In the preseason, nobody’s pitching staff looked particularly impressive. That’s a combination of a few things: not many aces are on the Cape and college pitching numbers always look a little rough for everybody else.
Brewster’s staff didn’t look like the exception; in fact it looked like the rule. The Whitecaps had just three players who were regular starters for their college teams. Six of the 11 pitchers had ERAs over four.
But funny things can happen on the Cape.
Through eight games, the Whitecaps lead the league in team ERA. Their pitchers haven’t been overpowering, but they’ve been consistently good every step of the way. And they’ve helped turned the Whitecaps into an early-season contender. With a 4-3 win over Orleans last night, the Whitecaps moved to 6-2, the best record in the league.
The Firebirds came into the game winners of four straight, and they led for most of the game, despite a strong pitching performance by Mike Palazzone (Georgia). But the Whitecaps got to the Orleans bullpen for two runs in the eighth and two more in the ninth. Kirk Singer (Long Beach State) hit a two-run single in the ninth to plate the tying and winning runs. The clutch hit was part of a 3-for-4, 3 RBI day for Singer, who had just one hit in his first 18 at-bats.
While the offense delivered the comeback, Brewster pitchers — as they’ve done all summer — kept the team in the game. Palazzone was an 18th-round pick out of high school two years ago but he has struggled at Georgia. In two starts for Brewster, though, Palazzone is 1-0 with 0.68 ERA and 10 strikeouts in 13.1 innings.
The bullpen also pitched well on Tuesday. Kyle Hendricks (Dartmouth) allowed an unearned run in two innings of work and got the win. Colton Murray (Kansas) picked up the save.
Brewster pitchers have now allowed four runs or fewer in all but one game, a season-opening loss to Chatham.
Elsewhere
One other note from that Brewster-Orleans game. Orleans’ Kolten Wong (Hawaii) went 2-for-3 with a home run, and he now leads the league in hitting at .429 and is tied for the league lead in home runs.
Bourne rallied from a 2-0 deficit in the final three innings to beat Chatham 8-2. Mike Dennhardt (Boston College) cruised through five innings for Chatham, but the Bourne bats woke up against the bullpen in the seventh. Travis Shaw (Kent State), who had one hit in Bourne’s first seven games, hit a go-ahead two-run homer in the eighth, and the Braves tacked on five more runs in the ninth. Shaw finished with three hits and four RBI. Mike Nemeth (Connecticut) drove in two. Bourne improved to 3-5, while Chatham dropped to 5-2-1.
Joe Holtmeyer (Nerbaska at Omaha) struck out eight and Brian Goodwin (North Carolina) went 4-for-4 to lead Harwich past Hyannis 4-3. Holtmeyer, the top strikeout pitcher in Division II this year, was making his second start. He allowed one earned run in his first outing and did the same last night, with a few more strikeouts. Goodwin, a talented freshman who was playing in his fifth game, matched his hit total from the first four. In the seventh, he singled, stole second and came around to score on two wild pitches. It proved to be the game-winning run. Goodwin is now hitting .421 with four stolen bases.
Brett Mooneyham (Stanford) struck out seven and allowed one run, and the offense rallied from two deficits as Y-D topped Wareham 5-3 to improve to 5-3. Mooneyham now has 14 strikeouts and a 2.25 ERA in his two starts. He allowed three runs — two earned — in this one, but kept Y-D in the game. The Red Sox battled back from 1-0 and 3-2 holes, taking the lead for good with three runs in the seventh. Caleb Ramsey (Houston), a recent addition who played briefly for Y-D last year, led the way with two RBI. Joe Panik (St. John’s) and Matt Watson (Boston College) each had one. For Wareham, Big 10 Player of the Year Alex Dickerson (Indiana) made his debut and went 2-for-4 with an RBI. Rob Kral (College of Charleston), who had 14 homers this spring, also made his first appearance and went 0-for-3.
What to Watch
Tanner Poppe (Kansas), who’s had two strong bullpen outings, will make his first start for Y-D as the Red Sox host Harwich. Lex Rutledge (Samford), who pitched four no-hit innings in his first start, is slated to go for Harwich.
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