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Game 20 Preview: Chatham vs. Yarmouth-Dennis
CHATHAM, Mass. — For the third time in the past seven days, Chatham is entering a contest with a chance to secure its first winning record of the Dennis Cook era.
Riding a two-game win streak into their home matchup against Orleans Thursday, the Anglers sat at 6-6-3. However, their red-hot bats cooled off in a rain-shortened five-inning contest, as they slipped back under .500 with a 4-0 loss to the Firebirds.
On the Fourth of July, Chatham responded well with a 7-5 road win over Orleans, putting itself back in position to climb over .500 with a win over Harwich on Saturday. But the A’s offense continued its disappearing act, falling 6-1 on the road against the Mariners.
Now, riding the momentum of their 11-8 wild Sunday home win over Falmouth, the Anglers host Yarmouth-Dennis, again sitting on the precipice of their first winning record in 2025.
Here’s everything you know to know ahead of Chatham’s (8-8-3, East) home contest against Y-D (11-6-2, East) Tuesday.
The last time Luke Jackson (Dallas Baptist) was due to pitch for Chatham, the righty was pulled before his Friday start against Orleans due to illness. If Chatham wants to secure its first winning record of the season, they’ll need him to make it to the mound Tuesday, because he’s been one of the A’s strongest starters all year. Through two starts so far, Jackson currently leads Angler starters with an impressive 2.25 earned run average.
For the second straight summer, Carson Ballard (Georgia Tech) has become a fixture in Y-D’s rotation. The Red Sox righty turned in an impressive summer last year, posting a 3.63 ERA across his four starts for Yarmouth-Dennis in 2024. After making his return to Y-D, he’s continued to do well for himself, posting an impressive 3.27 ERA and averaging 9.0 strikeouts per nine across his three starts in 2025.
It’s pretty safe to say AJ Soldra (UConn) is currently hitting baseballs better than he has in his entire life. As a freshman at NJIT, Soldra registered a respectable .889 OPS, but smacked just two home runs. After transferring to Seton Hall this past season, he upped his OPS to .940, but still only hit just four long balls with the Pirates. But in the Cape Cod Baseball League, he has somehow already matched that total with four homers, and he’s increased his OPS to .957 through 16 games.
But if you had to pick out one deficiency Soldra has demonstrated thus far, it’s the strikeout bug, something which has not affected his Y-D teammate Chris Hacopian (Texas A&M) at all. After posting an incredible 1.158 OPS in 52 games with Maryland in 2025, Hacopian hasn’t gotten off to the hottest start to his Cape League career with a .629 OPS. However, he’s walked 10 times to just two strikeouts thus far, making him a tough out for any opponent.
After his game-winning grand slam over Falmouth Sunday, it might be impossible for A’s fans to keep their eyes on anyone but Ashton Larson. The former LSU outfielder stole the show for Chatham against the Commodores, demolishing his fifth-inning blast to give the Anglers a lead they wouldn’t relinquish in their eventual 11-8 victory. With Henry Ford (Tennessee) leaving for the MLB Draft, Larson will likely play a bigger role than ever going forward.
He may not have played for Chatham against Falmouth, but with everyday second baseman Ethan Mendoza (Texas) departing for greener pastures, Roman Martin (UCLA) should be a fixture in the A’s infield. A shortstop by trade, Martin primarily played third for the Bruins this past season, posting a .952 OPS across 65 games in 2025. If he manages to find his way into the lineup against Y-D, he’ll be looking to make an immediate impact in his Chatham debut.
One only needs to watch one round of Daniel Jackson (Georgia) batting practice in order to realize that the Chatham catcher makes loud contact, and plenty of it. The Bulldog currently leads the A’s with a .493 on-base percentage, and he ranks second with an impressive .520 slugging percentage.
But neither of those would be considered his most impressive statistic. Through 69 plate appearances with Chatham, Jackson has an obscenely high .538 average on batted balls in play. He may not make contact as often as the A’s would like — Jackson leads the Anglers with 23 strikeouts thus far — but when he gets bat on ball, it’s a scary sight for opposing pitchers.
It’s fair to say that Chatham reached rock-bottom the last time it faced Yarmouth-Dennis. When the Anglers visited Red Wilson Field on June 20, they were dominated in a 9-2 loss, striking out looking a season-worst nine times in their second of three straight losses.
After the game, Cook held the first of what ultimately turned out to be several postgame meetings near the team’s dugout. He reamed the team out for its disappointing effort, and summarized the subject of their discussion in four words: lazy, lackadaisical, uninspired baseball.
Riding a two-game win streak into their home matchup against Orleans Thursday, the Anglers sat at 6-6-3. However, their red-hot bats cooled off in a rain-shortened five-inning contest, as they slipped back under .500 with a 4-0 loss to the Firebirds.
On the Fourth of July, Chatham responded well with a 7-5 road win over Orleans, putting itself back in position to climb over .500 with a win over Harwich on Saturday. But the A’s offense continued its disappearing act, falling 6-1 on the road against the Mariners.
Now, riding the momentum of their 11-8 wild Sunday home win over Falmouth, the Anglers host Yarmouth-Dennis, again sitting on the precipice of their first winning record in 2025.
Here’s everything you know to know ahead of Chatham’s (8-8-3, East) home contest against Y-D (11-6-2, East) Tuesday.
Probable Starters
The last time Luke Jackson (Dallas Baptist) was due to pitch for Chatham, the righty was pulled before his Friday start against Orleans due to illness. If Chatham wants to secure its first winning record of the season, they’ll need him to make it to the mound Tuesday, because he’s been one of the A’s strongest starters all year. Through two starts so far, Jackson currently leads Angler starters with an impressive 2.25 earned run average.
For the second straight summer, Carson Ballard (Georgia Tech) has become a fixture in Y-D’s rotation. The Red Sox righty turned in an impressive summer last year, posting a 3.63 ERA across his four starts for Yarmouth-Dennis in 2024. After making his return to Y-D, he’s continued to do well for himself, posting an impressive 3.27 ERA and averaging 9.0 strikeouts per nine across his three starts in 2025.
Yarmouth-Dennis Players To Watch
It’s pretty safe to say AJ Soldra (UConn) is currently hitting baseballs better than he has in his entire life. As a freshman at NJIT, Soldra registered a respectable .889 OPS, but smacked just two home runs. After transferring to Seton Hall this past season, he upped his OPS to .940, but still only hit just four long balls with the Pirates. But in the Cape Cod Baseball League, he has somehow already matched that total with four homers, and he’s increased his OPS to .957 through 16 games.
But if you had to pick out one deficiency Soldra has demonstrated thus far, it’s the strikeout bug, something which has not affected his Y-D teammate Chris Hacopian (Texas A&M) at all. After posting an incredible 1.158 OPS in 52 games with Maryland in 2025, Hacopian hasn’t gotten off to the hottest start to his Cape League career with a .629 OPS. However, he’s walked 10 times to just two strikeouts thus far, making him a tough out for any opponent.
Chatham Players To Watch
After his game-winning grand slam over Falmouth Sunday, it might be impossible for A’s fans to keep their eyes on anyone but Ashton Larson. The former LSU outfielder stole the show for Chatham against the Commodores, demolishing his fifth-inning blast to give the Anglers a lead they wouldn’t relinquish in their eventual 11-8 victory. With Henry Ford (Tennessee) leaving for the MLB Draft, Larson will likely play a bigger role than ever going forward.
He may not have played for Chatham against Falmouth, but with everyday second baseman Ethan Mendoza (Texas) departing for greener pastures, Roman Martin (UCLA) should be a fixture in the A’s infield. A shortstop by trade, Martin primarily played third for the Bruins this past season, posting a .952 OPS across 65 games in 2025. If he manages to find his way into the lineup against Y-D, he’ll be looking to make an immediate impact in his Chatham debut.
Number To Know: .538
One only needs to watch one round of Daniel Jackson (Georgia) batting practice in order to realize that the Chatham catcher makes loud contact, and plenty of it. The Bulldog currently leads the A’s with a .493 on-base percentage, and he ranks second with an impressive .520 slugging percentage.
But neither of those would be considered his most impressive statistic. Through 69 plate appearances with Chatham, Jackson has an obscenely high .538 average on batted balls in play. He may not make contact as often as the A’s would like — Jackson leads the Anglers with 23 strikeouts thus far — but when he gets bat on ball, it’s a scary sight for opposing pitchers.
Last Time They Played
It’s fair to say that Chatham reached rock-bottom the last time it faced Yarmouth-Dennis. When the Anglers visited Red Wilson Field on June 20, they were dominated in a 9-2 loss, striking out looking a season-worst nine times in their second of three straight losses.
After the game, Cook held the first of what ultimately turned out to be several postgame meetings near the team’s dugout. He reamed the team out for its disappointing effort, and summarized the subject of their discussion in four words: lazy, lackadaisical, uninspired baseball.
