Falmouth’s Conner Hale went 0-for-11 in a playoff series loss to Cotuit last summer. It was the abrupt end of a great summer in Falmouth.
For Hale and his 2014 teammates, what a difference a year makes.
Hale went 4-for-5 with four RBI and the Commodores continued to play great baseball as they finished off a sweep of Cotuit to punch their ticket to the Cape Cod Baseball League championship series. The Commodores are now 4-0 in the playoffs and will get a day of rest while they await the winner of the East finals between Yarmouth-Dennis and Harwich.
This season, Falmouth may not be the loud, must-see-at-batting-practice offensive juggernaut that it was last year – when Hale, the 2014 league RBI leader, batted eighth – but quietly, Falmouth led the league in hitting, ranked third in team ERA and matched last season’s win total. And players like Hale, back in the fold, are tearing it up.
Going back to the end of the regular season, Falmouth has won six games in a row and eight of nine. Yesterday, there was a little less starting pitching but more bullpen dominance and plenty more offense.
Making only his second start of the summer, Matt Hollenbeck (Georgetown) held his own, allowing two runs in four innings. The bullpen, which had needed to pitch only five innings in the team’s first three playoff games, picked up the slack. Travis Stout (Jacksonville State), Ryan Moseley (Texas Tech), Kevin Mooney (Maryland) and Garrett Cleavinger (Oregon) combined on five scoreless innings. That’s now 10 scoreless innings for the Falmouth ‘pen in the postseason.
The offense did the rest. Trailing 2-1, Falmouth scored two runs in the fifth and two in the seventh then blew the doors off with a seven-run eighth inning.
Hale’s big day led the charge, as he knocked in the go-ahead run in the fifth, another run in the seventh and two in the eight-inning burst. Hale is now hitting .375 with seven RBI in the playoffs.
Steven Duggar (Clemson) added three hits and two RBI, while Matt Eureste (San Jacinto) and Cameron O’Brien (West Virginia) had two hits and an RBI apiece. League MVP Kevin Newman (Arizona) went 1-for-3 with an RBI. Every player in the Falmouth lineup had at least one hit.
Kyle Holder (San Diego) homered for the Kettleers but that was all the offense they would get. The loss marked the official end of Cotuit’s title defense, but just making it this far was an impressive feat for a team that had its ups and downs.
With a measure of revenge over the Kettleers, Falmouth moves into the finals for the first time since 2011. Falmouth has not won the Cape League championship since 1980, the longest drought in the league.
Harwich 9, Y-D 2
After a 7-2 loss to Y-D on Sunday, Harwich answered in resounding fashion with a 9-2 victory on Monday, forcing a decisive game three today. The Mariners greeted Y-D starter Gregory Ostner (Binghamton), who had made only one appearance this summer, with four runs in the top of the first inning and never looked back, adding five runs off the Y-D bullpen. C.J. Hinojosa (Texas) and Matt Gonzalez (Georgia Tech) both homered, while Brendon Sanger (Florida Atlantic) and Anthony Hermelyn (Virginia Tech) knocked in a run apiece. James Mulry (Northeastern) – almost the opposite of Ostner as one of the league leaders in innings pitched – gave up one earned in four innings before Ronnie Glenn (Penn) finished with a bang. Glenn pitched five scoreless innings, striking out four and allowing just four hits, thwarting any hopes of a Y-D comeback.
What to Watch
Y-D at Harwich, 7 p.m.
Y-D’s probable starter is Justin Jacome (UC Santa Barbara), so I wouldn’t expect another four-run first inning from Harwich. Jacome hasn’t given up more than two earned runs in any start this year. Harwich’s starter is TBA.