Two of the Cape League’s major honors were handed out to Cotuit players Wednesday as Greyson Jenista (Wichita State) won the league MVP and Griffin Conine (Duke) was named the Top Prospect. Then a red-hot young gun upstaged his award winning teammates. Then the Kettleers won to keep alive hopes of a division title.
It was a big day at Lowell Park.
Jenista became the first Cotuit player to win the MVP award since Justin Smoak in 2006. I was a bit surprised that Jenista was the MVP pick considering the kind of season his teammate Conine has had, not to mention the campaigns of Jimmy Herron and Jenista’s college teammate, Alec Bohm. But take nothing away from the year Jenista is putting together. Honored before the game, he promptly went 3-for-4 and is now hitting .317 with three homers and 16 RBI.
Conine is fourth in the league in hitting, tied for the lead in home runs and fourth in RBI. Nick Senzel won both the MVP and top prospect award in 2015 and Conine certainly had a case for both, but I’m sure he didn’t mind seeing his teammate take one.
While Jenista went 3-for-4 and Conine had a hit in the game that followed, it was a younger teammate who starred again for the Kettleers in their win over Y-D. UCLA rising sophomore Michael Toglia – one of the most intriguing rising soph bats in the league – hit his fourth home run in four days as part of a 2-for-4, two RBI night. Toglia now has six home runs on the year, tied for fifth in the league.
Cotuit also got two RBI from Gian Martellini (Boston College). Chase Cohen (Georgia Southern) earned the win with three strong innings of relief and Brian Rapp (Boston College) picked up the save.
The win kept Cotuit two points back of Falmouth, who also won. If the Commodores lose in their finale tonight, the Kettleers could move into a tie for first place with a victory. Having won the season series against Falmouth, Cotuit would then be the top seed in the West.
Orleans 3, Chatham 2
The Firebirds walked off with the division title as Ethan Paul’s RBI single in the ninth gave Orleans a 3-2 win and clinched first place in the East Division. Y-D’s loss earlier in the day opened the door for Orleans to seal the crown and the top seed. It wasn’t easy, but the ninth inning rally did the trick. After Chatham had tied the game in the top of the ninth, Orleans came back on a leadoff single by Lars Nootbaar (USC). Paul then singled to left field for the game-winning hit. Nootbaar and Paul both finished with three hits. The top team in the league for most of the summer – but with Y-D always at its heels – Orleans is now officially a top seed.
Falmouth 7, Hyannis 6
The Commodores stayed a step ahead of Cotuit and did Wareham a favor, as the Hyannis loss clinched the final playoff spot for the Gatemen. Marty Bechina (Michigan State) and Cameron O’Neill (Holy Cross) drove in two runs each for the Commodores, while Joshua Breaux (McLennan CC) and George Janca (Texas A&M) had two hits apiece. The 7-6 score was already on the board by the fifth inning, and three Falmouth relievers kept it from changing. William Ethridge (Ole Miss), Derrick Adams (Jacksonville State) and Ryan Zeferjahn (Kansas) closed out the win.
Bourne 13, Wareham 4
While the Gatemen are in the playoffs thanks to the Hyannis loss, they were on the wrong end of a blowout against Bourne, as the Braves snapped a five-game skid in impressive fashion. Scott Schreiber (Nebraska) went 4-for-5 with two RBI and two runs scored to lead a 19-hit barrage. Kevin Radziewicz (Fairfield) had three hits and late addition Anthony Prato (UConn) had three hits and scored three runs. Every player in the starting lineup had at least one hit. Grant Williams (Kennesaw State) chipped in three RBI and Lyle Lin (Arizona State) had two.
Harwich 7, Brewster 4
Brewster had beaten second-place Y-D and first-place Orleans in consecutive games but couldn’t keep the win streak going against last-place Harwich, who rallied from a 2-0 deficit for the win. Cobie Vance (Alabama) and Matt Vierling (Notre Dame) each had two hits and an RBI to lead the Mariner offense. Tyler Baum (North Carolina) put in impressive work out of the bullpen and may have sealed several spots atop final league leaderboards with just one game left. Baum picked up his league-best fifth win, moved into a tie for the league lead with 41 strikeouts and put his ERA at a Cape-best 2.72.
What to Watch
Two things still up for grabs on the final day of the season – the top seed in the West and the No. 3 spot in the East.
Jenista?!!! I could have lived with Conine winning both awards, or giving MVP to Bohr or Herron, but Jenista?
Who decides these awards, anyway? Mrs. Jenista?