They’re hot. They’re dawgs. Their juices are flowing. They have the best offense and the best record in the Cape Cod Baseball League. They’re connected and motivated to see each other succeed.
The Wareham Gatemen are winning.
On the field, they’re 8-2 with a five-game win streak, marking the first time the organization has seen such a streak since July 2017. Off the field, they have a dugout and bullpen full of ballplayers who care about each other and their team more than they do personal accolades and individual accomplishments.
With a team like that, it’s hard to lose.
Wareham’s 7-3 win over the Harwich Mariners on Wednesday night treated fans to a little bit of everything. Efficient pitching, speedy baserunning, small-ball singles and moonshot home runs all had their time to shine under the bright lights of Spillane Field, propelling the Gatemen to yet another team-effort victory.
“These guys just honestly want to see each other succeed,” manager Ryan Smyth said. “And I think they know when everyone succeeds, it’s going to lead to team success.”
Eight Gatemen combined for 10 hits on the night, putting up four runs in the first three innings to back up starting pitcher Ethan Darden (Clemson). In Darden’s first outing on June 20, he gave up nine runs (eight earned) in a game where he couldn’t find a rhythm and the defense behind him wasn’t on its A-game. That was not the case Wednesday night.
After a throwing error placed a Harwich runner on base to eventually come around to score in the top of the first inning, the Gatemen rallied behind their starting pitcher and put three of their own runs on the board in the bottom of inning. Antonio Jimenez (Miami), Jacob Jarrell (Clemson) and Jace Rinehart (West Virginia) all came around to score as the entire Gatemen lineup saw the plate.
“I think that was our offense’s way of saying ‘My bad,’’ Smyth said. “Tonight it was about making sure he had a good one for us. I’m glad to see him bounce back. It was exactly what we needed.”
In the five innings Darden was on the mound, he allowed three hits and three walks while striking out two batters. The Mariners scored two unearned runs, but every time they posed a threat the Gatemen responded immediately.
“Having guys to swing it, man, it really boosts your confidence on the mound,” Darden said. “It’s just all-around good. Great team, great players, great guys. There’s no other team I’d rather be on.”
Julian Tonghini (Indiana), A.J. Colarusso (Boston College) and Tony Pluta (Arizona) all came on in relief, continuing Wareham’s trend of gritty, reliable bullpen pitching. The Mariners only put up one more run, in the eighth inning, while the Gatemen stuck two more insurance runs up on the board in the sixth and eighth innings, respectively.
Every run is important in Cape League baseball, no matter the score or the situation, but sometimes they just mean a little bit more. Bobby Boser (transfer portal) — a 2023 Cape League All-Star who made a name for himself on the Gatemen last summer — crushed the first long-awaited “Bobby Bomb” of the 2024 season, sending a fastball 400 feet to right center field in the sixth inning. It was a pitch he was ready for and waiting on, and he capitalized on it.
“I watched Bobby all last summer be able to drive the backside gap, and his at-bats have been so much better (lately),” Smyth said. “He’s doing exactly what we’re asking him to do, and what we want all of our guys to do, and the baseball gods are starting to treat him right.”
The baseball gods are treating all of the Gatemen right, rewarding them for supporting each other with exciting and important wins. Wednesday night’s win was one for the history books, marking Wareham’s first five-game win streak in seven years, but no one really cared — because no one knew. Smyth didn’t tell his players, and they didn’t ask.
They were all just focused on having fun and playing baseball together.
Top Photo Credit: Bobby Boser rounds third base after hitting a home run in Wareham's 7-3 win over the Harwich Mariners, June 26, 2024, at Spillane Field. Photo by Keegan Maloney.
