We all know the old adage: when it rains, it pours. This saying certainly applies to the Harwich Mariners, who are stuck in the pouring rain after losing their sixth straight game Wednesday night, 7-4 to the Orleans Firebirds.
Like in so many of their recent losses, one big inning from Orleans sent the Mariners into a tailspin and effectively lost the game for them.
Wednesday night, it was a four-run sixth inning from the Firebirds that brought them from down a run to up by three heading into crunch time.
After an error allowed the first batter of the bottom of the sixth, Lorenzo Meola, to reach first, the bottom of the Orleans lineup flexed its muscles, as the ninth hitter in the lineup, Ben Zeigler-Namoa, crushed a home run to right field. This put the Firebirds up 5-4, their first lead of the game and one they didn't relinquish.
The next two runs were scored after avoidable errors from Harwich pitcher J.T. Gibson allowed the Firebirds several extra bases. A balk, two walks and two wild pitches contributed directly to runs six and seven for Orleans, the final runs it scored on the evening.
The game got off to a booming offensive start for the Mariners, who tagged a four-spot of their own in the second inning.
A single from the scorching-hot Matt Scannell and a double from Cade Kurland put runners on second and third with one out for the newest Kansas Jayhawk, Tommy Barth. Barth rolled over a ground ball to first, but the combination of his speed and the lack of speed from the ball allowed him to reach first with an infield single, while Scannell scored and Kurland advanced to third.
Now, Cam Maldonado had ducks on the pond, in a position to do some damage. After hitting a home run in his final at-bat on Tuesday night, Maldonado kept the train rolling as he annihilated a dinger to the opposite field.
Those four runs were the only offense that Harwich mustered, however, as the bats went cold for the final seven innings, only registering three more hits on the night.
The Mariners will once again look to end their longest losing streak since 2016 on Thursday night when they take on Chatham at Veterans Field for the second time this week. First pitch is scheduled for 7 p.m.
