HYANNIS, Mass. — Falmouth’s offense had shown signs of heating up. Although it didn’t explode in the run column, scoring eight runs in its last two games, numerous hitters entered Saturday’s game at Hyannis on a high.
Justin Osterhouse had produced two straight two-hit games. Maika Niu had three extra-base hits over the span. Adrian Lopez, since returning from an injury Tuesday, had reached base five times. And like always, Antonio Morales continued to produce.
Their success helped the 'Dores win their last two games over Bourne and Harwich, even without the entire offense fully clicking. It provided some optimism of a full resurgence going forward.
But Hyannis was a different beast. Falmouth fell back down to earth, falling to Hyannis, 5-1, in a five-inning, fog-shortened game Saturday. After strong starting pitching powered the Commodores past Harwich, Matt Sauser allowed five runs in the fifth inning alone, while the 'Dores’ top four threats combined for zero hits, snapping their two-game win streak.
Falmouth (5-7) arrived in Hyannis on a high. But the Harbor Hawks (8-3-1) proved to be its kryptonite again.
On Tuesday, Hyannis cruised to a 5-2 win over Falmouth, which went 2-for-16 with runners in scoring position. The Harbor Hawks entered Saturday with the best record in the Cape Cod Baseball League’s West Division and the second-best in the league.
They flashed that stardom Saturday. Hyannis starter Evan Blanco, who entered allowing just two earned runs this season, stifled the 'Dores. He had no problem cooling down the hot bats of Morales, Lopez and Niu on eight pitches in the first. Falmouth made him work more in the second, with two two-out singles from Bear Harrison and Ben Royo, but he got Chris Newstrom to fly out to deep center to end the threat.
Falmouth had missed its chance. Blanco put the brief jam behind him, using 12 pitches to sit down the top of the 'Dores’ order again in the third. It took some time, but the Harbor Hawks took advantage.
Sauser (Central Florida) looked off instantly. His previous two starts had been shaky, as he allowed three runs in each. He foreshadowed Saturday’s struggles early, as the Harbor Hawks made hard contact in the first and second innings. Still, everything dropped harmlessly onto the warning track for outs, keeping the game scoreless.
But Hyannis was bound to break through. And it did in a big way.
Hawaii’s Matthew Miura, who entered fourth in the CCBL in RBIs (eight), notched his ninth by grounding an RBI infield single up the middle to open the third. Then, the floodgates opened. Andrew Williamson made it 3-0 with a screaming line drive into left-center, aided by a Newstrom error in center. Jaxon Willits and Ray Velazquez broke the game wide open with RBI knocks of their own, completing Hyannis’ five-run inning.
Though only three innings had been completed, the Harbor Hawks looked to be running away with the game. All they needed to do was hold the Commodores at bay.
That was easier than it seemed.
Kent Schmidt (Georgia Tech) took reliever Tsubasa Tomii 415 feet to deep right-center for his first roundtripper of the summer, making it 5-1 in the fourth. In the bottom half, reliever Zach Johnston worked out of a bases-loaded, no-out jam.
The Commodores seemed to be building momentum. But Mother Nature had her own ideas. After Tomii ended the fifth by fanning Morales, fog crept in. The game was eventually called, handing the 'Dores a loss despite playing just five innings.
Falmouth’s offense finally looked like it was putting things together to end the week. But the 'Dores ran into Hyannis again. Nothing went right — not even the weather — and it was enough to snap Falmouth’s brief two-game surge.
Noah Nussbaum is the beat reporter for the Falmouth Commodores. You can read all of his articles on the Commodores here.
