Orleans returned to Eldredge for their third game against the Falmouth Commodores of 2026. Showers plagued pre-game activities, but the weather cleared just as the anthem finished. Or so everyone thought.

A local CBS broadcast crew rolled into the park. They set up a scaffolding structure next to the press box for their home plate camera. A pickup truck was backed up beyond the center field fence to house another camera rig. More cameramen and production assistants joined Orleans interns to cover the game from the sideline.

All told, it was another unsatisfying night for Orleans on both sides of the ball. In total, the Firebirds left 14 runners on base and were 3-13 with runners in scoring position. They squandered three bases loaded opportunities, and the bullpen struggled again in late inning relief despite a decent start from Brennan Seiber (Vanderbilt). Though they did score without homering, many troubling trends persist as the season wears on.

The sun shone from over Nauset Middle as Seiber took the mound for his third Firebirds start. He relied on his bread and butter sinker slider combo for three quick groundouts in the first.

The Birds first lead versus Falmouth all season came in the first. Rowan Kelly (UCSB) wore a pitch to get on. He and Bub Terrell (Auburn) stole a bag each. Nate Savoie (Texas A&M) chopped one back to the pitcher to score Kelly. The Birds had a golden opportunity to add on as they loaded the bases, but their eighth strikeout this year in such a situation squashed their hopes.

The Firebirds had finally scored a run without the ball leaving the yard. Kelly’s speed was already showing up for the team he had joined just a few days ago. Still, he thinks it’s a skill he can improve this summer on the Cape.

“Speed is something I want to work on,” Kelly said. “I want to be aggressive. Since I’ve been here, we’ve struggled to produce runs. Putting pressure on the other team creates mistakes and allows the game to speed up on their pitcher.”

Though Kelly just joined the Birds, he understands the team’s offensive strife. But he might have a way to fix it.

“Obviously, we’re missing the big hit here and there,” Kelly said. “We need to be better at making the other team earn outs. Stealing bases and putting the ball in play with two strikes is how we can get out of a hole like this.”

As a rising junior at University of California, Santa Barbara, Kelly understands his elite ability to make contact. More importantly, he knows how to keep moving forward after a tough loss.

“Just bat to ball. When the ball is in the zone, I do a good job of not missing it,” Kelly said. “You’re going to get punched in the face, but you need to find a way to stay emotionally level. We’re all here for a reason. Like Kelly [Nicholson] says, ‘After action — review.’”

Falmouth starter Wilson Magers continued his reign of terror in the second, hitting Stricklin. He had already plunked Kelly and Elijah Ickes (Hawaii) in the first. Dominic Cadiz (UCLA) kept breaking bats and producing results, punching a single between short and third. Orleans was desperately searching for an offensive spark with the bases loaded again.

Terrell K’d against new pitcher Nate Stern. The Birds were now 1-15 with 9 strikeouts with the bases loaded on the year. Savoie was just feet away from saving the inning. He hit a deep drive 350 feet to right, but the ball hung up at the wall for Anthony Diaz. Another three runners were left on base by the Birds. Another bullet dodged was dodged by the Commodores.

As Yogi Berra would say, it was dejà vu all over again for Sieber in the fourth. Just as it had happened in his last start in Brewster, he allowed three straight singles, also in the fourth inning. Falmouth took a 2-1 lead.

Kelly came to the plate first in the fourth. He fastened and re-fastened his batting gloves between each pitch. He swung his bat in a circle and came set. He then watched five pitches and walked to first, but he wasn’t done causing chaos on the bases.

After an errant pickoff throw by Nate Stern, Kelly ran all the way to third. Cadiz evened the score with a sacrifice fly to right.

Brayden Toro (Stetson) was the first man out of the bullpen for the Birds after another four inning start from Seiber. Making his fourth appearance in seven days, Toro began sharper than ever, striking out two in his first inning.

Orleans left two more men on base in the fifth. Toro went back to work in the sixth. He made his first mistake, leaving a cutter middle-middle to Ty Kaunas who escorted the baseball out of Eldredge.

Fog continued to swirl around the light towers in the outfield. The Birds went quickly in the sixth. Toro remained in the game for the top of the seventh. Two Commodores reached with no outs, and Toro got the hook from Kelly Nicholson. D.C. Brown (Brown) was the next arm up.

In an impossible situation, Brown wasn’t able to escape. Two Commodores came in to score on an Anthony Diaz grounder as the Firebirds defense was caught napping. Joe Nottingham (Georgia) made his Firebirds debut with the Birds behind 5-3. Nottingham flashed an elite fastball-splitter combo, but Falmouth scored their sixth run before the top of the seventh was over.

Nottingham’s control did not improve in the eighth. He walked the bases loaded, and Kelly Nicholson handed the ball to another new face.

Orleans had one more trick up their sleeve. AJ Beltré (USD) trotted out to the mound amidst thickening fog to make his pitching debut. Though usually an infielder, Beltré sat in the low 90s with his fastball and featured a nice slider which he had confidence in throwing. Still, the Commodores scored two more times.

“It was good to be back out there,” Beltré said. “My last time facing hitters was mid-January. It’s a different side of the adrenaline of a baseball game.”

Beltré began his two-way journey during his junior year at Maranatha High School in Pasadena, CA. He continued into his senior year, then pitched as a freshman at USD. Injury derailed his sophomore season. He plans to keep pitching for as long as he can.

“It’s definitely something I want to learn more about,“ Beltré said. “It’s about letting the game tell me when to stop. This game’s tough. Any avenue I can have to play for a long time I’ll take it. Hitting and playing defense have been my passion, but pitching is a new addition.”

Beltré knows that one of his best traits is his pure athleticism. He tries to harness that when taking the mound, while also mentally envisioning success.

“I’ve liked to keep the same athletic throwing motion, and take infield practice before the game,” he said. “The adrenaline you feel is a little stronger than when you hit. When you’re pitching, the game is in your hands, and you feel that.”

Beltré said he continues to have conversations with Pitching Coach Jim Lawler and the rest of the staff to make a plan for the rest of the summer. While the closer role may be in his future, he doesn’t want his innings on the mound to detract from the time he gets as a position player.

“I want to play the field then come in and pitch,” he said. “I appreciate [the coaches] protecting my arm, but I wanted to let them know that I’m always ready to go.”

As the fog formed a thick wall in the outfield the umpires convened with both managers to discuss weather conditions. Despite the initial concern, the game was allowed to progress. More pain was still to come. At this point, the field looked more like a graveyard in December than a ballpark on a warm summer night.

The Birds had the bases loaded again in the eighth. Predictably, Orleans squandered the opportunity, leaving another three runners on.

AJ collected his second scoreless inning in the ninth. His inspiring performance wasn’t enough to rally the Birds. Game, set, match for the Commodores. They had beaten Orleans in all three of their matchups so far.

Orleans will travel to McKeon Park in Hyannis on Sunday for their rematch against the Harbor Hawks.