RFF Power Rankings: Week 3

Twenty-one days of the Cape League summer are in the books, and the excitement generated by the teams and players in the league this season isn’t dying down. These guys are good.

Without further adieu, the third edition of the RFF Power Rankings.

RANK	TEAM	RECORD	THE SKINNY
1	Harwich Mariners	12-5	The Mariners showed a few chinks in the armor with back-to-back losses to Brewster — including a 19-1 loss last night. We’ll find out if they bounce back, but for our purposes here, those two losses didn’t make the week a total loss. The Mariners started with a victory over Orleans last Thursday and won two more games before hitting trouble against the Whitecaps. They also hit 12 more home runs, and they still lead the league in homers, extra-base hits and slugging.
2	Orleans Firebirds	13-4	The Firebirds lost their marquee match-up with Harwich last Thursday but emerged a game ahead of the Mariners heading into tonight’s rematch. The biggest strength for the Firebirds is pitching. Team ERA’s are way up this year, with nine teams above three. The one that isn’t? Orleans. The Firebirds have gotten a lot of quality starts to go with tremendous work from the bullpen. Losing Trevor Gott hurts, but this team hasn’t shown many signs of slipping. The offense continues to have different players step up every night.
3	Falmouth Commodores	10-7	The Commodores remain in the third spot thanks to a 4-2 week that keeps them looking like the best team in the West. And it was almost a 5-1 week if not for a blown lead against Harwich. Falmouth ranks second in the league in home runs and third in batting average. The pitching is also coming around, with Falmouth ranking second in the league in ERA.
4	Y-D Red Sox	9-8	The Red Sox didn’t have a great showing on the mound this week, allowing 38 runs in six games, but they kept swinging the bats and found a way to win five of those games. Y-D continues to lead the league in hitting, and the margin is growing. Y-D is at .320, while second-place Brewster is at .281. And despite the rough pitching week, Y-D still has the league’s fourth-best ERA.
5	Wareham Gatemen	9-8	Wareham makes a big jump from seventh thanks to a 4-2 week that included a four-game winning streak. The Gatemen beat West rivals Cotuit, Hyannis and Bourne in that span, which has helped them move into second place behind only Falmouth. The Gatemen are hitting .276 as a team and the pitching staff has had its moments despite some rough numbers.
6	Chatham Anglers	9-8	Chatham lost three in a row before bouncing back with a big win over Orleans last night. That’s kind of been the M.O. all year for the Anglers, who have been pretty up-and-down. Their team ERA ranks third but their batting average is tied with Hyannis for the worst mark in the league.
7	Brewster Whitecaps	7-10	Brewster has been probably the streakiest team in the league, but the Whitecaps’ latest streak turned some heads. Brewster beat Harwich on back-to-back nights, winning 8-2 and 19-1 and keeping the Mariners from hitting a home run. They now rank second in the league in hitting.
8	Cotuit Kettleers	8-9	Cotuit held steady with a 3-3 week but losses to Falmouth and Wareham hurt the cause. On the bright side, the Kettleers did finish the stretch with a victory over the Commodores, and looking at the scores of just their four games, it does seem like they might be coming around.
9	Hyannis Harbor Hawks	4-13	Hyannis had its best week of the season, going 3-3 after getting just one win in the first two weeks. The good stretch included a victory over three strong teams from the East — Chatham, Y-D and Harwich. If not for two blown leads against Wareham, it could have been a real turnaround week for Hyannis. Their three losses on the week were by a combined four runs.
10	Bourne Braves	4-13	Bourne and Hyannis are now tied in the West standings and it’s tough to separate them. Both have struggled on the mound and at the plate. I gave the nod to the Hawks because of a good week, but I still think Bourne could end up being the better team. Colin Moran leads an offense that has shown signs of waking up.