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Anglers’ road battle at Harwich goes awry in 12-1 run-rule defeat
HARWICH, Mass. — The dreaded dinger hasn’t been kind to Charlie Foster this summer.
The Anglers’ left-handed hurler entered Thursday’s game against the Mariners having allowed three home runs across 17.2 innings of work. That’s the most allowed by any Chatham pitcher in 2025. Two of them were three-run shots, adding a pair of losses to the Mississippi State righty’s record. Much of the damage that’s led to his 7.32 earned run average has come from the long ball.
Foster’s start in Harwich was the latest example. In the bottom of the first inning, he surrendered a two-run homer to Mariners’ left fielder Aiden Robbins, putting him tied for the third-most taters allowed (four) among all pitchers on the Cape.
That was merely the beginning of Foster’s strenuous endeavor at Whitehouse Field.
The A’s starter gave up six earned runs over the first two frames Thursday, dooming Chatham (13-15-3, East) early versus Harwich (16-12-3, East) in an eventual 12-1 road loss. The Anglers have now dropped two straight. Another meager showing at the plate — two hits, seven strikeouts — nearly overshadowed their struggles on the mound. The A’s gave up 14 hits, issued seven walks and hit four Mariners with pitches. For the first time this season, the Anglers lost via run-rule, with the game ending after seven innings.
Chatham’s latest defeat keeps it three points away from an East Division playoff spot, trailing Orleans’ 32 points with nine regular-season games remaining.
Anglers manager Dennis Cook met with his players for a lengthy period of time postgame. Cook and pitching coach Jay Powell’s message was simple: The end of the season is near, everybody needs to finish strong. It was worded much more colorfully than that, though.
If Chatham wants a postseason berth, stringing together multiple victories in a row is a prerequisite. However, they haven’t gone on a winning streak since grabbing two straight games from July 1-2. With the way Chatham performed its last two games — getting outscored 17-2 — there’s few signs suggesting a magical turnaround. Even Cook knows it.
“We’re going to have to figure out how to pitch and how to have timely hitting,” Cook said. “I mean, it’s just like winning anywhere else — and we haven’t done that all year. But we’ve pitched good sometimes and then we don’t hit and then we hit a little bit and don’t pitch (well).”
Even starting out on the right foot couldn’t solve the Anglers’ problems against the Mariners. After the A’s put up the most forgettable performance imaginable on Tuesday — committing six errors and getting held to two hits in a 5-1 home loss to Wareham — they completed a successful two-out rally to commence Thursday’s contest.
Facing Harwich lefty Matthew Heiberger, who the A’s tagged for two runs in his 1.1 innings of work on July 11, shortstop Roman Martin (UCLA) chopped a high fastball into the ground that just squeaked past Mariners’ shortstop Tanner Marsh. Martin’s knock brought home Daniel Jackson (Georgia), and Chatham led 1-0 through the top of the first.
The Anglers’ early spark was immediately extinguished, though.
In the bottom of the first, Foster left one over the middle for Robbins, who pummeled a two-run shot into left-center field for his fifth homer of the campaign. Foster then hit Mariners’ third baseman Dee Kennedy with a pitch and issued a walk, allowing Harwich first baseman Kyle Wolff to tack on another score with an RBI single into center.
Foster threw 30 pitches in the opening frame while the Mariners nearly batted around. The momentum Chatham’s offense generated was instantly erased. It promptly went down 1-2-3 in the top of the second.
Things only got worse for Foster. He couldn’t find the zone consistently. And when he did, his offerings were typically thrown over the heart of the plate. RBI singles by Marsh and Kennedy — paired with a passed ball that scored Robbins — capped off a three-run bottom of the second for the Mariners. Chatham entered the third inning facing a daunting 6-1 deficit.
“He’s not throwing enough strikes first and foremost,” Cook said of Foster. “Working way behind in the count like that, nobody — I don’t care how good you are — is going to be successful.”
Foster’s night ended with six earned runs, six hits allowed and three walks issued. Right-hander JJ Glasscock (West Virginia) came out of the bullpen to replace him. After a third inning where Glasscock conceded two earned runs, not much changed on the mound for the Anglers.
It hardly mattered that Glasscock didn’t have his best stuff; Chatham didn’t threaten Harwich’s lead. A double from catcher Cade Arrambide (LSU) to leadoff the fifth broke a three-inning drought where the A’s didn’t notch a base hit. They mustered one more baserunner in the frame and were blanked by Heiberger for the fourth consecutive inning.
After Trace Mazon (Coastal Carolina) grounded into a 6-4-3 double-play to end the top of the sixth, Chatham was down 10-1, with Harwich only needing one more run for a run-rule win. In the bottom half of the frame, Anglers righty Caleb Freeman (Eastern Kentucky) coughed up an RBI double to Niko Brini and a one-run single to Kennedy. Chatham didn’t score in the top of the seventh, ruling the game final via slaughter rule.
The A’s are now 9-9 in July. Each win and each loss looks nearly identical. In those nine wins, the Anglers averaged 8.78 runs per game. In the nine losses, they scored less than one per game. Chatham displays a polarizing brand of baseball, but entering the home stretch of the Cape League season, its coaching staff is actively attempting to find more consistency.
On Tuesday, Cook said he and Powell were going to construct an MLB-style rotation and bullpen for the final quarter of the campaign. Prior to that point, Cook and Powell shied away from assigning specific roles for any of their arms, trotting out 17 different starting pitchers thus far as well as instilling a closer-by-committee.
Well, in the two games since Cook revealed the strategic change, Angler pitching has allowed 17 runs and seen each of their last two starting pitchers — Jacob Turner (Bowling Green) and Foster — concede a homer. Turner nor Foster made it into the fourth inning, altering Cook’s plans by making him switch to the bullpen early.
Though at this point for Chatham, is anything going to plan?
“We’ve had four hits in our last two games, so pitching has to almost be perfect,” Cook said. “And it has not been that.”
The Anglers’ left-handed hurler entered Thursday’s game against the Mariners having allowed three home runs across 17.2 innings of work. That’s the most allowed by any Chatham pitcher in 2025. Two of them were three-run shots, adding a pair of losses to the Mississippi State righty’s record. Much of the damage that’s led to his 7.32 earned run average has come from the long ball.
Foster’s start in Harwich was the latest example. In the bottom of the first inning, he surrendered a two-run homer to Mariners’ left fielder Aiden Robbins, putting him tied for the third-most taters allowed (four) among all pitchers on the Cape.
That was merely the beginning of Foster’s strenuous endeavor at Whitehouse Field.
The A’s starter gave up six earned runs over the first two frames Thursday, dooming Chatham (13-15-3, East) early versus Harwich (16-12-3, East) in an eventual 12-1 road loss. The Anglers have now dropped two straight. Another meager showing at the plate — two hits, seven strikeouts — nearly overshadowed their struggles on the mound. The A’s gave up 14 hits, issued seven walks and hit four Mariners with pitches. For the first time this season, the Anglers lost via run-rule, with the game ending after seven innings.
Chatham’s latest defeat keeps it three points away from an East Division playoff spot, trailing Orleans’ 32 points with nine regular-season games remaining.
Anglers manager Dennis Cook met with his players for a lengthy period of time postgame. Cook and pitching coach Jay Powell’s message was simple: The end of the season is near, everybody needs to finish strong. It was worded much more colorfully than that, though.
If Chatham wants a postseason berth, stringing together multiple victories in a row is a prerequisite. However, they haven’t gone on a winning streak since grabbing two straight games from July 1-2. With the way Chatham performed its last two games — getting outscored 17-2 — there’s few signs suggesting a magical turnaround. Even Cook knows it.
“We’re going to have to figure out how to pitch and how to have timely hitting,” Cook said. “I mean, it’s just like winning anywhere else — and we haven’t done that all year. But we’ve pitched good sometimes and then we don’t hit and then we hit a little bit and don’t pitch (well).”
Even starting out on the right foot couldn’t solve the Anglers’ problems against the Mariners. After the A’s put up the most forgettable performance imaginable on Tuesday — committing six errors and getting held to two hits in a 5-1 home loss to Wareham — they completed a successful two-out rally to commence Thursday’s contest.
Facing Harwich lefty Matthew Heiberger, who the A’s tagged for two runs in his 1.1 innings of work on July 11, shortstop Roman Martin (UCLA) chopped a high fastball into the ground that just squeaked past Mariners’ shortstop Tanner Marsh. Martin’s knock brought home Daniel Jackson (Georgia), and Chatham led 1-0 through the top of the first.
The Anglers’ early spark was immediately extinguished, though.
In the bottom of the first, Foster left one over the middle for Robbins, who pummeled a two-run shot into left-center field for his fifth homer of the campaign. Foster then hit Mariners’ third baseman Dee Kennedy with a pitch and issued a walk, allowing Harwich first baseman Kyle Wolff to tack on another score with an RBI single into center.
Foster threw 30 pitches in the opening frame while the Mariners nearly batted around. The momentum Chatham’s offense generated was instantly erased. It promptly went down 1-2-3 in the top of the second.
Things only got worse for Foster. He couldn’t find the zone consistently. And when he did, his offerings were typically thrown over the heart of the plate. RBI singles by Marsh and Kennedy — paired with a passed ball that scored Robbins — capped off a three-run bottom of the second for the Mariners. Chatham entered the third inning facing a daunting 6-1 deficit.
“He’s not throwing enough strikes first and foremost,” Cook said of Foster. “Working way behind in the count like that, nobody — I don’t care how good you are — is going to be successful.”
Foster’s night ended with six earned runs, six hits allowed and three walks issued. Right-hander JJ Glasscock (West Virginia) came out of the bullpen to replace him. After a third inning where Glasscock conceded two earned runs, not much changed on the mound for the Anglers.
It hardly mattered that Glasscock didn’t have his best stuff; Chatham didn’t threaten Harwich’s lead. A double from catcher Cade Arrambide (LSU) to leadoff the fifth broke a three-inning drought where the A’s didn’t notch a base hit. They mustered one more baserunner in the frame and were blanked by Heiberger for the fourth consecutive inning.
After Trace Mazon (Coastal Carolina) grounded into a 6-4-3 double-play to end the top of the sixth, Chatham was down 10-1, with Harwich only needing one more run for a run-rule win. In the bottom half of the frame, Anglers righty Caleb Freeman (Eastern Kentucky) coughed up an RBI double to Niko Brini and a one-run single to Kennedy. Chatham didn’t score in the top of the seventh, ruling the game final via slaughter rule.
The A’s are now 9-9 in July. Each win and each loss looks nearly identical. In those nine wins, the Anglers averaged 8.78 runs per game. In the nine losses, they scored less than one per game. Chatham displays a polarizing brand of baseball, but entering the home stretch of the Cape League season, its coaching staff is actively attempting to find more consistency.
On Tuesday, Cook said he and Powell were going to construct an MLB-style rotation and bullpen for the final quarter of the campaign. Prior to that point, Cook and Powell shied away from assigning specific roles for any of their arms, trotting out 17 different starting pitchers thus far as well as instilling a closer-by-committee.
Well, in the two games since Cook revealed the strategic change, Angler pitching has allowed 17 runs and seen each of their last two starting pitchers — Jacob Turner (Bowling Green) and Foster — concede a homer. Turner nor Foster made it into the fourth inning, altering Cook’s plans by making him switch to the bullpen early.
Though at this point for Chatham, is anything going to plan?
“We’ve had four hits in our last two games, so pitching has to almost be perfect,” Cook said. “And it has not been that.”
