Following a 4-1 loss to the Yarmouth-Dennis Red Sox (16-8-2) at home in a battle between the two best teams in the CCBL, manager Ryan Smyth called for a Gatemen team meeting immediately after the game.
However, this wasn’t your typical chewing out or "check yourself" type moment.
The Gatemen still hold the best record in the league at 17-9-1 and 2-1 in the series against Y-D. So instead, it was a constructive, understanding conversation to carry into a rare and much-needed off day on Thursday.
“We just wanted to reiterate, go be a kid and have fun,” Smyth said. “A quick reminder we play again on Friday, but it’s about the experiences they have here on off days too.”
Summer baseball is a way to get reps and continue to work on your craft, but it’s also a much different dynamic than a normal collegiate regular season. Featuring a 40-game season crammed into two-and-a-half months, playing six days a week with wood bats and hot sun can be grueling for an athlete, making the off days just as crucial for setting up success.
Before the off day though, you still have to live in the moment and evaluate. “Self-infliction,” is the label coach Smyth slaps on games when a rare Gatemen loss happens.
Wareham hit 0-for-11 with runners in scoring position, leaving nine on base, and racked up 13 strikeouts at the dish, but the difference maker was indeed the self-inflicted four errors in the field. Whether it was a dropped fly ball between a multitude of fielders or a botched throw to first base, it’s not the Gatemen way of playing.
“That’s just not who we are,” Smyth pointed out. “You can also call it a bad night, but the other pitcher kept us off-balance as well.”
The other pitcher in question was right-hander Sean Youngerman (Oklahoma State). The new Cowboy headed to Stillwater in the fall tossed a gem for the Sox, keeping the Gatemen’s league-leading lineup relatively quiet. Youngerman threw 4 ⅓ scoreless innings, giving up just three hits and two walks while piling up seven punchouts before handing it over to the bullpen.
Nonetheless, someone had to shine for Wareham amidst the silence. Designated-hitter Nate Earley (Louisville) slashed his way to a career-high three-hit game in a Gatemen uniform on Wednesday night. Earley’s trio of hits were over half of what the rest of the lineup compiled in a meesely five knocks on the night.
Earley saw the ball extremely well, even catching a barrel in his one out of the day on a 104-mph steaming grounder to the second baseman.
“As simple as I can get is the best for me,” Earley said. “Getting into a ‘no stride’ stance is helping me a lot, just to see the ball better.”
Since making the change from a slight leg-kick at the start of the season to a simpler approach, Earley is known by his teammates as ‘No-Stride Nate.’ But, it’s hitting coach Mike Mobbs who gave him the nickname as a way of reminding him to use his 6-foot-3, 210-pound frame to relax and use his strength at the plate properly.
“Use the ground. Don’t lose the ground,” is what Mobbs has instilled in him and it seems to have struck a chord in the new Louisville Cardinal.
Every time a hitter has success this summer, they always reference the challenging and tenacious, yet caring and unique teaching style Mobbs holds. He gets hitters to buy in and prepare for games professionally. That’s something that doesn’t go unnoticed and makes the manager extremely thankful to have him on the staff.
“He was one of my first calls when I got the job [in 2023],” Smyth said. “He has a distinct way of getting hitters to buy in and he’s phenomenal”
Mobbs, who was also the hitting coach on the Gatemen’s latest CCBL championship squad in 2018, looks to be the same glue for his Gatemen hitters in a redemptive bounce back game against the Bourne Braves on Friday night.
“I know he’s done it before and I know he can do it again,” Smyth said. “Hopefully we can repeat that here.”
Top photo caption: Nate Earley swings at a pitch during Wareham's 4-1 loss against the Yarmouth-Dennis Red Sox on July 17, 2024, at Spillane Field. Photo by Keegan Maloney
