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Anglers squander late lead, salvage 7-7 tie with Hyannis
by Mauricio Palmar
Tuesday, June 17, 2025
CHATHAM, Mass. — Hyannis was down to its last strike. It was the top of the ninth inning, and Preston Barr (Michigan) stood on the mound hoping to close out Chatham’s first home victory of the season.
To that point, the Anglers had led in every single inning. And they sat firmly in the driver’s seat with a two-run cushion in the game’s final frame. Chris Rembert had led off the inning with a single, but a fielder’s choice and a flyout meant that Brody Briggs represented the Harbor Hawks’ final out.
After three pitches, Barr had Briggs dead to rights. With a 1-2 count, all he needed was to get Hyannis’ catcher to swing and miss one time.
After fouling off the next two strikes he saw, Briggs drew a walk to put the game-tying run on. His base on balls precipitated the Anglers’ collapse in the final inning, as the game only continued to unravel from that point on. After Hyannis (2-1-1, West) rallied in the ninth to complete a five-run comeback and force extras, Chatham (1-2-1, East) found itself having to battle back to salvage a 7-7 tie Tuesday.
“It’s baseball,” Anglers manager Dennis Cook said postgame. “Nobody’s perfect out here.”
Coming out the gate, the A’s easily overpowered Harbor Hawks starter Ethan Plog. Before recently earning a transfer to LSU, he opted to go the JUCO route out of Bay Port High School (Wisconsin). While he pitched 36.1 innings as a freshman at Iowa Western Community College last season, he registered a lackluster 5.94 earned-run-average in those outings.
He had never faced hitters as talented as the Anglers. He was simply outmatched.
Plog got ahead on Anglers second baseman Ethan Mendoza (Texas) to start the game, as he caught Chatham’s leadoff hitter looking on the first two strikes he threw. But once Mendoza got his timing down, he turned on a 2-2 changeup, sending it over the left-field fence for the Anglers’ first home run of the season.
“It was a little bit of a hanger,” Mendoza said. “I was just kind of trying to see him deep, and he left one out over the plate.”
Chatham second baseman Ethan Mendoza gestures toward the Anglers' dugout in celebration of his two-RBI single in the second inning of Tuesday's tie versus Hyannis. An inning earlier, Mendoza blasted a leadoff home run, the A's first homer of the 2025 campaign, en route to a 3-RBI night. Photograph by Ella Tovey
That blast put Chatham up 1-0 before Plog had even recorded an out, and it was just the tip of the iceberg for the Harbor Hawks’ lefty.
In the subsequent plate appearance, Plog got Henry Ford (Virginia/transfer) in a precarious full count. But he couldn’t put the A’s center fielder away, allowing him to draw a walk.
It wasn’t long before Ford moved into scoring position, as Ace Reese (Mississippi State) continued his hot streak by smacking a single into left. In his Chatham debut against Wareham, Reese drove in two of Chatham’s nine runs and notched two hits in five at bats.
Though Plog limited Hyannis’ deficit to one in the first frame, every play seemed difficult for the Harbor Hawks. Despite inducing a fielder’s choice from Isaiah Lane (San Diego), Hyannis allowed Chatham’s shortstop to advance to second after a botched pickoff attempt.
And while he ultimately got Noah Miller (Michigan) to strike out to end the inning, it took 13 pitches and eight foul balls to punch him out. Every plate appearance felt labored. With 32 pitches before the second inning, it was clear Plog’s outing wouldn’t last very long.
Chatham made sure of that once it reached the second inning. Jackson Freeman (Northwestern), Daniel Jackson (Georgia), Mendoza and Ford all crossed the plate before the Harbor Hawks escaped the frame, and Plog didn’t make it out of the inning. When reliever Erik Hoffberg finally found a third out, the A’s were up 5-0.
“Really, the work came before (batting practice), I think,” Mendoza said. “We got here early, got that work in. That definitely helped.”
But once the Harbor Hawks got to the bullpen, it wasn’t nearly as easy for the Anglers to continue their offensive momentum. In its seven subsequent innings, Chatham only tacked on one more run to its tally, courtesy of a sixth-inning home run by Jackson.
Meanwhile, Hyannis kept slowly creeping back into the game. In the fourth-inning, a controversial two-strike call disrupted A’s starter Mason Peters’ (Dallas Baptist) momentum. After a would-be strike three was called a ball, he conceded a three-run blast to Hyannis first baseman Myles Bailey on the next pitch. Soon after, he saw his advantage dwindle to one after giving up an RBI single to Briggs.
“It was a borderline pitch, we didn’t get it,” Cook said. “Sometimes, that’s the difference. You get that close call, and then he’s out. Instead of a chance to hit a three-run homer.”
The Harbor Hawks were still silent for a vast majority of the contest. Then came the ninth.
After Briggs’ walk, Ryan McKay’s batted ball to second should’ve ended the game. But Mendoza misplayed it, allowing Hyannis to cut the deficit to one. Immediately after, Matthew Miura doubled to right to tie the game at 6-6.
Though Barr eventually escaped the frame with a tie, the Anglers were dispatched with little issue in the bottom of the ninth, giving Hyannis a chance to secure its first lead in the 10th. With Andrew Williamson starting on second, Ray Velasquez delivered, as his single into center gave the Harbor Hawks their first lead.
Ultimately, it didn’t last long. Hyannis reliever Ryan Speshyock struggled to command his arsenal in the tenth, and he quickly loaded the bases for Jackson. While his bloop single to center wasn’t nearly as visually impressive as his 380-foot blast in the sixth inning, it was just as effective, as it ensured the Anglers would avoid disaster.
Chatham walked away from Veterans Field without a loss Tuesday. But as the Anglers packed up their equipment, shock still setting in, it was difficult to feel like the outcome was anything but a defeat.
To that point, the Anglers had led in every single inning. And they sat firmly in the driver’s seat with a two-run cushion in the game’s final frame. Chris Rembert had led off the inning with a single, but a fielder’s choice and a flyout meant that Brody Briggs represented the Harbor Hawks’ final out.
After three pitches, Barr had Briggs dead to rights. With a 1-2 count, all he needed was to get Hyannis’ catcher to swing and miss one time.
After fouling off the next two strikes he saw, Briggs drew a walk to put the game-tying run on. His base on balls precipitated the Anglers’ collapse in the final inning, as the game only continued to unravel from that point on. After Hyannis (2-1-1, West) rallied in the ninth to complete a five-run comeback and force extras, Chatham (1-2-1, East) found itself having to battle back to salvage a 7-7 tie Tuesday.
“It’s baseball,” Anglers manager Dennis Cook said postgame. “Nobody’s perfect out here.”
Coming out the gate, the A’s easily overpowered Harbor Hawks starter Ethan Plog. Before recently earning a transfer to LSU, he opted to go the JUCO route out of Bay Port High School (Wisconsin). While he pitched 36.1 innings as a freshman at Iowa Western Community College last season, he registered a lackluster 5.94 earned-run-average in those outings.
He had never faced hitters as talented as the Anglers. He was simply outmatched.
Plog got ahead on Anglers second baseman Ethan Mendoza (Texas) to start the game, as he caught Chatham’s leadoff hitter looking on the first two strikes he threw. But once Mendoza got his timing down, he turned on a 2-2 changeup, sending it over the left-field fence for the Anglers’ first home run of the season.
“It was a little bit of a hanger,” Mendoza said. “I was just kind of trying to see him deep, and he left one out over the plate.”
Chatham second baseman Ethan Mendoza gestures toward the Anglers' dugout in celebration of his two-RBI single in the second inning of Tuesday's tie versus Hyannis. An inning earlier, Mendoza blasted a leadoff home run, the A's first homer of the 2025 campaign, en route to a 3-RBI night. Photograph by Ella Tovey
That blast put Chatham up 1-0 before Plog had even recorded an out, and it was just the tip of the iceberg for the Harbor Hawks’ lefty.
In the subsequent plate appearance, Plog got Henry Ford (Virginia/transfer) in a precarious full count. But he couldn’t put the A’s center fielder away, allowing him to draw a walk.
It wasn’t long before Ford moved into scoring position, as Ace Reese (Mississippi State) continued his hot streak by smacking a single into left. In his Chatham debut against Wareham, Reese drove in two of Chatham’s nine runs and notched two hits in five at bats.
Though Plog limited Hyannis’ deficit to one in the first frame, every play seemed difficult for the Harbor Hawks. Despite inducing a fielder’s choice from Isaiah Lane (San Diego), Hyannis allowed Chatham’s shortstop to advance to second after a botched pickoff attempt.
And while he ultimately got Noah Miller (Michigan) to strike out to end the inning, it took 13 pitches and eight foul balls to punch him out. Every plate appearance felt labored. With 32 pitches before the second inning, it was clear Plog’s outing wouldn’t last very long.
Chatham made sure of that once it reached the second inning. Jackson Freeman (Northwestern), Daniel Jackson (Georgia), Mendoza and Ford all crossed the plate before the Harbor Hawks escaped the frame, and Plog didn’t make it out of the inning. When reliever Erik Hoffberg finally found a third out, the A’s were up 5-0.
“Really, the work came before (batting practice), I think,” Mendoza said. “We got here early, got that work in. That definitely helped.”
But once the Harbor Hawks got to the bullpen, it wasn’t nearly as easy for the Anglers to continue their offensive momentum. In its seven subsequent innings, Chatham only tacked on one more run to its tally, courtesy of a sixth-inning home run by Jackson.
Meanwhile, Hyannis kept slowly creeping back into the game. In the fourth-inning, a controversial two-strike call disrupted A’s starter Mason Peters’ (Dallas Baptist) momentum. After a would-be strike three was called a ball, he conceded a three-run blast to Hyannis first baseman Myles Bailey on the next pitch. Soon after, he saw his advantage dwindle to one after giving up an RBI single to Briggs.
“It was a borderline pitch, we didn’t get it,” Cook said. “Sometimes, that’s the difference. You get that close call, and then he’s out. Instead of a chance to hit a three-run homer.”
The Harbor Hawks were still silent for a vast majority of the contest. Then came the ninth.
After Briggs’ walk, Ryan McKay’s batted ball to second should’ve ended the game. But Mendoza misplayed it, allowing Hyannis to cut the deficit to one. Immediately after, Matthew Miura doubled to right to tie the game at 6-6.
Though Barr eventually escaped the frame with a tie, the Anglers were dispatched with little issue in the bottom of the ninth, giving Hyannis a chance to secure its first lead in the 10th. With Andrew Williamson starting on second, Ray Velasquez delivered, as his single into center gave the Harbor Hawks their first lead.
Ultimately, it didn’t last long. Hyannis reliever Ryan Speshyock struggled to command his arsenal in the tenth, and he quickly loaded the bases for Jackson. While his bloop single to center wasn’t nearly as visually impressive as his 380-foot blast in the sixth inning, it was just as effective, as it ensured the Anglers would avoid disaster.
Chatham walked away from Veterans Field without a loss Tuesday. But as the Anglers packed up their equipment, shock still setting in, it was difficult to feel like the outcome was anything but a defeat.
