The catch tops the highlight reels. Andy Atwood’s incredible wall-climbing and wall-clearing catch for the Bourne Braves at Veterans Field was featured on ESPN’s SportsCenter Sunday night.
.@Wood021‘s (@BeaverBaseball) remarkable home run robbery slots in at No. 4 on @SportsCenter‘s #SCTop10! #ChopToTheTop @Official_CCBL pic.twitter.com/gMVx7hpT4w
— Bourne Braves (@BourneBraves) July 17, 2017
There have been a few Cape League appearances on SportsCenter’s Top 10 over the years, but I don’t remember a play that good.
Something that won’t make the Top 10, though, is the bigger story as far as the Cape League season goes. Chatham was already leading at the time of Atwood’s catch, and leads have been mighty comfortable for the Anglers in recent days.
A 2-0 win over the Braves was Chatham’s second consecutive shutout, and it stretched the team’s scoreless streak to 28 innings. Nobody has tallied a run off the Anglers since Bourne scored in the first inning of Friday’s game, which Chatham went on to win in extra innings.
Austin Bergner (North Carolina) carried the torch Sunday with 5.1 innings. He struck out eight and allowed four hits, all of which were singles, while lowering his ERA to 1.29. Adam Wolf (Louisville) and Andre Pallante (UC Irvine) kept the shutout going into the ninth, where Josiah Gray (LeMoyne) struck out two in a perfect frame to finish it off.
The offense did just enough, with Fabian Pena (Manhattan) getting two hits and an RBI to lead the way.
Nine pitchers have gotten in on Chatham’s near-three game scoreless streak. They’ve allowed 13 hits in the 28 innings and have struck out 31 batters. Jack Perkins (Stetson), Jeff Belge (St. John’s) and now Bergner have delivered dominant starts, while Rodney Hutchison Jr. (North Carolina) and Jack DeGroat (Liberty) have shined in relief.
The streak has set the stage for Chatham to win three straight games and get its record back to .500. The Anglers are one point behind Brewster for third place.
Y-D 6, Falmouth 5
The Red Sox scored the decisive runs in their last at-bat for the third consecutive game, breaking a 4-4 tie with two runs in the top of the 12th and holding off Falmouth in the bottom half for the win. Nico Hoerner (Stanford) broke the tie with an RBI single and Kyle Isbel (UNLV) padded the lead when he stole third and scored on an errant throw. Falmouth got an RBI groundout from Marty Bechina (Michigan State) in the bottom of the 12th, but Y-D pitcher Tanner Graham (UAB) stranded the tying run at third. Carlos Cortes (South Carolina) had a homer and two RBI to lead the Y-D offense. Bohm homered as part of a three-hit night for Falmouth. The teams combined to use 13 pitchers.
Wareham 4, Cotuit 1
Making his final start as he hits a summer innings cap, Miller Hogan (St. Louis) took a no-hitter into the seventh inning before the Kettleers broke through. Hogan settled for seven innings of one-hit baseball with six strikeouts, and got the win. Tanner Dodson (California) pitched the final two innings. Hogan finishes the summer with a 1.08 ERA. The three runs he allowed all came in one game. He went at least five shutout innings in his last four starts. Dodson and Tristan Pompey (Kentucky) each had an RBI to lead the Wareham offense.
Brewster 11, Harwich 10
Harwich scored double-digit runs for just the second time this season – and lost. Brewster trailed 10-2 when it scored five runs in the seventh and four in the eighth for a stunning rally. A three-run homer in the eighth by Marty Costes (Maryland) was the big blow that vaulted Brewster into the lead. Mickey Gasper (Bryant) also homered for the Whitecaps, while Christian Molfetta (Stanford) had two RBI. Brewster logged five hits, six walks and two hit-by-pitches to string the comeback together. Before the bullpen imploded, Harwich got another strong start from Tyler Baum (North Carolina), who allowed two runs in six innings.
Orleans 9, Hyannis 3
The Firebirds scored five runs in the top of the first and never looked back on their way to a third consecutive win. Romy Gonzalez (Miami) led the early onslaught with a three-run home run, his fourth of the season, all of which have come in the last seven games. Steve Passatempo (UMass-Lowell) added a two-run double in the first inning and homered later, finishing the game with two hits and three RBI. Stephen Scott (Vanderbilt), Jaxx Groshans (Kansas) and Jeff Houghtby (San Diego) also drove in runs for Orleans. Staked to the early lead, Ryan Rolison (Ole Miss) allowed one run in five innings for his league-best fourth win. Hyannis was led by Ford Proctor (Rice), who homered.
What to Watch
With everybody but Wareham losing last night, the tight West standings stayed essentially the same, but that won’t be the case tonight as Cotuit hosts Bourne. The Braves currently hold a one-point lead over the Kettleers for first place.