Bobby Dalbec (Arizona) will not participate in the Cape League All-Star Game’s Home Run Derby.
So the Orleans slugger simply had his own personal derby Sunday night. Dalbec blasted two, giving him a league-best eight on the summer, as the Firebirds beat Y-D 5-4.
While Ronnie Dawson (Ohio State) was the hero with a walk-off single in the ninth, Dalbec continued to carry the torch for the Firebirds’ powerful offense.
Dalbec’s eight home runs match of the end-of-season totals for the league leaders in each of the last two seasons. And of course, the amazing thing is that he has hit eight home runs in just 17 games. Dalbec started the season in Orleans and played in only nine games before departing for Team USA. He has played eight games since returning.
Because it’s fun to play the pace game, if Dalbec had not played with Team USA and continued on his current home run track, he would have somewhere around 13 right now.
Even when you don’t consider what could have been, Dalbec is having a remarkably powerful summer. He hit a two-run shot in the first inning last night then hit a solo shot in his next at-bat.
Dalbec’s bombs upped the Firebirds’ team total to 28. They have nearly doubled up their next closest competitor in that category (Y-D’s 15).
For all of Dalbec’s pop Sunday, the Firebirds found themselves in a tied game with Y-D in the ninth. Dawson came up with runners on first and third and plated the winning run with a base hit. Kit Scheetz (Virginia Tech) got the win in relief. Bryan Reynolds (Vanderbilt) went 3-for-4 and his hit in the ninth set up Dawson’s game-winner.
Orleans is now 24-9 and has a whopping 12-point lead on second-place Brewster and Chatham. Y-D fell to 17-16 with Sunday’s loss.
Falmouth 6, Hyannis 6
Hyannis trailed 6-1 in the bottom of the ninth and scored five runs to tie it before the teams played three scoreless extra innings. Austin Hays (Jacksonville) had a two-run double in the big ninth and came home with the tying run on a triple by Colby Bortles (Ole Miss). Hyannis went on to load the bases in the 11th but couldn’t push a run across. Wyatt Short (Ole Miss) and Andrew Frankenreider (Northern Illinois) handled the extra-inning pitching duties for Falmouth, while Will Stillman (Wofford) and Collin Kober (McNeese State) did the job for Hyannis. For Falmouth, J.J. Matijevic (Arizona) hit his fourth home run.
Bourne 4, Chatham 2
Bourne broke a 2-2 tie in the eighth on RBI singles by Mike Garzillo (Lehigh) and Nick Solak (Louisville) and went on to a 4-2 win over the Anglers. The key hits were part of 2-for-4 days for both Garzillo and Solak. Austin Conway (Indiana State) went 1.2 innings of relief for the win. Keegan Akin (Western Michigan) had gone five shutout innings before Chatham rallied. Luke Persico (UCLA) and Garrett Hampson (Long Beach State) both had two hits for the Anglers.
Harwich 8, Brewster 5
The Mariners stopped Brewster’s five-game winning streak with an 8-5 win at Whitehouse Field. Joe O’Donnell (NC State) tossed five shutout innings before the Whitecaps made a late surge against the Mariner bullpen that fell short. Sheldon Neuse (Oklahoma), Adam Pate (North Carolina) and Preston Palmeiro (NC State) all had three hits for the Mariners. Brock Deatherage (NC State) and Cavan Biggio (Notre Dame) each drove in two runs. Spencer Trayner (North Carolina) got the save for the Mariners, escaping a jam in the ninth.
Cotuit 5, Wareham 3
The Kettleers won for the second straight night and have now matched Wareham and Falmouth with 13 wins in the West. Cotuit trailed 3-0 into the fourth but scored all its runs from there. Jeren Kendall (Vanderbilt) went 2-for-3 with two RBI as he continues to be a major spark for the Kettleers. He’s hitting .297 since arriving from Omaha. Brett Stephens (UCLA), Tim Susnara (Oregon) and Jackson Klein (Stanford) each knocked in a run. Duncan Robinson (Dartmouth) got the win in relief and Justin Dunn (Boston College) had the save.
What to Watch
Off day around the league today. Tuesday night, second-place Bourne will try to continue its success against West-leading Hyannis at McKeon Park.