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Playoffs?

Jay Baum and Hyannis have already secured a playoff spot.

 
It’s a little early to talk playoffs, but in the top-heavy Western Division, it’s already a conversation.

Because Wareham has struggled – and because the rest of the division features three of the league’s best teams – Hyannis and Cotuit clinched two of the four playoff spots last night. With 12 games left, the best Wareham could do is 36 points. Hyannis now has 39 and Cotuit has 37. Falmouth is one win from clinching with 36 points.

Hyannis, who has won two straight after a lopsided loss to Falmouth, got it done last night with an 8-3 victory over Wareham. Jeff Schalk (UAB) went 3-for-5 with three RBI and his fourth home run to lead the Harbor Hawks charge. Skyler Ewing (Rice) delivered his third multi-hit game in the last seven, going 3-for-4 with three RBI.

Rocky McCord (Auburn) started and gave up three runs in 4.2 innings. Three relievers pitched shutout baseball the rest of the way, with Jay Shaw (Alabama) getting credited with the victory.

Meanwhile, Cotuit clinched without picking up a win. The Kettleers and Harwich played to a 3-3 tie in 10 innings before darkness called the game. Cotuit trailed 3-1 into the ninth before tying the game on a Hunter Cole (Georgia) home run.

Rhett Wiseman (Vanderbilt) also homered for the Kettleers. Patrick Corbett (Coastal Carolina) pitched four strong innings.

For Harwich, Gunnar Heidt (College of Charleston) had three hits and two RBI. Brendon Hayden (Virginia Tech) drove in the other run. On the mound, A.J. Reed (Kentucky) went five scoreless innings.

Hyannis now has a two-point lead on Cotuit for first place in the West.

 

Chatham 10, Falmouth 4

The Anglers won their third straight game, clinching a winning record with an easy victory over the powerful Commodores. Falmouth scored eight runs in the first two innings and never looked back. J.D. Davis (Cal State Fullerton) followed up teammate Connor Joe’s big night with one of his own, going 5-for-5 with two RBI. Brandon Sedell (Nova Southeastern) had three hits and three RBI, while Dante Flores (USC) added three hits and two RBI. Lukas Schiraldi (Navarro) won for the third straight time with his best start of the summer, going six shutout innings with four strikeouts. He gave up just four hits. For Falmouth, Cameron O’Brien (Northeast Texas CC) hit a home run.

 

Orleans 6, Brewster 1

The Whitecaps have been charging hard at Orleans and the fourth spot in the East standings, but the Firebirds scored a crucial win in that race last night. Jordan Luplow (Fresno State) stretched his hitting streak to eight with a 2-for-4, four RBI night. He also homered, his third of the season. Will Fulmer (Vanderbilt) also homered for the Firebirds, while Ross Kivett (Kansas State) had two hits. Shawn O’Neill (La Salle) allowed a run in 6.1 innings before Trevor Kelley (North Carolina) slammed the door with a dominant relief performance. Kelley struck out six of the 10 batters he faced in 2.2 innings.

 

Bourne 8, Y-D 1

The Braves got five strong innings from Ryan Kellogg (Arizona State) and a 15-hit night en route to an easy win over the Red Sox. Kellogg struck out three and allowed one run in five innings. Jack English (Florida Gulf Coast) went three scoreless innings and Justin McCalvin (Kennesaw State) finished it off. Clint Freeman (East Tennessee State) had three hits and two RBI and Eric Fisher (Arkansas) also drove in two. The Braves are now 15-15-1.

 

What to Watch

East Divisoin all-star starter Aaron Bummer (Nebraska) will be looking for his fifth win when Harwich hosts Bourne. Austin Gomber (Florida Atlantic), who’s been up and down this summer after a great spring, starts for Bourne.
 

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Next in Line

Daniel Savas struck out 12 in eight innings as Y-D topped Harwich.

 
It has not been a good year for Yarmouth-Dennis Red Sox pitchers and with ace Erick Fedde taking a detour to Team USA, it didn’t look like this week would be much help.

Daniel Savas had something to say about that.

The righty from Illinois State turned in as dominant a performance last night as anyone on the Cape has delivered this summer. He struck out 12 and allowed one run in eight innings as the Red Sox beat Harwich 5-3.

It was the the third straight win for Savas, who is steadily emerging as one of the top pitchers in the league. He has suddenly vaulted himself into second in the league in strikeouts, despite the fact that he didn’t make his first appearance until June 23 and his first start until July 5.

The performance is only surprising in the sense that you might not have seen it coming. Savas was a late arrival – on a temporary contract, in fact – but his spring was tremendous. He went 10-0 for Illinois State with a 1.79 ERA and five complete games in 15 starts. He struck out 98 in 100.1 innings. Opponents hit just .180 against him.

Savas had a solid freshman season in 2011 before redshirting in 2012. This season represented an impressive return. He was a first-team all-Missouri Valley pick.

After all of that, though, Savas was not drafted this spring. He hit the road for the Cape, and the Red Sox are very happy he did. He’s been just what the doctor ordered for them – they’re 3-0 in games he’s started.

Last night, Savas actually gave up a home run to the first batter he faced, Ian Happ (Cincinnati), but it was smooth sailing from there. He struck out the side after the home run, then cruised, allowing just four more hits. He only got stronger as the game went on, retiring the last 11 batters he faced.

He had plenty of support, too. The Red Sox got two RBI from D.J. Stewart (Florida), plus one RBI each by Taylor Smart (Tennessee) and Alex Blandino (Stanford).

The Red Sox are now just one game under .500, and they may get their ace back soon – Fedde is expected back when Team USA’s season ends next week.

But with Savas in the mix, it may get crowded at the top of the rotation.

 

Chatham 11, Cotuit 8

The East and West first-place teams rank third and fourth in team ERA, but their third meeting of the year was a slugfest. Chatham prevailed, running its record against the Kettleers to 3-0 and becoming the first team in the league to 20 wins. They’re now 20-9. The Anglers scored six runs in the fourth, still found themselves in a tied game but took the lead with one in the sixth and three in the seventh. J.D. Davis (Cal State Fullerton) hit his second home run, part of a three-hit, three RBI night. Michael Russell (North Carolina) drove in two runs, while Dante Flores (USC), Connor Joe (San Diego) and Jimmy Pickens (Michigan State) drove in one each. On the mound, Andrew McGee (Monmouth) had another tough outing, but the bullpen picked up the slack, allowing just one run over the final 4.1 innings. Ryan Leach (Franklin Pierce) got the win and Kyle Funkhouser (Louisville) notched his fourth save in just his fifth appearance. For Cotuit, Rhett Wiseman (Vanderbilt) went 3-for-4 with his first home run of the summer.

 

Bourne 7, Brewster 0

Jaron Long (Ohio State) was terrific again as the Braves shut out Brewster for their second straight win. Long went six scoreless, striking out three and giving up just three hits. He’s now 5-0 and owns more than a third of his team’s wins. He has allowed one run all summer and just 17 hits in 28 innings pitched. Michael Costello (Radford) and Justin McCalvin (Kennesaw State) finished off the shutout, with McCalvin striking out the side in a spotless ninth. The Bourne offense was led by Max Pentecost (Kennesaw State), who went 2-for-5 with three RBI. Trent Gilbert (Arizona) went 4-for-4.

 

Falmouth 12, Hyannis 1

The Commodores was 0-4 against Hyannis but exacted a measure of revenge last night, pounding 18 hits on their way to the lopsided victory. Casey Gillaspie (Wichita State) went 2-for-4 and hit his sixth home run, which vaults him into the league lead. Five other Commodores also had multi-hit games, led by Kevin Cron (TCU), who went 4-for-4 with three RBI. Dylan Davis (Oregon State) had three RBI and Rhys Hoskins (Sacramento State) had two, bumping his league-high total to 26. On the mound, Trey Teakell (TCU) – who pitched in a loss to Hyannis last week – went seven strong innings, striking out four and giving up only one hit.

 

Orleans 4, Wareham 0

The Firebirds have been struggling but picked up a much-needed victory with a shutout of the Gatemen. Vanderbilt lefty Jared Miller made his third start and was at his best, tossing seven innings of two-hit baseball. He struck out four. Jeremy Rhoades (Illinois State) and Matt Troupe (Arizona) finished it off, with Troupe getting his sixth save. Jordan Luplow (Fresno State) went 4-for-4 with his second home run of the summer, stretching his hit streak to six games. Vince Conde (Vanderbilt) and Austin Davidson (Pepperdine) had two hits each.

 

What to Watch

Cotuit and Hyannis, the top two teams in the West, will square off for the fourth time this season at 6 p.m. at McKeon Park. The Kettleers are 3-1 in the four match-ups. Kyle Freeland (Evansville), who’s won his last two starts, gets the ball for Hyannis. Christian Cecilio (San Francisco), who has settled in after one bad June start, is on the hill for Cotuit.

 

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Mad Max

Max Pentecost went 5-for-5 with two home runs for the Bourne Braves last night.

 
Around 9:30 last night, I was cruising the Cape Cod Baseball League box scores from the evening, trying to get an idea of what I might write about today. I saw that Max Pentecost was having a big night, but his Bourne Braves were losing at the time. I didn’t check again.

Late into the night, Pentecost’s big performance turned huge.

The rising junior at Kennesaw State went 5-for-5 with two home runs, including a two-run bomb that broke a tie game in the 12th and sent the Braves on their way to an 8-6 victory over Orleans.

Every once in a while, you get a masterful performance in the Cape League, and without a doubt, this was one of them.

Pentecost came in hitting .329 with three home runs, already a solid line. He’s been getting some love lately as potentially the top catching prospect on the Cape.

After Wednesday, you can drop the catching tag from that and just call him one of the best.

Pentecost reached base all seven times, adding a walk and a hit-by-pitch to his 5-for-5 night.

And the five hits weren’t just any five hits. He hit a solo home run in the third to put the Braves ahead 2-1. In the fifth, he singled as part of a three-run rally. In the seventh, with his team trailing 6-5 and two outs, Pentecost singled to bring in the tying run.

Apparently, he was just setting the stage for even more heroics.

After three scoreless innings, Pentecost waited in the on-deck circle with two outs in the 12th and watched as Mason Robbins (Southern Miss) worked a walk. That gave Pentecost a chance and he didn’t waste it, smashing a home run over the fence in left to give the Braves the lead.

Pentecost’s teammate Justin McCalvin loaded the bases in the bottom of the 12th but wiggled out with a game-ending double-play.

That secured a marathon win – and hero status for Pentecost.

The Georgia native was a potential early-round pick out of high school but he had to have Tommy John surgery. He still only fell to the seventh round, but headed to Kennesaw State. After being named the seventh-best prospect in the NECBL last summer, he hit three home runs this spring.

Now he’s officially one of the best on the Cape. Thanks to his big night, he ranks second in the league in hitting, is tied for the lead in home runs and sits third in RBI.

And he owns the 2013 Cape League season’s most memorable performance.

 

Hyannis 10, Falmouth 8

Falmouth’s big bats touched up top pitching prospect Jeff Hoffman (East Carolina) for eight runs in 3.2 innings, but it was Hoffman’s Harbor Hawks who got the last laugh. Hyannis rallied for 10 runs over the final five innings to win 10-8 and grab sole possession of first place in the West with a 15-7 record. Falmouth slipped to 14-9. The comeback started with three runs in the fifth and continued with six in the sixth. Tyler Spoon (Arkansas) led the charge with three hits and two RBI, while Jay Baum (Clemson) and Dominic Jose (Stanford) also knocked in two runs each. Andrew Istler (Duke) stopped the bleeding after Hoffman’s rough outing and got the win. Jay Shaw (Alabama) and Jordan Foley (Central Michigan) finished it off. For Falmouth, Kevin Newman (Arizona) and Rhys Hoskins (Sacramento State) had three hits each.

 

Y-D 6, Chatham 4

Chatham ace Andrew McGee (Monmouth) had his first bad start of the summer and Y-D (11-12-1) took advantage, knocking off the first-place Anglers (15-8-1). Brandon Downes (Virginia) hit his first home run for the Red Sox, Jose Trevino (Oral Roberts) had three hits and D.J. Stewart (Florida State) drove in two runs. Daniel Savas (Illinois State), who went seven shutout innings in his last start, gave up three earned in 5.2 innings for the win. He struck out seven. Darrell Hunter (Oregon) worked three scoreless innings with four strikeouts for the save. Chatham got a home run from Josh Eldridge (Old Dominion) and two hits from Dante Flores (USC).

 

Brewster 6, Cotuit 5

The Whitecaps (8-15) won for the second straight time and the fifth time in seven games, as they knocked off Cotuit (14-10). Corey Taylor (Texas Tech) delivered three strong innings of relief for the win and Brad Schreiber (Purdue) got the save. Kyle Overstreet (Alabama) homered for the Whitecaps, while Scott Heineman (Oregon) had three hits and stole two bases. Mike Ford (Princeton) went 2-for-3 with two RBI to lead Cotuit.

 

Harwich 8, Wareham 3

The Mariners (13-11) stopped a two-game skid with a victory over the Gatemen (5-19). Harwich broke open a 3-2 game with five runs in the seventh. Derek Fisher (Virginia) led the big offensive night, going 3-for-4 with three RBI. He’s atop the batting average leaderboard at .397. Ryan Lindemuth (William & Mary) added two hits and two RBI. Jalen Beeks (Arkansas) turned in six strong innings on the mound, allowing two runs and striking out four for the win.

 

What to Watch

Just two games on the schedule tonight, but it could be a fun one in Bourne. The Braves host Falmouth at 6 p.m., with ace Jaron Long (Ohio State) on the hill – and we saw what Falmouth can do to a top starter last night. With Pentecost now in the mix, the game also features the league’s top five home run hitters.