Chatham, Mass. — Three games remain in the regular season for the Chatham Anglers, as they trail the Brewster Whitecaps by three points for the final playoff spot in the East Division. Today, as they face off with the Falmouth Commodores for the final time, the Anglers (15-25-1) find themselves in control of their own destiny. Win, and they stay in the playoff hunt for another day. Lose, and Chatham’s season hinges on the outcome of Brewster’s game against Yarmouth-Dennis.

The Anglers enter today’s contest hoping to recapture some of their offensive prowess from Saturday’s win over Y-D, where they scored six runs against one of the best teams in the CCBL. On Sunday, Chatham fell 1-0 to Cotuit and now look to overcome yesterday’s offensive shortcomings today against the Commodores.

“They’ve been doing it all year long,” said manager John Schiffner of this year’s A’s. “They’ve been coming back, and coming back, and coming back after tough losses. There’s nothing new for them.” 

Falmouth (28-13-0) comes into Chatham in good spirits after clinching the West Division with a shutout victory over Bourne yesterday at Guv Fuller Field.

At the Plate: Hagen Oweby was a late addition to the Anglers after Virginia Tech product Joe Freiday was released due to injury in late June. Since arriving, Owenby has been a catalyst for the Chatham offense and now owns 11 hits, five RBIs, and a homerun all the while crafting a .212 average for Chatham.

In his last two games, Owenby has been on a tear, collecting three hits in seven at-bats, while driving in three runs and scoring another.    

Gunnar Troutwine has also been one of the heavy hitters for the Anglers as of late. The catcher, who switches off with Owenby and LSU product Jordan Romero behind the plate, has put together a .500 average in his last three games, thanks to four hits in eight at-bats.

The Commodores have currently scored 201 runs this summer– the second most in the CCBL behind only Brewster. Leading the way for them this season has been Arizona infielder, JJ Matijevic.

Batting at a .356 average in 20 games this season, Matijevic has been one of the most productive hitters in not only Falmouth, but in the entire league. Matijevic has thrived for the Commodores offense this season, reaching base in 12 straight games dating back to July 15. In that span, Matijevic has been held hitless just once.

On the Rubber: Caleb Gilbert (1-2) goes for Chatham today after registering his first win on July 26 against Y-D. In that outing, Gilbert appeared in an inning of relief and struck out the side as the Anglers won 5-4.

The LSU Tiger has made one other start against Falmouth this season, back on July 9 at Guv Fuller Field. Surrendering two earned runs in four innings in that contest, Gilbert, and Chatham, shouldered a 4-2 loss. Gilbert will be looking for a redemptive performance today, as he tries to silence one of the league’s most potent lineups to keep Chatham’s postseason hopes alive.

Opposing the Anglers will be Brady Puckett, the Lipscomb University righty who opened the season against Chatham back on June 10. On the season, Puckett has complied a 1.12 ERA, striking out 20 batters in 40 innings pitched.

In his last start, against the Hyannis Harbor Hawks on July 26, Puckett turned in his longest outing of the year. The sophomore tossed seven full innings, allowing one run on two hits while striking out three.

Down the Road: Chatham continues the final leg of the regular season tomorrow by hosting the rival Orleans Firebirds at Veterans Field at 7 p.m. Following that contest, the Anglers will head to Eldredge Park on Wednesday for their regular season finale against Orleans.  

Broadcast Information

Make sure to tune in at 6:40 p.m. today for the Anglers Extra Pregame Show on the Cape Cod Baseball Network. Evan Stockton will introduce you to his Catch of the Day while Jake Eisenberg sits down with manager John Schiffner. 

The full broadcast of today’s game is available online and over the phone at 1-800-846-4700, code 3481. Visit Broadcast Central for more details.