The Firebirds came back to Eldredge dressed in black on Wednesday. The field and grounds had suffered some unwanted renovations from a huge storm that passed through on Tuesday — giving Orleans an unscheduled off day.

A few hours of raking and a boatload of quick-dry sand later, Eldredge was in playable condition. Their fourth head-to-head bout with the Harwich Mariners would hopefully result in the Birds’ ninth win of the year. The sun broke through a wall of clouds — putting a stop to the dreary weather.

It was another “show and go” day for Orleans. In two previous instances of having no batting or infield practice the Birds had won both games. The Birds needed to right the ship in a big way with only 11 games to play.

Right the ship is exactly what Orleans did. The show and go Firebirds demolished the Mariners on both sides of the ball. The Birds totalled a massive 19 hits, their second most in any game this season. They scored ten runs and blanked the Mariners across an eight inning contest that ended via run-rule. Tyler Myatt (Tennessee) was three for four and a triple shy of the cycle. Garrett Larsen (Yale) had a three-hit day. Eight of nine Birds hitters had a knock. The offense finally proved its potential after five straight games of underperforming.

Birds’ pitching was completely lights out. Jake Echols (GCU) made by far his best start, tossing five shutout innings. Drew Harrison (Pearl River Community College) and Luca Alagheband (Harvard) combined for the other three scoreless innings. Birds’ pitching allowed just four hits all night.

As fans swarmed the field, AJ Beltré explained the importance of the Birds’ most convincing win of the season so far. Young fans waited expectantly with autograph requests, surrounding him on all sides.

“We have fun around each other, but there’s no fun like winning,” Beltré said. “That was the most fun I’ve had all summer. It’s just different baseball when you’re winning, and that’s what we needed big time. Scoring a run an inning is big for us — that’s what the good teams do.”

Having turned a corner offensively, Beltré said that he’s honored to have been slotted in as the third hitter in the order by Kelly Nicholson. He also reflected on some changes he’s had to implement in order to be successful.

“The biggest part is just being a contributor to a scoring offense. To get some runs and an RBI today was huge, but I attribute it to the guys playing complementary offense,” he said. “For me, it's about slowing the game down. I was struggling early with timing, and not seeing pitches deep. I’m finally pulling some balls, breathing more, seeing pitches better, and building confidence.”

In seven and two thirds innings of relief pitching this season, Beltré is still yet to allow an earned run. He’s appeared in five games so far, and has six strikeouts under his belt compared to two walks.

“The most important thing has been pounding strikes. I realized that the velocity has been there, so I can really simplify and not try to throw hard, and I’m throwing the hardest I ever have in my life,” he said. “I’m keeping a consistent head posture, picking a spot, and trying to throw it there. The story of the whole summer so far on the mound has been trying to keep things simple.”

Between the collegiate school year and summer league games, most players don’t get to see their families or visit home for months on end. AJ was lucky enough to have his family visit the Cape for a week or so, a vacation where they attended almost every Firebirds game. Having grown up going to MLB games for his dad Adrián, it was a full circle moment for the Beltré family.

“It’s a blessing that they were able to come down here,” he said. “I can’t say enough about how much they help me on the mental side of things. It was nice to go over to their Airbnb after the games, eat dinner with them, be with my sisters [Cassie and Camila], and not think about baseball. My mom [Sandra] has helped me tremendously in this game mental-wise.”

When Adrián was at Firebirds games, he could always be spotted in the scouts only section filming each of AJ’s at bats and pitching appearances on his iPhone. AJ said the two spent hours on the couch talking through his actions in-game.

“He’s helped me so much in the short time that he was here,” AJ said. “He was showing me all these things in person, but even when he’s not here I call him after every game. He sees the little stuff that not everyone can see. He sees when I’m consistent and why, and he catches all the little things that might be wrong with my swing.”

To kick things off at Eldredge, Echols made his second Birds start as the wind whipped and swirled. He worked with incredible efficiency in the first — getting every batter into an 0-2 count before inducing two groundouts and striking out one. Throwing strikes and getting ahead early would be key against a contact-first Mariners team that still loves to run.

Orleans had already faced Mariners starter Riley Goodman twice this season. Both Casey Cumiskey (SNHU) and Jonathan Gomez (Stetson) had taken him deep. The leadoff man Rowan Kelly (UCSB) shot a double down the third base line. Dominic Cadiz (UCLA) ripped a single 105 miles an hour off the bat and up the middle, scoring Kelly. The Birds one-two punch was back in full force. Shaun McMillan (St. John’s) nearly had another RBI in his second Orleans start. Riley Goodman had to side-step a line-drive headed right for him, which was barely handled for out number three.

Echols continued to pound the zone in the second. He got popped for a double, but buckled down for another scoreless frame. McMillan made a nice play at first to take away a line-drive hit.

The Birds’ bottom of the lineup came together to add a second run. Adam Magpoc (SDSU) singled and stole second. Garrett Larsen’s (Yale) third hit of the year found a hole to score Magpoc before the end of the second inning.

Echols’ control wavered in the third. He hit a batter and walked two, but Brendan Buecker (Monmouth) threw out his first runner of the season to stop a rally. He had kept the trigger-happy Mariners under control thus far.

Myatt added two more runs for Orleans in the third. He belted a two-run homer just over the left-center field fence. His opposite field bomb left the bat at 104 miles an hour and traveled over 360 feet. He had granted the Birds some crucial early insurance with his fifth blast of the year, good for second most in the entire CCBL.

Echols coasted through his fourth inning of work. Orleans’ bats erupted in the bottom of the inning. The eight through three hitters in the lineup all singled, putting three more runs up on the board. The Birds were already up 7-0 on ten hits.

The right-handed starter for Orleans kept dealing in the fifth. Colin Larson laid down a bunt single, but three more outs on weak contact got the job done.

Riley Goodman was pulled after four innings of Firebirds’ punishment. Ben Alekson replaced him, allowing two hits but no runs.

Jake Echols' best start was over after five. Drew Harrison made his Birds’ debut in the sixth. He had pitched to a 3.53 ERA last year as a starter for the Pearl River Wildcats with a nearly immaculate 11-1 win-loss record. He bested Nico Brini in a ten pitch battle for his first K, sporting a smooth but explosive delivery. The righty followed that up with two more quick outs. Echols threw over 70% first-pitch strikes during his outing.

“Getting ahead [in counts] was the biggest thing working for me today,” Echols said. “Last outing I struggled with getting behind. Today, I felt like I could throw anything I wanted — so I felt confident with heaters early and using more spin late. It feels great to get this win, but we’ve got to keep going and pass the torch to go 1-0 tomorrow.”

In 2024 and 2025, Echols pitched his freshman and sophomore seasons at Polk State College in Florida before transferring to FSU for his junior season in 2026 — where he worked from the bullpen. A great deal of his innings at Polk came from a starting role.

“I made a lot of starts in junior college, and I’m getting that taste again stretching myself out,” Echols said. “I’ve got to make sure I’m keeping my arm healthy, doing my long-toss, and getting my stretching in as I try to go through more innings.”

Going back to a starting role, Echols is relying on tried-and-true mental cues to keep the success rolling.

“I have a saying called ‘Throttle Down’ — it’s just my cue both for when I’m pitching well and when I’m pitching bad. You just have to keep pushing your foot into the ground and giving your best stuff at all times.”

Echols said that working under pitching gurus Kelly Nicholson and Jim Lawler has been instrumental to his recent success.

“They’re my favorite coaches that I’ve ever played with,” he said. “Kelly’s great — you’re not getting anything but positivity from him. You’ve got a guy on your side no matter what the case is. With Lawler, he’s been doing this for 20-plus years, and it shows.”

In a baseball world where data and new metrics can be a divisive issue, Echols said that he’s recently taken a deeper dive into the numbers.

“I’m getting into the metrics a lot more now,” Echols said. “I think it can only help you. I like looking at numbers related to spin and extension and trying to use that to my advantage.”

Orleans continued to pile on hits. AJ Beltré (USD) recorded an infield single for his second hit. Myatt continued to rake, roping a double to the right field wall and scoring Beltré. The Firebirds were up eight zip.

Alagheband entered for the seventh, coming off of his strongest start as a Firebird. One hit, walk, and strikeout later, he had done his job.

Magpoc and Buecker both notched their second knocks of the game in the bottom of the inning. A sacrifice fly from Kelly pushed the score to 9-0. The Birds were one run away from their first mercy rule victory. Alagheband flew through the eighth to give the Birds a chance to go home early.

After Myatt and Beltré’s third hits of the night, Casey Cumiskey put the Mariners out of their misery. His second hit finished the job. Myatt scored, representing the tenth and final run. The Birds were in better spirits than previously thought possible. A good clean win goes a long way at the tail end of a rollercoaster season.

The Mariners will be seeking revenge against the Firebirds at Whitehouse Field on Thursday. It’ll be up to the Birds to keep the momentum rolling for the final stretch of 2026.