BREWSTER, Mass. — The Whitecaps have had a week of lows, and Wednesday’s 8-1 loss to Wareham marked the lowest yet.

The offense was quiet; seven hits produced just one run, and Brewster stranded seven on the basepaths. The pitching gave up eight runs. And spirits were low — understandable, since the team has not won a game since July 17.

But as the Whitecaps huddled for a full team postgame meeting, manager Jamie Shevchik’s message was still positive.

“I’m all in,” he told them. “I’m all in on this team turning something around.”

Brewster’s 12-18-2 record, Shevchik said, is what it is. But he believes that if his team can hang on, they have the right group to make some noise in the postseason.

“I’ll take it to my grave,” Shevchik added. “If I drive off the Cape wrong then I drive off the Cape wrong, but I still believe this is a good team. They just haven’t done anything to prove me right yet.”

For that belief to become reality, things will need to look much different than they did in the loss to the Gatemen.

Starter Jake Clemente (Florida) gained plenty of recognition since his scoreless seven-inning gem against Harwich last week, including CCBL Pitcher of the Week honors and a nod as the East Division’s starting pitcher in Saturday’s All-Star Game.

But the righty fell back down to earth against the Gatemen, allowing five earned runs in 3.1 innings. He was solid through three innings — the only blemish was an RBI groundout in the first after Wareham’s Brendan Summerhill (Arizona) hammered a leadoff double down the right field line.

But after working 1-2-3 frames in the second and third, things snowballed out of control in the fourth. The inning started with a leadoff single from Yohann Dessureault (Stetson) and ended five runs later. After a flyout, the Gatemen tagged Clemente for three consecutive hits — an RBI single, double and a two-run single, which made it 4-0 and forced a call to the bullpen.

Zach Johnston (Wake Forest) entered, but Wareham continued to pour it on with a pair of singles and a sacrifice fly, which extended the lead to 6-0 and solidified Clemente’s final line allowing five earned runs.

“The first three innings it was good, and then it fell apart on him a little bit,” Shevchik said. “It was almost like he knew it was going to be a shortened stint because he was going a certain pitch count no matter what going into the All-Star game.”

Johnston stayed on to pitch two more innings, working a scoreless fifth but giving up two runs in the sixth on an RBI single and a run-scoring passed ball.

With the game well out of hand, Will Ray (Wake Forest) worked a 1-2-3 seventh, including an impressive snag on a line drive comebacker from Wareham’s Murf Gray (Fresno State) that nearly struck him in the face.

With fog descending upon Stony Brook Field and the game’s result all but sealed, the umpires called off the game after the bottom of the seventh inning.

Brewster’s lone run came off the bat of designated hitter Colby Shelton (Florida), who drove home Nick Dumesnil (Cal Baptist) with a base hit in the sixth. Shelton also drew a walk in one of his best performances since joining the Whitecaps on July 16.

Shortstop Kaeden Kent (Texas A&M) and right fielder Dallas Macias (Oregon State) each hit two singles, another positive sign for the floundering Whitecaps offense, which did not record an extra-base hit in Wednesday’s game.

Shevchik said he wonders if the team is forcing things, or “doing too much,” as he put it. But whatever issues may exist, he emphasized the fact that there remains time to work through them.

“We’re still holding onto the third spot in our division,” he said. “There’s still life. We’re still breathing. And until that breath is gone, this team needs to keep fighting. And I just can’t be the only one that thinks this team is good.”

Title photo credit: Julianne Shivers.