His Y-D teammate Walker Buehler takes the top spot for Baseball America after his brief regular-season stint and his dominant effort in the playoffs. Wareham’s Kyle Cody and Brewster’s Cody Ponce check in next, before the top two hitters, Brewster’s Gio Brusa and Harwich’s Ian Happ. Bickford ranks sixth.
Hyannis’ Marc Brakeman, Bourne’s Richard Martin Jr., Falmouth’s Kevin Newman and Harwich’s C.J. Hinojosa round out the top 10.
The full list:
1. Walker Buehler
2. Kyle Cody
3. Cody Ponce
4. Gio Brusa
5. Ian Happ
6. Phil Bickford
7. Marc Brakeman
8. Richard Martin Jr.
9. Kevin Newman
10. C.J. Hinojosa
11. Alex Young
12. Steven Duggar
13. Chris Shaw
14. Kyle Twomey
15. Eric Hanhold
16. Mikey White
17. Garrett Cleavinger
18. Joe McCarthy
19. Kevin Duchene
20. Zack Erwin
21. Josh Sborz
22. Kal Simmons
23. Kyri Washington
24. Garrett Williams
25. Justin Jacome
26. Kolton Mahoney
27. Ryan Perez
28. Rhett Wiseman
29. David Thompson
30. Andrew Stevenson
As always a few surprises from guys who show the flashes that scouts love, but don’t necessarily have great seasons, like Wareham’s Kyri Washington and Chatham’s Garrett Williams.
Good to see Kevin Newman cracking the top 10. He was not on this list last year, despite winning the batting title.
Gio Brusa had the production to match his tools this summer, and it sounds like it was a major step forward for him. He ends up as the top position player prospect.
It was a big year for shortstop prospects, with Martin, Newman, Hinojosa, Mikey White and Kal Simmons all on this list. I was a little surprised to not see David Fletcher on there somewhere.
A very quiet year for rising sophomores. Bickford – who is leaving Cal State Fullerton so that he can enter next year’s draft – and Garrett Williams are the only two on the list.
Ambidextrous Hyannis pitcher Ryan Perez clearly became much more than just a curiosity this summer. He ranks 27th on this list, although BA’s Aaron Fitt speculates that Perez may end up scrapping the two-way routine to become a lefty reliever.
The other prospect list you should be looking for is Perfect Game’s, which should be out in the next few weeks.
Gio Brusa homered in Brewster’s victory over Harwich.
The Cape Cod Baseball League has used an eight-team playoff structure since 2010, and in all those years, we haven’t seen anything like what the Brewster Whitecaps are doing these days.
Brewster, well off the pace for much of the summer, has won five of six. Combined with a skid by Chatham, the Whitecaps put themselves into the thick of the playoff race. And last night, they took a full leap, beating Harwich 2-0 while Chatham lost to Orleans. That means Brewster is in fourth place by a point over Chatham, with one game to play.
It’s a rare feat.
When the Cape had a four-team playoff bracket, battles for those spots were pretty frequent. But with eight of 10 teams making it, there are bound to be two teams that aren’t even close. In five of the eight races since 2010, the fourth and fifth-place teams were separated by nine points or more.
And in the only close races, it wasn’t a come-from-behind situation, at least not one that happened so late. In 2010, Harwich held off Chatham by three points and had been ahead of the Anglers well before the stretch run. In 2011, Falmouth edged Cotuit by three points after going 3-7 in its last 10, allowing Cotuit to get close. In 2012, Bourne and Hyannis finished tied for the last playoff spot when the Braves lost their last two and the Harbor Hawks won their last two, but the team that came from behind lost out on the tiebreaker, as Bourne ended up with the spot.
Brewster’s comeback – if it’s completed – would stand alone. On July 25, the Whitecaps lost to Chatham 8-3. They fell to 12-24-1, while Chatham improved to 16-20-1. The Anglers had an eight-point cushion, with seven games to play.
Since then, Brewster hasn’t lost, and Chatham has gone 1-5. That’s the recipe for a takeover.
The Whitecaps knocked off East champ Harwich Sunday to take their biggest step yet. They managed only three hits but scored two runs. Gio Brusa (Pacific) homered and Zach Gibbons (Arizona) had an RBI. Four pitchers made the two-run lead seem plenty big enough. Joe McCarthy (Southern New Hampshire) allowed four hits in five innings. Ryan Mason (California) pitched two scoreless frames, Doug Willey (Franklin Pierce) tossed a scoreless eighth and Pat Ruotolo (Connecticut) pitched a perfect ninth for the save.
Meanwhile, Orleans beat Chatham 4-0 in a game that was called after five innings due to some classic Veterans Field fog. The Anglers would have loved to keep playing, because now the playoff race comes down to one game.
If the Whitecaps beat Harwich tonight, they’re in. If they don’t, and Chatham loses, they’re still in. But if Chatham wins, then the comeback will have been for naught.
It’s a sprint to the finish now.
Orleans 4, Chatham 0
Orleans scored all its runs in the fifth inning of the five-inning fog game. Geoff DeGroot (Rutgers) had a two-run single to key the rally and David Thompson (Miami) had a sacrifice fly. Kyle Twomey (USC) pitched four scoreless innings for the Firebirds, before Hayden Stone (Vanderbilt) pitched around a single for a scoreless fifth. The win allowed Orleans to move one point ahead of Y-D for second place in the East.
Hyannis 3, Y-D 3
The Harbor Hawks scored two runs in what proved to be the final inning, as the teams played to a tie in eight innings after the game was called due to darkness at Red Wilson Field. Sam Haggerty (New Mexico) had an RBI double in the eighth for Hyannis and Arden Pabst (Georgia Tech) knocked in the tying run with a sacrifice fly. Ryan Perez (Judson) then pitched a scoreless bottom of the eighth. Haggerty led the Harbor Hawks with three hits and two RBI. For Y-D, Andrew Stevenson (LSU) went 3-for-4 with an RBI and Rob Fonseca (Northeastern) drove in a run. Phil Bickford (Cal State Fullerton) and Zac Favre (Central Florida) each struck out four in short relief stints before the late Hyannis rally.
Postponements
Games between Falmouth and Cotuit and Bourne and Wareham were washed out.
What to Watch
One more full day of games in the regular season, with one makeup game currently scheduled for Tuesday. Tonight, eyes are on the same teams in the East as Brewster visits Harwich and Chatham visits Orleans.
Mark Laird, pictured earlier this summer, had an RBI as the West won 5-0.
The Friendly’s Cape Cod Baseball League All-Star Game dodged the rain and went off without a hitch on Sunday at Doran Park in Bourne. Work prevented me from getting over there, so you can get first-hand accounts elsewhere, but here are some notes from the West’s 5-0 victory.
The West won two of the three All-Star Games that were played at Fenway Park a few years ago, but it had been a long time since the West celebrated a victory on the Cape. Before Sunday’s win, the last time was 2002, when a West team led by Cotuit’s Bryan Snyder beat the East 4-1. The East won the next six All-Star Games before the West won in 2009 and 2010 at Fenway.
The shutout was the first since 2010, when the West won 5-0 at Fenway Park.
Ten pitchers combined on the shutout for the West team, limiting the East stars to seven hits.
Hyannis reliever Ryan Perez (Judson) officially went from curiosity to bona fide star when he struck out the side in the third inning and earned West MVP honors. Perez can pitch right-handed and left-handed, and he’s had an impressive summer. He came into the All-Star Game with a 2.05 ERA and 38 strikeouts in 26.2 innings. He struck out a formidable trio in his one All-Star inning, fanning Mikey White (Alabama), Jordan Tarsovich (VMI) and Ian Happ (Cincinnati). I hope there was a stand-off between the switch-hitting Happ and the switch-pitching Perez.
Perez is the first pitcher to earn MVP honors since Wareham’s Konner Wade in 2011. He was the first Hyannis MVP since Ben Paulsen in 2008.
Chatham’s A.J. Murray (Georgia Tech) won MVP honors with a 2-for-2 night, becoming the second Angler in as many years to win the top honor. J.D. Davis took the MVP award for the East last year.
Each team had one returning all-star. Reigning batting champ Kevin Newman (Arizona) went 1-for-2 for the West. Ian Happ (Cincinnati) was 0-for-2 for the East.
The Twitter consensus is that the pitching was better in this year’s All-Star game than last year’s. Brewster’s Cody Ponce (Cal Poly Pomona) was perhaps the most impressive.
Cody Ponce has monster stuff. 93-96 mph FB, curveball is biting at 81-83 and slider is nasty at 86-88. Filthy
According to Piliere, Wareham’s Kyle Cody (Kentucky) hit 97 on the radar gun, while Y-D’s Phil Bickford (Cal State Fullerton), a first-round pick last year, threw pitches at 94, 95, 95 in a three-pitch strikeout.
Wareham’s Chris Chinea (LSU) and Falmouth’s Cameron O’Brien (West Virginia), both playing from the catcher’s spot, hit home runs for the West. Falmouth’s Matt Eureste (San Jacinto) and Bourne’s Mark Laird (LSU) also drove in runs.
Cotuit’s Tres Barrera (Texas) won the 2014 TD Ameritrade College Home Run Derby but was limited to one in the Cape League contest. The CCBL crown went to Harwich’s Sal Annunziata (Seton Hall).
Brian Serven puts a tag on a Cotuit runner in Wednesday’s game.
The wedding and honeymoon were pretty much perfect. What did I miss?
Two weeks of an eight-week Cape League season is a pretty good chunk of time. I feel like I went on a field trip that not everybody went on, and now that I’m back to school, it’s tough to get my bearings.
Then again, some things don’t seem to be changing.
Bourne continued to dominate the West last night with a 12-4 win over Cotuit, its third in a row. In the East, Harwich and Orleans remain at the top of the standings, although there was finally a change in order with a 4-3 extra-innings win by Orleans last night that put the Firebirds into first place.
Bourne has the best record in the league at 23-11-1. In their current three-game streak, they’ve allowed four runs in each game and have scored plenty more, capped by last night’s win over Cotuit. Samuel Kmiec (Winthrop) delivered a strong start, allowing one run in 5.1 innings. He’s won two starts in a row after a rough start to the season.
The offense backed Kmiec with 15 hits. Richard Martin Jr. (Florida), Blake Allemand (Texas A&M) and Stephen Wrenn (Georgia) led the way with three hits apiece. Allemand and Mark Laird (LSU) each had two RBI.
Over in Harwich, first place in the East finally changed hands, as Orleans beat Harwich 4-3 in 11 innings. The game was tied 2-2 until the Firebirds pushed two runs across in the top of the 11th, one on a wild pitch and the other on a Cole Peragine (Stony Brook) RBI single. Harwich got within a run in the bottom of the 11th on a Sal Annunziata (Seton Hall) RBI double, but Orleans reliever Hayden Stone (Vanderbilt) retired two of the league’s best hitters – Anthony Hermelyn (Virginia Tech) and Ian Happ (Cincinnati) – to end the game.
Stone allowed one run in two innings for the win. Bobby Dalbec (Arizona) delivered four huge innings of scoreless relief to keep the game tied. Harwich’s Jacob Evans (Oklahoma) played the same role as Dalbec, with 4.1 scoreless innings.
Orleans is now 21-13-2 while Harwich dropped to 20-13-2.
Y-D 8, Chatham 4
One big difference since I last checked in two weeks ago: the Y-D Red Sox. Y-D beat Chatham 8-4 last night for its ninth win in its last 11 games. The Red Sox are now 20-15, just a two points out of second place and four points out of first. A balanced offensive attack led the way against Chatham standout Kyle Davis (USC), with five players knocking two hits each. Davis, typically a reliever, came in with a 1.35 ERA but was touched up for seven runs in four innings. Jesse Jenner (San Diego) had two hits and two RBI to lead the charge. Jordan Tarsovich (VMI) went 2-for-3 for his 12th multi-hit game of the summer. On the mound for Y-D, Cody Poteet (UCLA) allowed two earned runs in five innings. Three relievers combined on four scoreless innings. Chatham got three hits from Nick Collins (Georgetown). The loss was the Anglers’ fourth in a row.
Hyannis 3, Wareham 0
Blake Hickman (Iowa) delivered his second consecutive impressive start and Hyannis overcame dominant Wareham pitching to shut out the Gatemen. Hickman had gone seven scoreless innings in his previous start, a 3-0 win over Brewster. This time, he went 6.1 scoreless frames, striking out five and allowing four hits. Ryan Perez (Judson) followed Hickman to the mound and picked up a save with 2.2 shutout innings. Wareham’s Kyle Cody (Kentucky) and Sean Adler (USC) combined for six perfect innings, but Hyannis broke through for three runs in the seventh. John La Prise (Virginia) led the offense with a hit and two RBI.
Falmouth 7, Brewster 3
The Commodores remain comfortably in second place in the West after rebounding from a loss to Bourne Tuesday with a win over Brewster. Conner Hale (LSU) hit his fourth home run while Austin Afenir (Oral Roberts) had two hits and three RBI. Jake Madsen (Ohio) added three hits and two RBI. Alex Young (TCU) struck out seven and gave up two runs in five innings. Ryan Moseley (Texas Tech) got the win in relief. Scott Kingery (Arizona) and Luke Lowery (East Carolina) both homered for Falmouth.
What to Watch
Three games on tap tonight, including a good one in Yarmouth, where the red-hot Red Sox take on West-leading Bourne.
A.J. Murray hit a walk-off home run as Chatham beat Hyannis.
Sunday night was a big one for home runs in the Cape Cod Baseball League, with seven of 10 teams hitting at least one and those squads combining for 10 total.
They saved the biggest one for last.
In the bottom of the 12th at Veterans Field, Chatham’s A.J. Murray (Georgia Tech) hit a walk-off solo home run to give the Anglers a 5-4 victory over Hyannis.
Chatham was coming off a one-run loss to Brewster in which it was the victim of a late Whitecaps home run. This time, after tying the game in the eighth, the Anglers held Hyannis down and finally broke through in the 12th.
Murray led off the inning against Hyannis closer Ian Gibaut (Tulane), who had given up two runs – and no homers – in five appearances this summer. Murray jumped off the first pitch Gibaut threw – and made it the only pitch Gibaut would throw.
The homer was the third of the year for Murray, which puts him in a tie for the league lead.
It made a winner out of the other hero, Kyle Davis (USC), who continued to look like perhaps the most valuable pitcher in the league. He leads the league in appearances with eight, ranks second in the league in strikeouts with 20 and has a 1.35 ERA. He was at his bullpen-saving best on Sunday, coming on in the ninth and pitching four scoreless innings to keep the game tied. He allowed just one hit and struck out four. In the top of the 12th, he struck out the last two batters on four pitches each to give Chatham a little surge of momentum ahead of Murray’s blast.
Murray finished the night 3-for-4 with two RBI. Kal Simmons (Kennesaw State) added two hits. Nick Collins (Georgetown), in as a pinch-hitter, knocked in the tying run in the eighth with a single.
Hyannis got a home run from Carl Wise (College of Charleston) and four hits from Donnie Dewees Jr. (North Florida). Ryan Perez (Judson) struck out five in three scoreless innings of relief and is now tied with Davis for second in the league in K’s.
Chatham improved to 8-8-1 while Hyannis fell to 10-7.
Orleans 15, Harwich 8
No one’s been very close to first-place Harwich since the first week of the season, but the Firebirds drew within two games thanks to their fourth straight win, a blowout of the Mariners. The Firebirds (9-8) scored five runs in each of the first two innings. After Harwich (11-6) chipped away to make it 10-7 going into the eighth, Orleans delivered another five-run inning to put the game away. Bobby Dalbec (Arizona) and R.J. Ybarra (Arizona State) hit back-to-back home runs to account for the five runs in the eighth. Dalbec finished with four RBI. Geoff DeGroot (Rutgers), Edwin Rios (Florida International) and Mitchell Tolman (Oregon) all had three hits. For Harwich, Angelo Amendolare (Jacksonville) had three hits and Ian Happ (Cincinnati) had three RBI.
Wareham 7, Cotuit 6
Cotuit (8-9) joined in the home run party with two, but the Gatemen (6-11) had a little more offense in the end in a 7-6 victory. Jake Little (Memphis) homered for the Gatemen, his third of the year, while Willie Calhoun (Arizona) went 2-for-4 with his 12th double. Charlie Warren (Rice) added two hits while Corey Ray (Louisville) had two RBI. Wareham finished with 10 hits and now leads the league in team batting average. The Gatemen bullpen also delivered, with four pitching combining on 6.1 innings of one-run ball. Nick Fuller (UMass-Dartmouth) was credited with the win and Ryan Olson (San Diego) picked up the save. For Cotuit, Logan Taylor (Texas A&M) and Austin Byler (Nevada) each hit their third home run of the summer.
Falmouth 8, Bourne 3
The Commodores touched up Bourne standout Andrew Sopko (Gonzaga) for three runs then really broke out against the bullpen and pulled away for an 8-3 victory. Sopko had struck out 13 and given up one run in 10 innings thus far, but Falmouth got a leadoff home run from Sam Gillikin (Auburn) in the first inning and tacked on single runs in the second and fourth innings. Sopko departed in the sixth, and Austin Afenir (Oral Roberts) – who went 4-for-4 – broke a 3-3 tie with an RBI single. Cameron O’Brien (West Virginia) delivered an RBI double in the seventh. In the eighth, Afenir doubled home a run and Nicholas Ramos (Indiana) knocked in two with a base hit. The late surge made a winner out of reliever Kyle Zimmerman (Wayne State), who went two scoreless innings. Bourne still leads the West with an 11-6 record. Falmouth improved to 8-8-1.
Y-D 9, Brewster 7
Y-D held off a late charge by Mikey White (Alabama) and Brewster to snap a two-game skid. The Red Sox (6-11) led 9-4 going into the ninth before the Whitecaps (7-10) made it interesting. After a sacrifice fly by Wade Wass (Alabama), White hit his second home run of the game – a two-run shot – to get his team within two runs. But with a runner on first, Phil Bickford (Cal State Fullerton) came out of the Y-D bullpen and struck out Andrew Lee (Tennessee) to end the game. The win went to starter Bryan Bonnell (UNLV), who allowed three runs in six innings. The Y-D offense was led by Andrew Stevenson (LSU) and Josh Lester (Missouri), who had two hits each. Jason Goldstein (Illinois) had one hit and four RBI, while Rob Fonseca (Northeastern) drove in two.
What to Watch
The league leaders in ERA among qualified starting pitchers will square off as Falmouth visits Hyannis. Matt Hall (Missouri State), who has a 0.56 ERA, will go for the Commodores against Hyannis and Tate Scioneaux (SE Louisiana), who has a 1.56 ERA.
