Nearly every Y-D Red Sox win this season has required a comeback. On Friday, they nearly became the victims of one.
Up 4-0 in the sixth inning, Y-D let up a two-run blast to Henry Zenor (USC Upstate). Y-D recorded two outs shortly after, but a throwing error by Lucas Franco (TCU) and a hit batsman from Andrew Wright (Cal State Fullerton) put runners on. Two pitches later, Hyannis’ JP Head sent a catchable fly ball out to left field, but Ty Mainolfi (Boston College) lost it in the lights. Mainolfi is primarily an infielder, and the mistake cost Y-D its lead, tying the ball game at 4-4.
“Our defense has turned so many double plays this season,” pitching coach Eric Beattie said. “For them to go out there and lose the ball in the sky, it happens. Next pitch.”
Y-D’s lead vanished, but the bats didn’t. On a 1-1 count with two outs in the eighth, Brock Ketelsen (Stanford) smoked a ball to left field for a two-run double, as Y-D hung on to defeat Hyannis 6-4. The win makes Y-D the first team in the 2026 CCBL season to reach 10 wins (10-1). Ketelsen has been swinging one of the hottest bats on the Cape, batting .348 through his first 10 games at the plate.
“The first pitch I got was a curveball, and I definitely felt that I was pretty tight in the box. I was fixing my stance and my hands too much, and I came to a realization,” Ketelsen said. “The second pitch he threw the same thing. I was able to lay off it, be more athletic in my stance, and then he threw a slider. I was able to get on it, and it felt great.”
Ketelsen was all over the place on Friday evening at McKone Park. Playing right field in the sixth inning, Ketelsen sprinted after a foul ball drifting toward the fence. His momentum carried him over the fence and into the bushes. He popped up smiling before jogging back to his position. Although he didn’t end up making what would’ve been an unreal grab, his efforts were much appreciated.
“Brock is such a dynamic player to watch. He's inspiring, man. He's got some tools that you can't teach,” assistant coach Craig Gianinno said. “We actually thought he caught it, but just the fearless attitude he has is great. He's a baseball player that loves to compete, loves to play the game, plays the game the right way, and plays it with passion.”
Before Hyannis rallied, Y-D built its lead behind Tommy Goodin's towering solo homer in the second, Caleb Daniel's RBI single later in the inning and two bases-loaded walks in the fourth. When the ball was dropped in the sixth, Wright could’ve easily been pulled by manager Scott Pickler. Instead, Wright finished out the game, throwing a scoreless seventh, eighth and ninth with six total punchouts.
“I felt like I was getting ahead early and using all my pitches to my advantage, and I just kept them off balance enough to where I was able to get outs,” Wright said. “I just stuck with the process, one pitch at a time. I'm big on that, and not getting too far ahead of myself, just being in the moment and being present. It definitely helped me out tonight.”
Y-D gets a home game against Wareham on Saturday at 4:30 p.m., and seeks to repeat their last time out against the Gateman, which was a 14-2 mercy at their place.
