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Unofficial Derby

Bobby Dalbec has eight home runs in just 17 games this summer.
Bobby Dalbec has eight home runs in just 17 games this summer.

 
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.
 

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Streaking Sweep

Brady Conlan catches a high throw at first during game one of Sunday's doubleheader.
Brady Conlan catches a high throw at first during game one of Sunday’s doubleheader.

 
Hyannis had the most impressive doubleheader Sunday in the league, beating Brewster by 8-0 and 9-2 scores to run its league-best record to 6-1. But in terms of necessity, the bigger Sunday sweep belonged to the defending champion Y-D Red Sox.

After an 0-4 start, fresh off their first win, the Red Sox rolled past Cotuit 4-1 and 4-0 to get to 3-4 and leave their shaky first few games firmly in the past. Y-D used a four-run fifth inning to turn things around in Sunday’s first game. In the nightcap, a four-run third inning and a combined shutout from three hurlers sealed the victory.

The Red Sox had stumbled out of the gates, scoring only six runs and giving up 28 in their first four games.

Y-D broke out Saturday with 12 hits and a strong showing on the mound in a 5-0 win over Bourne, and it was more of the same Sunday.

Jacob DeVries (Air Force) pitched into the final frame of the first seven-inning affair, scattering seven hits and allowing just one run. After Will Haynie (Alabama) touched DeVries up for a one-out double, Brett Adcock (Michigan) relieved him, got an out, then made things interesting with two walks to load the bases. But with the go-ahead run at the plate, Adcock induced a pop-up to end the game.

Nick Ruppert (Dartmouth) had two RBI in the big fifth inning, while Cole Billingsley (South Alabama) and Nathan Rodriguez (Arkansas) knocked in one run each. The Red Sox had four hits – their only four hits of the game – in that inning, and also took advantage of two Cotuit errors.

In game two, Y-D pitching was even a little better as a trio combined for the team’s second shutout in three games. Christian Morris (Indiana) gave up three hits in five innings, before Dalton Lehnen (Cincinnati) and Gabriel Cramer (Stanford) finished the job with a scoreless inning each.

Billingsley, Donovan Walton (Oklahoma State) and Stephen Wrenn (Georgia) had two hits apiece to lead the offense.

 

Hyannis 8, Brewster 0; Hyannis 9, Brewster 2

The aforementioned Harbor Hawks were indeed impressive in their sweep of Brewster, who had come in at 3-1. Dakota Hudson (Mississippi State), who’s been mostly a reliever in two seasons in Starkville, made the start in game one and struck out seven while giving up only two hits in six shutout innings. Marc Skinner (Troy) pitched the seventh to finish out the victory. Bobby Melley (Connecticut) continued his hot start with three hits and three RBI, pacing a nine-hit attack. Hyannis led 3-0 after one, then scored five in the final inning. In the second game, four pitchers chipped in on a solid effort, with Nick Deeg (Central Michigan) picking up the win on one perfect inning. Jacob Noll (Florida Gulf Coast) led the offense this time, going 2-for-4 and driving in four of the nine runs. After going hitless for the first time all season in the doubleheader opener, Justin Arrington (Baylor) went 2-for-3. Hyannis, at 6-1, is not only in first place in the West, but also has the only winning record in the division.
 

Orleans 6, Wareham 2; Orleans 1, Wareham 0

It was also a sweep at Eldredge Park, where the Firebirds mashed three home runs in the opener then eked out a pitchers duel in the second game. Kyle Lewis (Mercer) hit his third home run of the young season to power the game-one win, while Bobby Dalbec (Arizona) knocked his second as part of a 3-for-3 day. Sean Murphy (Wright State) went 2-for-3 and hit his first homer. Kyle Cedotal (SE Louisiana) tossed five scoreless innings for the win, and Kit Scheetz (Virginia Tech) delivered his third scoreless relief outing of the summer. In the second game, Orleans was limited to three hits by Wareham starter Anthony Kay, a standout at UConn this spring, and reliever Ryan Olson (Cal Poly Pomona), but the Firebirds scratched one run across and held down the Wareham offense completely. Dalbec’s second home run of the doubleheader provided the only offense. Mitchell Jordan (Stetson) gave up one hit in five innings. Stephen Nogosek (Oregon) and Jason Harper (Southern Connecticut) closed the shutout. Orleans, now 5-2, moved into first place in the East with the sweep.
 

Harwich 1, Bourne 1; Harwich 6, Bourne 2

Bourne picked up a tie in the opener (there’s an innings limit in doubleheader games) but remained winless as Harwich took a 6-2 victory in the nightcap at Whitehouse Field. Cameron Duzenack (Dallas Baptist) homered in the third inning of the first game but Harwich answered in the fourth on an RBI double by Drew Ellis (The Citadel). Neither team would score again through nine full innings. Kyle Driscoll (Rutgers) and Austin Conway (Indiana State) were lights-out in the Bourne bullpen – with Conway striking out five of seven batters he faced – while Spencer Trayner (North Carolina) and Williams Durruthy (Florida International) did the job for Harwich. In game two, Preston Palmeiro (NC State) and Michael Hernandez (Nova Southeastern) drove in two runs apiece to power the six-run burst. Bourne was within a run in the sixth before Harwich pulled away. Hunter Williams (North Carolina) picked up the win with 5.2 solid innings. Sheldon Neuse (Oklahoma) – the rare two-way player on the Cape – picked up the save in his first outing on the mound.
 

Chatham 6, Falmouth 4; Falmouth 3, Chatham 2

The only split of the busy Sunday came at Veterans Field, where Chatham took the opener but watched Falmouth score the go-ahead run in the ninth to win the second game. Trenton Brooks (Nevada) went 2-for-3 with an RBI in the first game. Kyle Adams (Richmond) added two RBI, while Will Craig (Wake Forest) had two hits and scored a run. James Mulry (Northeastern) pitched a scoreless inning of relief for the win and Andre Scrubb (High Point) got the save. Brooks was hot again in the second game, notching his third straight two-hit game and upping his league-best average to .500. But Falmouth had the last laugh, breaking a 2-2 tie on a Boomer White (Texas A&M) RBI single. The hit scored Mitch Longo (Ohio), who had reached on an error, taken second on a sac bunt and stolen third. Andrew Frankenreider (Northern Illinois) grabbed his second save in as many days with a scoreless bottom of the ninth.
 

What to Watch

It’s a league-wide off-day Monday. Getting back to action Tuesday, Hyannis and Cotuit will renew their rivalry with a 5 p.m. game at Lowell Park.
 

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Harwich poised for more success

harwich 15
 
Harwich annually mines big-time programs for top young talent, and the cast will be similar this year. The pitching staff may lack a star at this point, but there’s plenty of pop in the order, with a handful of returning players ready to lead the way.

The Mariners won the Eastern Division regular-season crown last year.

FIVE TO WATCH

1. Buddy Reed
2. Sheldon Neuse
3. Saige Jenco
4. Hunter Newman
5. Cavan Biggio
 

NOTABLE

  • Harwich has some Big League bloodlines with the sons of Craig Biggio and Preston Palmeiro and a cousin of Brad Lidge. With Biggio and Lidge, it’s a particularly strong Houston Astros connection. Can we find a Bagwell somewhere?

  • Like a number of teams profiled so far, the Mariners don’t have the proven ace-type pitcher on staff. Alabama’s Geoffrey Bramblett is probably the closest, after a steady year in the Crimson Tide’s weekend rotation.

  • LSU’s Hunter Newman has been terrific in a bullpen role for the Omaha-bound Tigers this season. He has a 0.53 ERA in plenty of work.

  • Florida and outfielder Buddy Reed are also headed to Omaha. Reed has been one of the best hitters in a dynamic Gator offense. He was rated one of the top prospects in the Northwoods League last summer.

  • Virginia Tech’s Saige Jenco was one of the top prospects in the Futures League before he even got to Blacksburg, playing there after his senior season of high school. The outfielder has since turned into an all-ACC player.

  • Baseball America tabbed Oklahoma’s Sheldon Neuse as its preseason Big 12 Player of the Year. It didn’t quite pan out, but Neuse still earned first-team all-conference honors after hitting .275. Neuse plays shortstop and can also pitch.

    •  

    PITCHERS

    Evan Anderson – SO – Ole Miss – Had 2.11 ERA in swing role last year but had some struggles in same spot this year, with ERA over 6
    Geoffrey Bramblett – SO – Alabama – Moved to weekend rotation this year and was solid, going 8-3 with 3.81 ERA and 69 Ks
    Williams Durruthy – SO – Florida International – Standout reliever for two years running had 2.18 ERA, 2 saves this year
    Anthony Pacillo – SO – Seton Hall – Has 3.69 career ERA over 27 appearances, mostly starts in two years with Pirates
    Joe O’Donnell – SO – NC State – Ranked second on team in appearances and posted 2.08 ERA with 54 strikeouts in 52 IP
    Sean Labsan – SO – Florida Atlantic – Two-way player focused mostly on pitching this season and had 3.61 ERA as a starter
    Luke Scherzer – SO – Virginia Tech – Closer for the Hokies since freshman year owns nine career saves, struck out 56 in 45.2 IP this year
    Spencer Trayner – SO – North Carolina – Bullpen workhorse had 4.81 ERA in 23 appearances this spring
    Cam Vieaux – SO – Michigan State – Followed solid freshman year by going 4-7 with 3.49 ERA in weekend rotation
    Hunter Williams – FR – North Carolina – Made nine solid starts as a freshman and posted 1.79 ERA
    Cory Wilder – SO – NC State – Led team in strikeouts with 79 in 64.1 innings, finished with 3.50 ERA
    Zach Schellenger – FR – Seton Hall – Big righty went 2-3 with 4.97 ERA in debut season with Seton Hall
    Jacob Hill – JR – San Diego – Former JUCO standout had ERA over seven in 20 relief appearances but struck out 30 in 28 IP
    Joe DiBenedetto – SO – Seton Hall – Grabbed closer’s spot and saved three games to go with 3.13 ERA this spring
    Hunter Newman – SO – LSU – Back after medical redshirt, has been lights-out reliever with 0.53 ERA in 33.2 IP
     

    CATCHERS

    Stevie Berman – SO – Santa Clara – Standout hitter from the catching spot batted .336 with 4 HR this year
    Ryan Lidge – SO – Notre Dame – Nephew of former MLB closer Brad hit .279 with two homers in second season with Irish
     

    INFIELDERS

    Cavan Biggio – SO – Notre Dame – Son of Craig, returning Mariner hit .258 with 9 HR as a sophomore
    Drew Ellis – FR – The Citadel – Hit only .229 as a freshman but blasted 12 HR, fourth in the nation among freshmen
    Preston Palmeiro – SO – NC State – Son of former MLB star Rafael hit .305 with 7 HRs in first season of full-time duty
    Connor Justus – SO – Georgia Tech – Standout defender at shortstop hit .251 this season
    Sheldon Neuse – SO – Oklahoma – Fourth-best prospect in Cal Collegiate League last year hit .275 with 6 HR this spring
    Danny Zardon – SO – LSU – Returning Mariner hitting .288 for Tigers as a sophomore
     

    OUTFIELDERS

    Saige Jenco – SO – Virginia Tech – Third-team all-ACC pick hit .330 with 3 HR, 27 RBI and 10 SB
    Buddy Reed – SO – Florida – Standout in Northwoods League last summer hitting .313 with 18 SB for Omaha-bound Gators
    Nick Walker – SO – Old Dominion – Tied for team lead with six home runs this year, to go with .279 average
    Brock Deatherage – NC State – Started 35 games as a freshman and hit .291, stole 7 bases