daily fog: power surge

Chris Dominguez might have the most raw power on the Cape. The redshirt sophomore from Louisville was the Big East co-Player of the Year this season. He hit 21 home runs and was tabbed as a fifth-round pick in this year’s draft.

Rather than sign, Dominguez opted to head for Hyannis, where he’s had his ups and downs.

Wednesday night was most definitely an up.

Dominguez hit three home runs and had five RBI as the Mets defeated Falmouth 6-4. The big night raised Dominguez’ average to .297, and it gives him a league-best six home runs.

This question was posed by Jarred in the comments section of the previous post: is three in one game a record? I don’t have an answer, unfortunately. The league doesn’t have single-game records on its web site. But I’m going to guess that it probably ties a record. Getting four in one game is exceedingly difficult at the Major League level, so by extension, it should be nearly impossible on the Cape. Three would obviously be tough, too, but I’m sure it has happened a few times.

Record or not, though, it was a huge night for Dominguez. The slugging third baseman played last summer for Harwich and had a pretty rough go of it, hitting .216 with three home runs. He’s already on his way to a better summer this time around, and thanks to the one big night, he probably made himself an all-star.

Think the home run derby might be a good place for him, too?

Elsewhere

• Harwich’s Dustin Ackley (North Carolina) put on a show in the late innings as he hit a two-run homer in the eighth and a two-run triple in the ninth to spark a major comeback in Wareham. The Mariners rallied from a 6-1 deficit to win 7-6.

• Y-D snapped a five-game losing streak with an 8-3 victory over Chatham. Jerry Sullivan (Oral Roberts) gave the Red Sox the kind of start they’ve been waiting for from him, striking out seven and allowing two runs in seven innings. Ryan Ortiz (Oregon State) went 3-for-4 and the Red Sox scored three unearned runs against Chatham starter Sammy Solis (San Diego).

• Orleans is now in the best stretch any team has had this summer. The Cardinals beat Brewster 13-2 last night for their sixth consecutive win. They also leapfrogged the Whitecaps into first place and now have the best record in the league. It’s been a simple formula for Orleans — good pitching that’s been there since the beginning combined with a resurgent offense. Last night, Rob Rasmussen (UCLA) allowed two runs in 5.2 innings, and the bats put up an eight-spot in the sixth. Tim Wheeler (Sacramento State) upped his average to .311 with a two-hit night while Angelo Songco (Loyola Marymount) jumped to .300 with two hits. Shaun Kort (Nevada), Gary Brown (Cal State Fullerton) and Nate Freiman (Duke) also had two hits apiece.

• This is also worth noting about Orleans’ offense: at the end of the second week, their team batting average was sitting at .178. It’s now at .212.

• Cotuit beat Bourne 10-5 behind a 3-for-5 day from Mike Bianucci (Auburn) and a 3-for-4 day from Brett Jackson (Cal). With the win and Hyannis’ win, the Kettleers, Mets and Braves are now locked in a three-way tie for first place.

• A few more X’s popped up on the team stats page, so some notable names are leaving: Harwich’s J.T. Wise, who was hitting .350, Falmouth’s Diego Seastrunk, a big-time player from Rice and Hyannis’ Luke Murton.

What to Watch For Tonight

• Wareham’s Brandon Workman (Texas) will make his first start since his near no-hitter. Interestingly enough, he’ll be doing it against Cotuit, the same team he nearly no-hit.

• Justin Marks (Louisville) heads to the mound for Chatham against Harwich’s J.J. Hoover (Calhoun CC). Marks will try to bounce back from a rough first start. Hoover has made tow starts and has 15 strikeouts in 11.1 innings.

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