The biggest swing of the night in Y-D’s 8-5 win against Cotuit on Wednesday came early when Connor Capece (Creighton) launched a bases-clearing double in the first inning to give Y-D an immediate five-run cushion.
Capece was making his fourth start of the summer for Y-D on Wednesday after a breakout season at Creighton during his sophomore year.
Capece was a leading force in the Blue Jays winning their second Big East Conference Championship in program history, ranking second on the team among qualified hitters with a .349 batting average. Along with his offensive success, Capece thrived behind the plate in 50 appearances, catching an impressive 53% of runners trying to steal and allowing just two passed balls throughout the year.
It had been a slow start to the summer for Capece, as he was 1-9 at the plate heading into Wednesday’s matchup with the Kettleers. After the first five Y-D hitters all reached base against Payton Manca (Florida State) to score two early runs, Capece stepped up with the bases loaded and one out with a chance to both put a crooked number on the board and break out of his mini slump.
Capece crushed an 0-1 breaking ball from Manca to the wall in left-center field, bringing in all three runners to score and putting Y-D ahead 5-0 in the first inning. The three-run double, which traveled 361 feet and left the bat at 95 MPH, marked Capece’s first extra-base hit in a Y-D uniform.
“It felt really good,” Capece said. “I’ve been struggling with runners in scoring position, so to be able to be that guy to step up in the seven hole and get the job done to get the team out in front and give [Michael] Catalano (Oklahoma) some cushion felt really nice.”
Wednesday was the second time that Catalano and Capece have worked together as a battery this summer, as Capece continues to become acclimated with the Y-D pitching staff. The chemistry between the pitcher and catcher was on full display throughout Catalano’s outing, as he mixed and matched his pitches on his way to tossing five strong innings with seven strikeouts.
“It’s been a process, obviously, coming in and seeing new [pitchers] and getting comfortable with them,” Capece said. “I’ve been hanging out with them quite a bit just to be on that trust level of knowing that they can throw anything to me and I’ll be there for them.”
After hitting a line out to left field in the third inning, Capece continued his standout day offensively by working a five-pitch walk to begin the fifth inning. Although he only had one stolen base at Creighton this past year, Capece matched that total after the walk when he swiped second base to get into scoring position with one out. He proceeded to advance to third on a wild pitch and score a run on a grounder from Jack Bell (TCU) to give Y-D a 7-2 lead.
In his final at-bat during the seventh inning, Capece capped off his best day yet with Y-D when he worked another walk on six pitches to reach base for the third time in the game. As the Y-D offense starts to heat up with five or more runs on back-to-back nights, Capece hopes Wednesday’s performance will be a launching point for his success this summer.
“I was really seeing the ball well today,” Capece said. “I’ve struggled a little bit since I’ve been up here, and being able to make some adjustments pregame really helped me step up to the plate with some confidence today and get the job done.”
Capece and the rest of Y-D will look to stay hot when they welcome in Harwich for a key division battle at 5 p.m. on Thursday.
