The Cotuit Kettleers finished a seven-day stretch of seven games last night with a 12-4 loss to Orleans. The Kettleers went 3-4 this past week and stand at 4-5 on the season. Cotuit is fourth in the division heading into Thursday, six points back of the division leader, the Bourne Braves. Let’s take a look back at the busy week of Kettleers’ baseball that wrapped up last night:
Kettleers go 1-2 in stretch of three straight road games after off day
Coming off their off day, the Kettleers hit the road for three straight games. The week started with a 6-4 loss to Orleans. The Kettleers battled back from an early 4-0 deficit, but a couple of unearned runs sealed the deal in the game of the week. The bats broke out the next day in Yarmouth-Dennis as the Kettleers posted a season-high 16 runs and 18 hits in a convincing win over the Red Sox. Three Kettleers had three hits each and Cotuit smashed four homers. Surprisingly, the bats went silent the next day in a 2-0 loss to Brewster. Three Kettleers combined to allow just five hits and one earned run, but the lineup only produced three hits of their own and left eight men on base.
Bats come alive in home-and-home sweep of Hyannis
The bats were also quiet in a loss to Bourne following the Brewster game, but Cotuit broke out in a big way the next two days. The Kettleers swept a home-and-home with the Hyannis Harbor Hawks with 21 runs over the two games. Two five-run innings led to a 13-5 win on Monday. The Kettleers got back to .500 on Tuesday with an 8-1 win at McKeon Park.
Jake Brooks (UCLA) spotless through 11 IP on the Cape
Brooks has been dazzling on the mound through three appearances as a Kettleer. After not allowing an earned run in 5.1 innings as a reliever, Brooks got the starting nod at Hyannis on Tuesday. The right-handed pitcher capitalized on the opportunity with a gem. Brooks tossed 5.2 scoreless innings and allowed just one walk and five hits. The UCLA product has a 0.82 WHIP and .205 average against. Brooks is one of just two arms on the Cape yet to allow an earned run through 10+ innings pitched.
Luke Gold (Boston College) leads the Cape in RBI
Gold has been the main run producer in the Kettleers’ lineup. The right-handed hitter has driven in a run in five of the seven games he’s played in. He started the week with a no-doubt home run in Orleans. Gold followed that with a two-home run, six-RBI performance at Yarmouth-Dennis. He was the player of the game at Hyannis on Tuesday as he drove in four runs on a pair of base knocks. The infielder stands alone at the top of the Cape leaderboard with 13 RBI. Gold has a 1.198 OPS and .333 average through 24 at-bats.
Jake Smith (Miami) shows off premier stuff in first official start
Smith was dominant in his first official start of the season. The right-handed pitcher struck out the first five batters he faced as he ran his fastball up to 97 MPH. Smith also used his slider and changeup to total 10 K’s over five scoreless innings. He only allowed two hits and one walk as he attacked the zone with his trio of elusive pitches.
Table-setter Cole Cummings (UC Santa Barbara) holds eight-game hitting streak
Cummings was the Cotuit leadoff man for the majority of the past week. The UC Santa Barbara product has a hit in every game he’s played in so far. Cummings is riding an eight-game hit streak after an infield single against Orleans last night. The third baseman is fifth in the league with a .375 batting average. He leads the Kettleers with eight runs scored and 12 hits.
The week ahead:
Friday, July 2nd: Cotuit at Harwich, 6:30 PM
Saturday, July 3rd: Cotuit vs. Falmouth, 5:00 PM
Sunday, July 4th: Cotuit at Falmouth, 6:00 PM
Monday, July 5th: Cotuit at Bourne, 6:00 PM
Tuesday, July 6th: Cotuit vs. Wareham, 5:00 PM
Wednesday, July 7th: Cotuit vs. Chatham, 5:00 PM