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Game 1 Preview: Chatham at Bourne
CHATHAM, Mass. — Last year, Opening Day brought nothing but anguish for Chatham’s offense. A’s starter JT Quinn (Georgia) twirled a 10-strikeout, five-inning game against Falmouth on June 14, 2025, but it still wasn’t enough to begin the summer with a win.
The Anglers had just two hits in a 1-0 loss to the Commodores at Veterans Field. But a new year brings a new roster, and after three days of watching his team practice, Chatham manager Dennis Cook feels optimistic about the collection of players he’s gathered to begin his second season at the helm.
He'll get a chance to open this one with a win against the Cape Cod Baseball League’s defending champions: the Bourne Braves. Chatham (0-0, East) will trek to Bourne’s (0-0, West) Doran Park to begin its 2026 season.
Here’s everything to know ahead of Saturday’s road matchup against the Braves.
Chatham’s Gavin Guidry (LSU) has only made four starts in 65 collegiate games, but he’ll pick up one on Opening Day for the Anglers. Guidry racked a career-high 43.2 innings across his 20 appearances with the Tigers this past spring. The results were a mixed bag — his 6.39 earned run average was a career-worst, but his 12.2 strikeouts per nine innings indicated signs of swing-and-miss potential.
Bourne, on the other hand, counters Guidry with Wake Forest left-hander Rhys Bowie, who is returning to the Braves for a second summer. He only made one appearance for Bourne in 2025, striking out 11 and allowing zero hits in a five-inning outing. But his spring with the Demon Deacons wasn’t as successful for him, as he returned to a relief role and put up a 5.22 ERA for Wake Forest in 2026.
“Now, pitching this season, it’s just a whole different ballgame now,” Bowie said in a preseason interview on Bourne’s social media. “It’s a lot easier to control the game now than it was, being a freshman in a college environment.”
Come Sunday, Braves fans will see a familiar face behind the dish for their squad. Notre Dame’s Mark Quatrani is returning for his second summer with the Braves after splitting his 2025 summer between Falmouth and Bourne. He had just 40 plate appearances for each squad, but carried an OPS above .800 for both. This past spring, he lit up the statsheet for the Fighting Irish with 15 home runs, a .376 batting average and a 1.100 OPS.
There’s some familiarity in the middle infield, too, as Bourne manager Scott Landers has the luxury of Ryker Waite (Vanderbilt) manning shortstop for him again. As an 18-year-old on the Cape, Waite stole 13 bases and hit for an impressive .825 OPS across 137 plate appearances for Bourne in 2025. He emerged as Vanderbilt’s starting shortstop this past spring, and carried his momentum from the Cape into a .950 OPS season.
The best is yet to come for Chatham, as Cook has several players who are still playing in the College World Series, but Rett Johnson (NC State) is almost as good as it gets. The Wolfpack outfielder isn’t the most physically imposing hitter, but his bat-to-ball skills are second-to-none. He hit for a .381 average across 197 at bats this spring, and had 42 walks to just 17 strikeouts as a freshman. A’s fans should catch a glimpse of him before he departs for Team USA.
Connor Shouse (Texas Tech) might get a chance to make an impact on the mound for Chatham this summer, but it would just be a bonus if he did. The main attraction is his bat. After playing sparingly as a freshman for Georgia Tech, Shouse transferred to Texas Tech and had a breakout season for the Red Raiders. His 1.026 OPS and 128 total bases speak for themselves, and his 66 RBIs last spring lead all currently signed Anglers.
There’s just one Angler from last year’s roster who is currently in Chatham on Opening Day. It’s Liberty’s Josh Swink, who won Chatham’s Ed Baird Most Outstanding Pitcher Award last summer after tossing 24.0 relief innings with a team-leading 2.63 ERA.
Duke Stone, the Mississippi State righty who evolved into the Anglers’ best starter last summer, is also currently slated to return to Chatham at some point. But outside of those two, there is absolutely zero continuity on this A’s roster.
Who knows? Maybe a complete overhaul is what Cook needs to get his team into the playoffs.
It was a homecoming for Bourne’s Quinn Holt when these squads last faced off on July 27, 2025. The Utah Valley right-hander returned to Veterans Field for the first time since 2024, when he tossed 8.1 innings across two starts for the Anglers toward the end of the summer.
Before the game, Landers said he hadn’t seen much from Holt before he gave him the start against Chatham. But Holt gave him more than he bargained for, striking out seven A’s batters across five innings in his first Cape League start of the 2025 summer. The 6-1 defeat dropped Chatham’s record to 14-17-3, pushing the Anglers further out of postseason contention.
The Anglers had just two hits in a 1-0 loss to the Commodores at Veterans Field. But a new year brings a new roster, and after three days of watching his team practice, Chatham manager Dennis Cook feels optimistic about the collection of players he’s gathered to begin his second season at the helm.
He'll get a chance to open this one with a win against the Cape Cod Baseball League’s defending champions: the Bourne Braves. Chatham (0-0, East) will trek to Bourne’s (0-0, West) Doran Park to begin its 2026 season.
Here’s everything to know ahead of Saturday’s road matchup against the Braves.
Probable Starters
Chatham’s Gavin Guidry (LSU) has only made four starts in 65 collegiate games, but he’ll pick up one on Opening Day for the Anglers. Guidry racked a career-high 43.2 innings across his 20 appearances with the Tigers this past spring. The results were a mixed bag — his 6.39 earned run average was a career-worst, but his 12.2 strikeouts per nine innings indicated signs of swing-and-miss potential.
Bourne, on the other hand, counters Guidry with Wake Forest left-hander Rhys Bowie, who is returning to the Braves for a second summer. He only made one appearance for Bourne in 2025, striking out 11 and allowing zero hits in a five-inning outing. But his spring with the Demon Deacons wasn’t as successful for him, as he returned to a relief role and put up a 5.22 ERA for Wake Forest in 2026.
“Now, pitching this season, it’s just a whole different ballgame now,” Bowie said in a preseason interview on Bourne’s social media. “It’s a lot easier to control the game now than it was, being a freshman in a college environment.”
Bourne Players To Watch
Come Sunday, Braves fans will see a familiar face behind the dish for their squad. Notre Dame’s Mark Quatrani is returning for his second summer with the Braves after splitting his 2025 summer between Falmouth and Bourne. He had just 40 plate appearances for each squad, but carried an OPS above .800 for both. This past spring, he lit up the statsheet for the Fighting Irish with 15 home runs, a .376 batting average and a 1.100 OPS.
There’s some familiarity in the middle infield, too, as Bourne manager Scott Landers has the luxury of Ryker Waite (Vanderbilt) manning shortstop for him again. As an 18-year-old on the Cape, Waite stole 13 bases and hit for an impressive .825 OPS across 137 plate appearances for Bourne in 2025. He emerged as Vanderbilt’s starting shortstop this past spring, and carried his momentum from the Cape into a .950 OPS season.
Chatham Players To Watch
The best is yet to come for Chatham, as Cook has several players who are still playing in the College World Series, but Rett Johnson (NC State) is almost as good as it gets. The Wolfpack outfielder isn’t the most physically imposing hitter, but his bat-to-ball skills are second-to-none. He hit for a .381 average across 197 at bats this spring, and had 42 walks to just 17 strikeouts as a freshman. A’s fans should catch a glimpse of him before he departs for Team USA.
Connor Shouse (Texas Tech) might get a chance to make an impact on the mound for Chatham this summer, but it would just be a bonus if he did. The main attraction is his bat. After playing sparingly as a freshman for Georgia Tech, Shouse transferred to Texas Tech and had a breakout season for the Red Raiders. His 1.026 OPS and 128 total bases speak for themselves, and his 66 RBIs last spring lead all currently signed Anglers.
Number To Know: 1
There’s just one Angler from last year’s roster who is currently in Chatham on Opening Day. It’s Liberty’s Josh Swink, who won Chatham’s Ed Baird Most Outstanding Pitcher Award last summer after tossing 24.0 relief innings with a team-leading 2.63 ERA.
Duke Stone, the Mississippi State righty who evolved into the Anglers’ best starter last summer, is also currently slated to return to Chatham at some point. But outside of those two, there is absolutely zero continuity on this A’s roster.
Who knows? Maybe a complete overhaul is what Cook needs to get his team into the playoffs.
Last Time They Played
It was a homecoming for Bourne’s Quinn Holt when these squads last faced off on July 27, 2025. The Utah Valley right-hander returned to Veterans Field for the first time since 2024, when he tossed 8.1 innings across two starts for the Anglers toward the end of the summer.
Before the game, Landers said he hadn’t seen much from Holt before he gave him the start against Chatham. But Holt gave him more than he bargained for, striking out seven A’s batters across five innings in his first Cape League start of the 2025 summer. The 6-1 defeat dropped Chatham’s record to 14-17-3, pushing the Anglers further out of postseason contention.
