Daily Fog: Double Statements

The league staged a pair of doubleheaders last night, and one probably left everyone feeling pretty unsatisfied. Wareham and Cotuit played to a pair of 3-3 ties.

The other one? Well, Orleans was certainly satisfied.

The Firebirds hosted West-leading Bourne, the hottest team in the league, last night and swept a twin bill by 6-2 and 2-1 scores. Not only were those big victories over one of the best teams in the league, they gave Orleans the credentials to put itself in the same category. The Firebirds now have 15 wins, tied with Y-D for most in the league. They've won five in a row.

In the first game, the Firebirds trailed until the sixth when they put up five runs en route to the 6-2 win. Riccio Torrez (Arizona State) had a double and Danny Muno (Fresno State) drove in two with a single to lead the rally.

The game one victory went to Jimmy Reyes (Elon), who pitched into the seventh.

In game two, Jorge Reyes (Oregon State) struck out seven in six innings, keeping Orleans locked in a 1-1 tie with the Braves. In the bottom of the seventh, the Firebirds broke through. Steven Selsky (Arizona) scored the winning run on a wild pitch.

Just like that, the Firebirds had finished off quite a night. It's funny because I tend to think of doubleheaders as a bad thing, and I'm sure they're a grind, but when something like this happens, you can see the other side of it.

I think the Firebirds are glad they played two last night.

Elsewhere

As for the other doubleheader, Wareham and Cotuit couldn't break away from each other. The first game went nine innings, but was called a tie after that to leave time for game two. The second game was still called because of darkness, ending after six innings. Ryan LaMarre (Michigan), George Springer (Connecticut) and Jake Lemmerman (Duke) drove in runs for the Gatemen in the fourth inning of game one, while Cotuit answered quickly with an RBI single by Zach Cone (Georgia). It was a similar story in game two as Wareham took the lead before Cotuit answered. The ties put Wareham four points back of first-place Bourne. Cotuit is six back.

After getting no-hit on Sunday, Chatham put up 10 hits last night against Hyannis. Unfortunately for the Anglers, the Mets put up 12 and held off a late charge for a 4-3 victory. Elliot Soto (Creighton) drove in two runs for the Mets and Ryan Cuneo (Delaware) hit his third home run. Chatham loaded the bases with nobody out in the ninth, but Mark Gormley (Brown) somehow worked out of the jam to preserve the Hyannis win.

Y-D got home runs from Brian Hernandez (UC Irvine) and Micah Gibbs (LSU) and a dominant start from Mario Hollands (UC Santa Barbara) to beat Harwich 5-3. Hollands allowed one earned run on four hits in seven innings, striking out five and walking none. His ERA now sits at 2.29 after three starts. In addition to the home runs, Y-D got two RBI from Mickey Wiswall (Boston College), who now leads the league in that category.

What to Watch For Tonight

Brandon Workman (Texas) is scheduled to make his first start of the summer for Wareham as the Gatemen host Brewster. The Whitecaps counter with another new face, Nathan Baker, who has pitched one inning in relief. I'll assume this is the Nathan Baker from Mississippi, in which case, the league has another big arm trying to gain some leverage. A junior lefty, Baker had a 3.63 ERA for Ole Miss this spring, with 69 strikeouts in 67 innings. He was drafted in the fifth round this year by the Pirates.