Week 5: Repeat

Parity continues to reign for most of the Cape League, but Chatham is doing nothing to lose its stranglehold on the top spot. Chatham has been No. 1 three teams in five weeks, and has now done it twice in a row.

The Cape League season is just past the midway point. With Chatham at the top, the RFF Power Rankings are right back where they started.

RANK	TEAM	RECORD	THE SKINNY
1	Chatham Anglers	19-9-1	I feel like some people aren’t believing in the Anglers yet. It’s getting to be time. Chatham has gone 4-1 in its last five and clearly has a brand of baseball that’s working. The Anglers work counts, draw a lot of walks and have enough good hitters to score runs. The bigger reason for continued success is the pitching staff, which has all but three of its pitchers sporting an ERA below three. The bullpen has been especially impressive, with eight guys at a 2.79 ERA or less.
2	Falmouth Commodores	16-12	It was not the best week the Commodores have had but the positives outweighed the negative in my book. In Falmouth’s two victories, it allowed a total of one run, getting seven strong innings from Brandon Magallones and six good ones from John Means. Both wins were against Y-D, who has the second best batting average in the league. If the Falmouth pitching staff can hold its own, the lineup might do the rest.
3	Hyannis Harbor Hawks	17-10-1	Hyannis had a busy week and held its own. A loss to Cotuit hurt but the Harbor Hawks hold onto the third spot in the rankings based on projection. While Cotuit continues to lose key pieces, Hyannis is trotting out the best pitcher in the league and is seeing offensive stars like Skyler Ewing and Tyler Spoon emerge. The Harbor Hawks pitching staff continues to keep the team in a lot of games, and it now ranks second in the league in strikeouts. Offensively, the team still ranks ninth in batting average but now has the third-most home runs in the league.
4	Cotuit Kettleers	18-11	Cotuit had a great week but the loss of Mike Ford puts a serious damper on it. The MVP candidate is leaving the Cape to sign with the Yankees and it’s a big blow for a team that has already lost a lot of key pieces. The next week will say a lot for the Kettleers’ future, starting with games against Chatham and Hyannis. The Kettleers may just hold steady but the hill is getting steeper.
5	Harwich Mariners	16-13	Harwich started the week 0-2 but has won the last three in impressive fashion, with all the wins coming against teams ahead of it in the rankings. The Mariners topped Falmouth 8-3 then shut out Cotuit and Chatham behind Dillon Peters and Chandler Shepherd. With those two joining Aaron Bummer atop the rotation, there’s a lot to like.
6	Bourne Braves	13-14-1	The Braves are making a little charge and their three wins this week separate them from the pack they’ve been in for a while. The Braves have the best team ERA in the league. The offense continues to lag behind, but I wouldn’t want to face any lineup that has Max Pentecost in it.
7	Y-D Red Sox	13-15-1	Y-D lost Eric Filia to injury and ace Erick Fedde to a brief stint with Team USA. Fedde is expected back, but it continues to be a tough road for the Red Sox – with the same troubles cropping up. Y-D ranks second in the league in hitting but last in team ERA.
8	Brewster Whitecaps	11-17	The Whitecaps make their first appearance outside the bottom two thanks to a 3-2 stretch that included victories over Harwich and Orleans, the team just ahead of them in the standings. Brewster did lose standout Jose Brizuela, but a good amount of offensive punch remains, led by leadoff hitter Scott Heineman. And right now, the pitching rotation is as good as it’s been all summer.
9	Orleans Firebirds	12-17	The Firebirds have been hovering around .500 but they went the wrong direction this week, going just 1-5. It’s a team that should be in decent shape based on some key numbers, but it hasn’t been happening lately.
10	Wareham Gatemen	6-23	Wareham has yet to go over .500 in a week and is fading further into the basement in an otherwise hotly-contested Western Division. The Gatemen are already 15 points out of fourth place. Surprisingly, the team does lead the league in strikeouts, but the offense continues to struggle. Even if 2012 playoff MVP Kyle Schwarber returns to Wareham after Team USA’s season ends, it may be too little, too late.