Daily Fog: Game On

I always try to use this space to write about what seemed important from the night before. The most important thing last night?

They played baseball. On Cape Cod.

After two full days of rainouts and one day with four rainouts, the weather finally cooperated long enough last night to get most of the games in. Hyannis had to postpone its match-up with Wareham, but that was the only one. Everyone else played, and I, for one, am glad they're back.

I'm guessing the Chatham Anglers are happy to be back, too.

I feel like I've partially lost it in all the unevenness of the early season, but it's time to take notice: the Anglers are on fire. Last night, they won their fifth straight game as they topped Y-D 8-3. They're now 8-1, a full seven points ahead of second-place Brewster in the East. They're off to a faster start than even the 2007 juggernaut Y-D Red Sox, who were 7-2 through nine games.

Last night, they wasted no time jumping on top. They batted around in the first inning and chased Y-D starter Greg Holle (TCU) before he could record an out. Mike Murray (Wake Forest) had an RBI single, with three of the other runs coming home on bases-loaded walks or hit-batsmen.

Staked to a big lead, Chatham pitcher Pete Kennelly (Fordham) was just as dominant in his first start as he has been in relief. He went four scoreless innings, allowing one hit and striking out four. Kennelly now hasn't allowed a run in four appearances. Parker Bangs (South Carolina) picked up the win in relief.

Murray went 3-for-3 to lead the offense, while Tom Belza (Oklahoma State) went 2-for-3 with two runs scored and an RBI.

Elsewhere

Chris Dwyer (Clemson) made his first start on the Cape, and it was a great one. A fourth-round pick this year as a draft-eligible freshman, Dwyer struck out nine in five scoreless innings to lead Cotuit past Falmouth 2-0. Greg Schimmel
breaks down Dwyer's performance on his blog, saying that Dwyer is the most impressive pitcher he's seen this summer. Daniel Tillman (Florida Southern), Chad Bell (Walters State CC) and Drew Gagnier (Oregon) came out of the pen to preserve the shutout, with Tillman striking out five in 2.2 innings and Gagnier striking out the side in the ninth to pick up his first save. Tony Plagman (Georgia Tech) had an RBI double and Brian Guinn (California) hit an RBI single to power a two-run fifth.

Brewster has played five home games and tied three of them, including last night's 2-2 result against Bourne. Braves starter Eric Cantrell (George Washington) was strong again, striking out eight in five innings. Brewster's Kyle Blair struck out four and walked four in 4.1 scoreless innings. Stefan Romero (Oregon State) hit a two-run home run to power Bourne's attack. Mark Canha (California) drove in both of Brewster's runs with a sixth-inning single. He's tied for the league lead in RBI with seven. Raynor Campbell (Baylor), a 31st-round pick who was an all-star for Wareham last summer, was in the lineup for Bourne and went 2-for-4.

Orleans scored four runs in the top of the ninth to rally past Harwich 6-4. Kevin Muno (San Diego State) knocked in a run to get the rally going before an error allowed the tying and go-ahead runs to score. Jaren Matthews (Rutgers) knocked in two to lead Orleans.

What to Watch For Tonight
Chris Sale (Florida Gulf Coast), who has struck out 20 and hasn't allowed a run in 14 innings, will make his third start of the year as Y-D hosts Orleans. The Firebirds will counter with Casey Gaynor (Rutgers), who allowed one run in six innings in his first start.