The Harwich Mariners hit their 42nd home run of the season last night. It came off the bat of Brian Ragira (Stanford) and it meant that Harwich has now surpassed the benchmark total of the 2007 Y-D Red Sox, whose 41 home runs were the most in a long time before the Mariners came along.
But I don’t think there was much of a celebration. Brewster won 10-5 to hand the Mariners their fourth straight loss. Y-D, Chatham and Orleans are now all tied for second, just one game back of the Mariners.
It’s kind of symbolic — for all the power, Harwich is not invincible. I think they have the most talented lineup in the league and they may well win the Cape League championship, but they can be beaten.
The other angle from last night is that the Mariners can really be beaten by Brewster. The Whitecaps have now beaten Harwich four times this season in four tries.
While the Whitecaps aren’t in that group of three that’s right behind Harwich, they’re not far back, three games at this point.
Last night, they pounded out 13 hits, led by two Spencer Navin (Vanderbilt) home runs. Ryon Healy (Oregon) added two hits and three RBI, while Jason Monda (Washington) knocked in a run. Dylan Davis (Oregon State) had a rough start on the mound, giving up five runs in three innings, but the bullpen was in control from there, pitching six shutout innings. Evan Rutter (Rice) got the win with three strong innings, and James Leckenby (Washington State) finished it off with four strikeouts in two scoreless innings.
Elsewhere
Chatham stayed hot with a 3-1 victory over Falmouth, its fourth in a row. The Anglers broke a 1-1 tie in the ninth when Tom Bourdon (Boston College) doubled to move Alex Calbick (Maine) to third. Calbick scored on a wild pitch before Alex Chittenden (Louisville) hit an RBI single for the two-run lead. Jake Joyce (Virginia Tech) then picked up the save with a scoreless ninth. Aaron Brown (Pepperdine) got the win in relief. Bourdon had two hits to lead the offense. For Falmouth, Ben Wetzler (Oregon State) turned in a strong start, striking out six in five scoreless innings before Chatham got to the Commodore bullpen.
Y-D also won for the fourth time in a row, beating Wareham 8-2. Sam Travis (Indiana) hit his third home run, while Tanner Mathis (Ole Miss) and Zak Blair (Mercyhurst) had three hits each. Mason Katz (LSU) and Carlos Asuaje (Nova Southeastern) had two hits and an RBI apiece. On the mound, Alex Gonzalez (Oral Roberts) turned in his best performance, allowing a run in five innings while striking out six.
Bourne snapped Cotuit’s seven-game winning streak with an 11-3 victory. The Braves scored six runs in the top of the first inning and never looked back. Mason Robbins (Southern Miss) went 3-for-4 with his fourth home run and three RBI, while John Murphy (Sacred Heart) and Jack Reinheimer (East Carolina) also had three hits. Chase McDonald (East Carolina) went 2-for-3 with two RBI, and Joe Jackson (The Citadel) also drove in two. Chad Green (Louisville) got the win with five solid innings and Timothy Giel (Columbia) didn’t allow a hit on his way to a three-inning save.
Hyannis hit four home runs on its way to a 9-5 victory over Orleans. Brandon Trinkwon (Cal), who’s quietly emerging as an MVP candidate, hit his fifth and raised his batting average to .363. Brett Michael Doran (Stanford), Dominic Jose (Stanford) and Mitchell Garver (New Mexico) had the other homers. Jimmy Hodgskin (Troy) allowed five runs in three innings, but the Hyannis bullpen slammed the door with six scoreless frames. Josh Walker (New Mexico) got the win with 3.2 innings.
What to Watch
Should be a good pitching match-up tonight in Bourne. Ohio State standout Jaron Long goes for the Braves against Brewster’s Tom Windle (Minnesota), who’s been outstanding in his last three starts. Game time is 6 p.m.
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I was at McKeon Park last night and the wind was blowing out hard towards right center. Maybe the wind patterns are what’s causing so many homers this year.
By the way, Brandon Trinkwon is from UCSB, not Cal.
I’ve been following since the start of the season. I feel like I’m there – and tonight I will be!! Keep up the great work!!