Final photo gallery of the summer as the Commodores fall to the Gatemen in Game Two of the playoffs. Photos by Ryan Bowman/Falmouth Commodores)
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Season Comes To A Close
Falmouth’s late rally falls short and the ‘Dores finish the summer 24-21-1. (Photo by Ryan Bowan/Falmouth Commodores)
WAREHAM — It was do or die time for the Commodores in Game Two of the Western Division Semi-Finals after being humbled at home by the Gatemen, 10-5. The Commodores lost an all-around great game, 4-3, to end their 2017 summer season.
Falmouth sent Cole Sands (Florida St.) to face off against Noah Zavolas (Harvard) at Spilane Field.
The offense got off to a good early start, with Clayton Daniel (Jacksonville St) leading off the game with a single for the second straight day. The offense continued as Alec Bohm (Wichita St) and Josh Breaux (McLennan CC) trading back-to-back singles to score Daniel for the first run of the game. Breaux’s RBI single was the first hit the starter Zavolas had allowed with men in scoring position all season.
‘Dores threatened again in the second inning with a couple of errors backed by a single that put men in scoring position. They could not score though, as Adley Rutschman was thrown out at home plate, trying to score on an error on the infield.
The Gatemen then came up and kickstarted their offense. Sands began the second by hitting Joe Drpich in the side with the first pitch of the at-bat. John Toppa followed with a single, and the duo moved into scoring position on a sac-bunt from Kyle Kasser. Jake Anchia then drove them both home with a 2-RBI single to put the Gatemen on top early.
Cole Sands tossed a season high five innings in his playoff start.
From there, both pitchers really settled in, trading quick innings and stopping any hopes for rallies for either teams. Zavolas and Sands shut down both line-ups through their outings. Sands ended his outing after a season high five innings, allowing two runs and striking out three. Will Ethridge (Ole Miss) took over for Cole in the sixth to keep the Gatemen off the board.
Ethridge worked a quick 1-2-3 inning in his first inning of relief. He has continued to show his worth to a dominant Commodores bullpen.
Zavolas finished his outing after 6 dominant innings. He would finish with those six innings, allowing seven hits, 1 earned run, no walks and nine strikeouts. The Harvard man was replaced by Zach Britton, a lefty from Oregon St.
The Gatemen would get men to first and second before Ethridge was replaced. Derrick Adams (Jacksonville St) came in to keep the game at 2-1. He walked the first batter he faced to load the bases, but snuck out of the jam by getting Robbie Metz to ground out up the middle and end the threat, sending the game into the eighth.
Falmouth got back on the scoreboard in the eighth inning. Alec Bohm lead off the inning with a double that bounced off the wall. He scored the tying run as Trevor Larnach (Oregon St.) followed up and crank a clutch single into left field, tying the game at two. Falmouth went on to stand the bases-loaded.
The Gatemen came up swinging in the home half. They led off the inning with two singles, bringing men to the corners. After a quick strikeout by Adams to John Toppa, he then induced a groundball to thirdbase, and with the infield playing in, Marty Bechina made an extremely heads-up play by throwing home and getting the runner for the second out. Jake Anchia, who already had five RBIs in the series, then laced a single into centerfield. The Gatemen sent the 6’4, 275 lbs, Joe Drpich home and, with the throw in on-time, he alluded the tag, giving the Gatemen the lead. They scored again after Willie MacIver ripped a liner to third, that was mishandled by Bechina, putting the Gatemen up 4-2.
George Janca reached base in the ninth after a one-out double. Bohm followed up with a great at-bat, working a full-count walk, that looked to get the bats going for one final rally. Josh Breaux came up big once again for the ‘Dores, ripping another RBI single into left, cutting the lead to 4-3 Gatemen.
Wareham brought in Darrien Ragins from the bullpen to close out the ball game, and the season. Gatemen move on to face the Bourne Braves in the second round of the Cape Cod League Playoffs.
PICS: Falmouth vs Wareham Game 1
Photo gallery from the Commodores tough 10-5 loss to the Wareham Gatemen in Game One of the Western Division Semi-Finals.
Wareham Powers Past Falmouth In Game One
Josh Breaux hits his seventh home run of the summer. (Photo by Ryan Bowman/Falmouth Commodores)
FALMOUTH – The Commodores were held in check for the majority of the night by the Gatemen pitching staff, despite a home run, a double and a three hit night from Josh Breaux. That, along with an error filled second inning, was the kiss of death for the Commodores in the playoff opener. The Wareham Gatemen shocked the crowd after squeaking into the Western Division playoff picture by beating the Commodores 10-5.
James McArthur’s impressive season earned him the ball in game one of the playoffs, .
Things did not go as planned for McArthur (Ole Miss) and company as Wareham put up four runs in the second inning, putting the ‘Dores in a surprisingly early hole.
Only one of the four runs was credited to the Ole Miss pitcher though with the other three being scored because of sloppy defense by Falmouth. One of the keys coming into the playoffs was to keep the errors to a minimum but the Commodores had trouble with the leather in that second inning.
Josh Breaux was able to get one of those runs back by smashing a homer deep over the left field fence, pulling Falmouth within three in the bottom of the second.
Breaux (McLennan CC) nearly went long again two innings later, doubling on a ball off the fence and moving George Janca to third base. Janca (Texas A&M) would score on a sacrifice two batters later when Cam O’Neil was robbed of a base hit on a spectacular diving catch by Wareham’s John Toppa (Connecticut).
Just as it looked like Falmouth was going to come back it was Wareham who took the momentum right back and they did it with power.
Two home runs, one in the fifth inning and one in the sixth inning, skyrocketed the Gatemen to a commanding 9-3 lead.
Aaron Hernandez pitched a very solid game one for Wareham, shutting down the dangerous Commodores lineup and delivering a win in his first game started on the Cape. Hernandez (Texas Corpus Christian) went five innings, allowing only three earned runs.
Once Hernandez came out the Commodores eager at a chance to get back in this ballgame.
Falmouth hopped right on the opportunity in the sixth inning with a Davidson walk and Cam O’Neil (Holy Cross) double, putting runners on second and third with no outs. Hunter Steinmetz sent a sac fly to left field to score Davidson (Clemson), cutting ever so slightly into the Wareham lead.
Two batters later it was Austin Langworthy delivering an RBI single to pull Falmouth within four and the rally caps were officially on as Guv Fuller Field came to life.
Israel Fuentes tossed 2.1 scoreless innings out of the bullpen.
Israel Fuentes (Faulkner U) came out of the pen in the sixth for Falmouth and he prevented the Gatemen from adding any further insurance, throwing two plus innings of scoreless baseball.
In the bottom of the seventh the ‘Dores threatened again with runners on first and second and two outs but they could not capitalize, leaving runners stranded on base once again.
In the top of the ninth it was Falmouth making defensive mistakes again. This time it was Brian Gadsby (UCLA) air-mailing a throw to first, resulting in a runner from second coming around to score.
By the end of the night the Commodores left eleven men on base.
With the score 10-5 heading into the bottom of the ninth the ‘Dores sent the heart of their order to the plate but Brett Conine (Cal St Fullerton) shut things down on the mound, ending game one.
Game two of the series will be tomorrow night at Spillane Field with the ‘Dores trailing the series 0-1. A Wareham win would end the season for Falmouth but a Commodores win forces game three back here at Guv Fuller Field on Monday night. First pitch will be at 6:30 at Spillane.
Playoff Preview: Falmouth vs Wareham
By AJ Spirito
FALMOUTH- One year ago the Falmouth Commodores were in full “Win it for Trundy” mode, cruising into the playoffs with the top seed in the West Division.
That mission fell just short of a Cape League Championship in what would have been the first in thirty-six years for the ‘Dores.
Fast forward a year later and they sit in the same position, ready to host the Wareham Gatemen in round one of the 2017 CCBL Playoffs.
Many of the faces may have changed but the goal remains the same, “Win it for Trundy”.
Falmouth is red hot coming into the playoffs, winning five of their last six. Two of those wins were against Wareham with the most recent being a 12-1 route at Spillane Field just four days ago.The Commodores went 4-1-1 against the Gatemen this year but four of those games could have gone either way.
James McArthur will likely get the start for Falmouth in game one and he’s had Wareham’s number this season. McArthur faced the Gatemen twice this season and only allowed one earned run in each of the starts.
One of the biggest issues this year for Falmouth has been their inaccuracy on the mound, leading to free passes for the opposition. McArthur should set the tone well for the ‘Dores if he does indeed get the start because he’s been one of Falmouth’s best at throwing strikes, only surrendering eleven walks all year (one in each of the Wareham games).
You never want to overlook your opponent, even if Falmouth has had their way with Wareham this season. Anything can happen in baseball, especially in the playoffs when the pressure is intensified. The ‘Dores may be hot now but we’ve seen them have their ups and downs this year. It’s important that they come out focused and ready to play their game, just like they have in the final weeks of the season. Coach Trundy will certainly have them ready to go.
Keys to the series:
-Clayton Daniel and George Janca need to continue to be the “bash brothers” atop the Falmouth lineup. These two have been a nightmare for opposing pitchers and they will play a big role in a deep championship run.
-Defensively, the ‘Dores need to keep it clean. They’ve committed a lot of errors this year but now they have a clean slate and they need to keep it that way in order to advance.
-No free passes. Yes there are going to be walks but they can’t be as prevalent as they were in the regular season.
-Bohm needs to be the all-star. Alec Bohm had a tremendous year for the ‘Dores and he needs to get that hot bat going again to be the feared power in this lineup. Combine him with Daniel and Janca and this offense will get things cooking.
Prediction:
The Wareham Gatemen have had a good year filled with many inconsistencies and they are a very respectful organization. However they are no match for the Commodores in this series. Not only have the ‘Dores won five of their last six but they also hold a seven game win streak at Guv Fuller Field right now. I just don’t see the Gatemen being able to pull off a win at The Guv, let alone two. The Falmouth offense has been clicking and the pitching staff has found their swagger. With that being said, the ‘Dores will win this series in two games.
