six hits in seven innings as the Red Sox beat Brewster 7-3 last night. Blair now leads the league in wins (3), strikeouts (25) and ERA among starters (0.50).

Blair was a late addition to the Y-D roster, but he has an impressive profile. He was a 21st-round pick out of high school in 2010 and he struck out nearly a batter an inning for Marshall this spring.

And now he’s turning into the best starting pitcher on the Cape.

Y-D’s victory snapped a three-game Brewster winning streak and got the Red Sox back to .500. Sam Travis (Indiana) went 2-for-4 with three RBI to lead the offense.

Elsewhere

Chatham improved to 7-4 and kept pace with Orleans and Harwich thanks to a 5-3 victory over Bourne. Chad Pinder (Virginia Tech) had two RBI, bringing his season total to 14, while Mike Fransoso (Maine) had two hits. Mike Wagner (San Diego) made his second start and allowed two earned runs in 5.1 innings. Three Chatham relievers didn’t allow a run. Jake Joyce (Virginia Tech) walked the bases loaded in the ninth but struck out Colin Moran (North Carolina) to end the game. That was the only time Chatham got Moran, as he went 3-for-4 with his first home run of the summer for the Braves.

Falmouth edged Wareham 5-4 to stay in first place in the West. The Commodores trailed 4-1 but scored four runs in the sixth and then held on for the win. Jared King (Kansas State) and Billy Ferriter (UConn) hit home runs for Falmouth, while Jon McGibbon (Clemson) drove in two runs. Jake Rodriguez (Oregon State) went 3-for-4 after going 2-for-4 in his 2012 debut the night before. Craig Schlitter (Bryant) got the win in relief with two scoreless innings, and John Simms (Rice) had the save. Daniel Palka (Georgia Tech) hit his third home run for Wareham.

What to Watch

Another good match-up in the East as Orleans visits Y-D at 5 p.m. Stony Brook star Brandon McNitt is scheduled to make his Cape League debut as he gets the ball for the Firebirds. Rick Knapp (Florida Gulf Coast), who has a 0.90 ERA in two starts, is slated to go for Y-D.