After a night where everything went wrong for the Harwich Mariners, the team could do no wrong against the Yarmouth-Dennis Red Sox.
Harwich came out on a mission, scoring eight runs in the first four innings and taking control of the game from the get go.
On the mound, Matthew Heiberger gave the Mariners the start they needed. The lefty went six innings in his first start of the summer, allowing just two runs.
Rebounding from a slow 3.5-hour loss to Wareham, Harwich put together an efficient 10-2 win over Y-D at Red Wilson Field Thursday, ending a two-game losing streak. The Mariners were able to get all nine innings under 2.5 hours.
Home runs from Aiden Robbins and Shintaro Inoue powered the Mariners. The pair drove in a combined five runs in the first two innings.
Y-D pitcher Noah Bentley, took the loss for Y-D after laboring to get through the first two innings.
Robbins' shot gave Harwich a 2-0 lead in the first innings. It was Robbins’ second straight game with a home run. He added two singles to finish the day with three hits. With one game to go before the All-Star Game, Robbins is hitting .321 with a 1.042 OPS.
A day after field manager Steve Englert said teams were going to start pitching around Robbins, the Texas-transfer connected on fastballs in the zone.
“That’s my alley right there,” Robbins said on the outside fastball he crushed over the fence. “I hit that ball and I knew it was gone.”
Inoue got his third extra-base hit of the summer by shooting the ball over the right-center field fence for a three-run homer. He finished his day with two hits and four RBI’s
Normally a walk-machine, leading the team with 15, Inoue’s aggressive approach paid off big time.
“It was good to see him put a couple barrels on the ball,” Englert said. “He can be almost too fine with his approach. He has to open it up a little bit. Once he starts figuring that out, expect big things out of him.”
Third baseman Maddox Molony also collected two hits on the night. The Oregon Duck was able to get a pop-fly to drop into shallow left field to score Tanner Marsh, putting the Mariners up 7-0 in the fourth inning.
It was another big offensive night for the Mariners lineup as six guys recorded multiple hits.
New guy chips in
A day after flying in to the Cape, catcher Trey Wells wasted no time contributing for the Mariners. In addition to a pair of singles, Well’s got his first RBI with the Mariners on a sacrifice fly to center field in the third inning, scoring Matt Conte and extending the lead to 6-0.
Wells, flashed the defense as well, threw out a base runner at second base.
Duo of lefties get it done on mound
Using five pitchers against the Gatemen, the Mariners were desperate for a long outing from Heiberger. Luckily, the rising junior from Alabama answered the call.
Heiberger scattered seven hits, while striking out six guys and walking no one. Even when he allowed runs, Y-D struggled to get the ball out of the infield.
The Red Sox got on the scoreboard in the fifth when a dropped-third strike against Yomar Carreras rolled to the backstop with two men in scoring position. Garrett Wright ran home on the wild pitch while Dean Carpentier advanced to third.
The next batter, Armando Briseno, hit a bouncing groundball that went off the heel of Molony’s glove. That made the score 8-2, the closest Y-D got all night.
Adam Arther carried the momentum by throwing three shutout innings in relief. The sidearmer struck out five guys and allowed a single base runner from a walk.
“Heiberger gave us an outstanding start,” Englert said. We needed it, because we were a little thin in the pen. Then Arty did his job.
Arther lowered his ERA to 2.19.
Moving Forward
Harwich (12-11-3) ends the week with a home matchup against Cotuit (11-14-2) before the all-star break. The Mariners will play the Kettleers at 6:30 p.m. from Whitehouse Field.
