FALMOUTH, Mass. — As the 2024 Cape Cod Baseball League regular season moves into the home stretch, the Bourne Braves find themselves in a playoff race that has been brewing for weeks.
Although 13 games remain, it will most likely be the fourth-place Braves and fifth-place Falmouth Commodores battling for the West Division’s final postseason spot. Bourne held a two-game lead heading into their 27th contest. That added several implications to Thursday’s game against the Commodores.
The Braves (11-14-2), losers of their last three, responded to the challenge with a 5-1 win in Falmouth (6-13) on Thursday. The victory increased their lead over the Commodores to three games for the final spot in the West Playoffs.
Bourne took an early 3-0 lead on Thursday and never looked back. There was no panic — despite their offense only tallying six hits, the Braves pitching kept the victory intact down the stretch to seal a monumental win.
“I think we came out strong,” field manager Scott Landers said. “We had some much better at-bats tonight than we have the last three games… We had a great performance on the mound from all three [pitchers].”
After a quiet week at the plate, outfielder Ethan Conrad (Wake Forest) got back on track in a loud way in the first inning. Hitting third for Bourne with two runners on, the New York native got all of a 1-1 curveball that landed in the middle of the zone, sending a three-run homer into right-center field. The homer snapped an 0-for-10 stretch.
However, Falmouth got a run back during the next frame. After designated hitter Trent Caraway (Oregon State) picked up a leadoff walk, Karson Bowen (TCU) lined an RBI double into left.
That earned run aside, right-handed pitcher Tyler Fay (Alabama) did exactly what he needed to do on the mound. In a five-inning start, he was only responsible for five baserunners and got out of jams whenever necessary. Fay’s low-80s slider complimented a low-90s fastball, and while he had some trouble throwing strikes, he ultimately put up a respectable start.
“The sinker was working, I couldn’t land the slider early,” Fay said. “But I was just pounding the sinker low and got a lot of quick outs.”
Through the next four frames, right-hander John Abraham (Florida State) and lefty Justin West (Louisville) shut the Commodores down, holding them without a run for the rest of the night.
Pivotal Sequence
Despite posting a three-spot in the first inning, Bourne’s offense had gone somewhat cold, only recording one baserunner — a walk drawn by Braden Holcomb (Vanderbilt) — through the next three frames.
That changed in the fifth.
Outfielder Isaiah Jackson (Arizona State) drew a leadoff walk before stealing second base with one out. A single from Chris Stanfield (LSU) into right then drove in Jackson and extended Bourne’s lead to 4-1.
Stanfield was driven in shortly thereafter thanks to Holcomb, who chopped a single beyond the reach of shortstop Jaxon Willits (Oklahoma). The fifth-inning rally virtually put the game out of reach for Falmouth, as it didn’t cut into the deficit for the rest of the night.
“Every run is crucial,” Landers said. “Gives you a little more comfort going through the game. We always talk about tacking on little by little, and we did that a little bit tonight.”
Hitter of the Game — Chris Stanfield
Stanfield has now reached base in three consecutive contests thanks to a two-hit performance on Thursday.
He reached on a perfectly-executed bunt in the first inning and later scored on Conrad’s home run. After grounding out his next time up, Stanfield picked up an RBI single in the fifth to put Bourne up 4-1.
Through 13 games in July, Stanfield has posted a .434 on-base percentage, the highest of any qualified player on the Braves. He’s gone 16-for-45 (.356) and has reached base in three straight games.
“That’s my main goal, is just get on base and utilize my skillset to help the team, most importantly to help us win,” Stanfield said. “I’ve just been trying to keep it simple. I started a little rocky and kind of took a step back, [but] figured it out what was working for me.”
Pitcher of the Game — Justin West
Left-hander Justin West’s (Louisville) outing didn’t get off to a promising start.
Entering the game in the eighth inning, he conceded two straight singles to put runners on first and second. Despite allowing hard contact, he induced a lineout and flyout to settle things down before striking out Luke Gaffney (Purdue) swinging for out number three.
With his team up 5-1 in the bottom of the ninth, West again let up consecutive singles to kick things off, this time positioning Bowen on third. However, he then tossed back-to-back strikeouts and coaxed third baseman Dylan Carey (Nebraska) into the game-ending lineout.
A Look Ahead
A win over Falmouth is massive for Bourne, as it regains a three-game lead for the West Division’s last playoff spot. The Braves will be back at Doran Park on Friday to battle the Brewster Whitecaps for the final time this season. In three games, the Whitecaps hold a 2-1 season series lead over Bourne.
Likely garnering the start for the home team is southpaw Ethan McElvain (Vanderbilt). During his first outing of the season in Orleans on July 11, he struck out three and surrendered two runs — one of which was earned — in 3.0 innings of work.
Brewster’s probable starter is left-hander Noal Samol (Clemson), who missed the entire 2024 spring due to injury. In 15 frames across 12 appearances in 2023, Samol pitched to an 11.40 ERA and punched out 14, and will make his first Cape Cod League appearance against Bourne.
First pitch will be at 6 p.m. ET.
Notes
Catcher Chase Meggers (Oregon) has recorded hits in back-to-back games… Jackson has reached base in his past four games in which he’s recorded an at-bat… Conrad has the highest average (.424) during road games of any qualified player in the CCBL. Holcomb has the second-highest, only two points lower than Conrad… Second baseman Camden Kozeal (Arkansas) leads the Cape in doubles with nine… Bourne has struck out the second-most batters this season, only three shy of the league lead.
