The Harwich Mariners made the long trip to Falmouth to face the Commodores for the third meeting of the season. The Mariners found success in their first two meetings winning with the combined score of 25-3.
Jackson Peavy was the starter for the Mariners Thursday. Peavy has been dominant, only giving up two runs in his 11 ⅔ innings of work. The talented young arm from Georgia has also picked up ten strikeouts in his Cape career.
The Mariners struck first in the top of the fourth inning after a two-out rally. Cade Kurland got things started with a double to left-center field. Quinton Coats would drive Kurland in after a double down the right field line. A JP Peltier single would bring home Coats to give the Mariners a 2-0 lead.
The Commodores charged back in the bottom of the fourth inning to level the game at 2-2. Peavy stopped the bleeding after getting out of a bases-loaded jam.
The Mariners regained the lead in the top of the fifth inning after big hits from Niko Brini and Nate Castellon. With two runners aboard, Brini launched a ball to deep right-center field that almost left the yard. Brini came out of the box fast and was thinking triple the whole way. The speedy right fielder was able to be the second Mariner this season to hit a triple. A Castellon single would bring home Brini to give the Mariners a 5-2 lead.
Peavy pitched well for the Mariners Thursday. The young arm battled against the strong Commodores lineup to only let up two runs. After four innings of work Peavy was able to strike out two batters and only allowed three hits.
TJ Ziermann came in the bottom of the fifth to relieve Peavy. Ziermann is coming off a four inning performance against Chatham where he didn't allow a single run to be a part of the first nine run no-hitter since 2016 for the Mariners. The UNCW product pitched the last five innings for the Mariners without allowing a single run and only allowing two hits. The right hander also had four strikeouts during his outing.
“Honestly, it's a confidence thing. At the start of the year, I was struggling mentally. Not that I didn't know I was a guy, but I was worried because these are the best players in the country. I was wondering if my stuff would play. Just being able to trust that my stuff is good and I can throw in the zone and get outs has helped tremendously," said Ziermann.
Ziermann closed the door on the Commodores to give the Mariners their fourth win in five games.
Debut
The Mariners had a new face in right field Thursday. Paul Jones is the newest member of the Harwich team after coming off of an impressive year at Maryland where he batted an astounding .323 with 12 home runs.
Jones made his presence known in the bottom of the fourth inning after making a diving grab in right field to spoil a Commodores’ bases-loaded opportunity and end the inning.
What's Next?
The Mariners host the Y-D Red Sox at Whitehouse Field Saturday for their fourth meeting this season.
First pitch is set for 4:30 p.m.
