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Chatham improves playoff outlook with 12-4 victory over Orleans
ORLEANS, Mass. — There are still seven games to play in the regular season, but something about Saturday’s contest at Eldredge Park felt like a playoff game.
When Chatham last hosted Orleans on July 12, manager Dennis Cook said it was still too early for him to be worried about picking up games against the Firebirds head-to-head. But now, his team is in the final quarter of the campaign, and the reality is hard to ignore.
The A’s entered Saturday’s matchup seven points ahead of Orleans for the final playoff spot in the CCBL’s East Division. Over the past few weeks, Chatham’s lead fluctuated from as many as 11 points to as few as five. A win over the Firebirds Saturday would make putting them away and reaching the playoffs that much easier.
Chatham rose to the occasion. The Anglers (13-17-3, East) beat Orleans (10-23, East) 12-4 at Eldredge Park Saturday, exploding for 15 hits in their highest-scoring game since June 18. The A’s scored six in the sixth inning alone, and seven different A’s drove in runs on the evening. Now, Chatham sits comfortably in fourth place, nine points clear of the Firebirds for the East’s final playoff spot with seven games remaining.
“I'm just happy that we pitched good and hit good,” Cook said postgame.
”We fed off last night a little bit, and hopefully tomorrow, we do the same thing.”
Friday’s 9-1 win over Yarmouth-Dennis indicated the A’s clearly had what it took to turn things around. But one big win is one thing. Sustaining success is another.
The pitcher on the hill for Chatham gave the A’s a decent chance to do so. Angel Cervantes (UCLA) got the ball for his fifth start of the campaign.
He had a lead to work with before he even toed the rubber.
Jamie Palmese (Kansas) led off the game with a walk, and Bino Watters (LSU) singled through the right side to put two aboard with no outs in the top of the first. Jack Bell (Texas A&M) shot a one-out single up the middle to plate Palmese, and Cole Johnson (Georgia) grounded out to second to score Watters from third afterward.
With two away and Bell on second, Ty Peeples (Florida State) mashed a ball to dead center field, which would’ve cleared the fence by about 20 feet at every other CCBL ballpark. But thanks to Eldredge Park’s unorthodox dimensions, it landed a few feet shy of the wall and hopped over on one bounce. The ground-rule double plated Chatham’s third run.
For the first time all season, Cervantes couldn’t reward his offense with a scoreless first. He entered the game having allowed just one run through his first five starts of the campaign, but Orleans doubled that number with one swing. Dominic Cadiz — Cervantes’ UCLA teammate — blasted a solo homer over the left field wall to trim the A’s lead to two.
As his team walked back to the dugout, Cook shouted to “keep winning innings.” So they did.
The Anglers loaded the bases with no outs in the second after Harlin Hovater (Mississippi State) bunted for a hit, Tyler Howe (North Carolina) walked and Palmese was hit by a pitch. Then, Armani Guzman (West Virginia) drove in the A’s fourth run with a groundout to short.
”They're swinging at better pitches and making better contact,” Cook said of his offense. “We were in a little bit of a funk, and hopefully, they just can keep building on it.”
Cervantes settled down in the second. A leadoff runner reached after a throwing error from Bell, but Cervantes induced a popout, strikeout and flyout to escape the inning unscathed. He put the Firebirds down in order in the third, including a groundout for Cadiz, which was the first time the A’s retired Cadiz in their two games at Eldredge Park this season.
But Orleans again hurt Cervantes with the long ball in the fourth, when Tyler Myatt (Tennessee) knocked a solo shot into left-center with one out. His league-leading seventh homer of the year cut the Angler lead to just two.
“He wasn't as sharp as he has been,” Cook said of Cervantes. “But he did good.”
The Chatham offense restored the advantage. Cam Pruitt (Missouri) blasted a one-out double into left-center, then Hovater knocked his third hit of the day into right to put runners on the corners. Howe shot a ground ball to third on the following at-bat, and Adrian Beltre Jr. (San Diego) threw home, beating Pruitt by a good margin.
But, as Pruitt tried to avoid Orleans catcher Ryan MacDougall, he knocked the ball out of his glove. As it trickled away, Pruitt retreated to touch the plate for Chatham’s fifth run. An RBI fielder's choice from Watters plated the sixth soon after.
The offense kept coming from there. Johnson singled with one out in the sixth, then Peeples was hit by a pitch to put two ducks on the pond, and Pruitt lined a single into left to score Johnson, extending the A’s lead to 7-2.
Then Hovater mashed a single into right — his fourth hit in just six innings — to load the bases. Howe followed it up with a soft line drive into shallow left, which scored Peeples and Pruitt to make it 9-2. Two batters later, Watters made it 10-2 with a sacrifice fly. Guzman blooped a single into left to score another, then a throwing error to the plate added one more.
Suddenly, Chatham was six outs from a run-rule victory. A few days ago — when the A’s mustered just one run in a loss to Falmouth — those words would’ve been a distant dream for the Angler offense.
They couldn’t close it out after seven, giving up two runs in the sixth to take them out of run-rule territory. But the result remained. The A’s took a massive win on the road — and with it, moved closer to their first playoff berth in two years.
“Hitting comes with momentum,” Cook said. “They got a little momentum going right now. So hopefully we can carry it on tomorrow.”
When Chatham last hosted Orleans on July 12, manager Dennis Cook said it was still too early for him to be worried about picking up games against the Firebirds head-to-head. But now, his team is in the final quarter of the campaign, and the reality is hard to ignore.
The A’s entered Saturday’s matchup seven points ahead of Orleans for the final playoff spot in the CCBL’s East Division. Over the past few weeks, Chatham’s lead fluctuated from as many as 11 points to as few as five. A win over the Firebirds Saturday would make putting them away and reaching the playoffs that much easier.
Chatham rose to the occasion. The Anglers (13-17-3, East) beat Orleans (10-23, East) 12-4 at Eldredge Park Saturday, exploding for 15 hits in their highest-scoring game since June 18. The A’s scored six in the sixth inning alone, and seven different A’s drove in runs on the evening. Now, Chatham sits comfortably in fourth place, nine points clear of the Firebirds for the East’s final playoff spot with seven games remaining.
“I'm just happy that we pitched good and hit good,” Cook said postgame.
”We fed off last night a little bit, and hopefully tomorrow, we do the same thing.”
Friday’s 9-1 win over Yarmouth-Dennis indicated the A’s clearly had what it took to turn things around. But one big win is one thing. Sustaining success is another.
The pitcher on the hill for Chatham gave the A’s a decent chance to do so. Angel Cervantes (UCLA) got the ball for his fifth start of the campaign.
He had a lead to work with before he even toed the rubber.
Jamie Palmese (Kansas) led off the game with a walk, and Bino Watters (LSU) singled through the right side to put two aboard with no outs in the top of the first. Jack Bell (Texas A&M) shot a one-out single up the middle to plate Palmese, and Cole Johnson (Georgia) grounded out to second to score Watters from third afterward.
With two away and Bell on second, Ty Peeples (Florida State) mashed a ball to dead center field, which would’ve cleared the fence by about 20 feet at every other CCBL ballpark. But thanks to Eldredge Park’s unorthodox dimensions, it landed a few feet shy of the wall and hopped over on one bounce. The ground-rule double plated Chatham’s third run.
For the first time all season, Cervantes couldn’t reward his offense with a scoreless first. He entered the game having allowed just one run through his first five starts of the campaign, but Orleans doubled that number with one swing. Dominic Cadiz — Cervantes’ UCLA teammate — blasted a solo homer over the left field wall to trim the A’s lead to two.
As his team walked back to the dugout, Cook shouted to “keep winning innings.” So they did.
The Anglers loaded the bases with no outs in the second after Harlin Hovater (Mississippi State) bunted for a hit, Tyler Howe (North Carolina) walked and Palmese was hit by a pitch. Then, Armani Guzman (West Virginia) drove in the A’s fourth run with a groundout to short.
”They're swinging at better pitches and making better contact,” Cook said of his offense. “We were in a little bit of a funk, and hopefully, they just can keep building on it.”
Cervantes settled down in the second. A leadoff runner reached after a throwing error from Bell, but Cervantes induced a popout, strikeout and flyout to escape the inning unscathed. He put the Firebirds down in order in the third, including a groundout for Cadiz, which was the first time the A’s retired Cadiz in their two games at Eldredge Park this season.
But Orleans again hurt Cervantes with the long ball in the fourth, when Tyler Myatt (Tennessee) knocked a solo shot into left-center with one out. His league-leading seventh homer of the year cut the Angler lead to just two.
“He wasn't as sharp as he has been,” Cook said of Cervantes. “But he did good.”
The Chatham offense restored the advantage. Cam Pruitt (Missouri) blasted a one-out double into left-center, then Hovater knocked his third hit of the day into right to put runners on the corners. Howe shot a ground ball to third on the following at-bat, and Adrian Beltre Jr. (San Diego) threw home, beating Pruitt by a good margin.
But, as Pruitt tried to avoid Orleans catcher Ryan MacDougall, he knocked the ball out of his glove. As it trickled away, Pruitt retreated to touch the plate for Chatham’s fifth run. An RBI fielder's choice from Watters plated the sixth soon after.
The offense kept coming from there. Johnson singled with one out in the sixth, then Peeples was hit by a pitch to put two ducks on the pond, and Pruitt lined a single into left to score Johnson, extending the A’s lead to 7-2.
Then Hovater mashed a single into right — his fourth hit in just six innings — to load the bases. Howe followed it up with a soft line drive into shallow left, which scored Peeples and Pruitt to make it 9-2. Two batters later, Watters made it 10-2 with a sacrifice fly. Guzman blooped a single into left to score another, then a throwing error to the plate added one more.
Suddenly, Chatham was six outs from a run-rule victory. A few days ago — when the A’s mustered just one run in a loss to Falmouth — those words would’ve been a distant dream for the Angler offense.
They couldn’t close it out after seven, giving up two runs in the sixth to take them out of run-rule territory. But the result remained. The A’s took a massive win on the road — and with it, moved closer to their first playoff berth in two years.
“Hitting comes with momentum,” Cook said. “They got a little momentum going right now. So hopefully we can carry it on tomorrow.”
