story by Steve McCarthy
August 10, 2010WAREHAM - Despite being one of
the top defensive catchers in college baseball, James
McCann (Arkansas) struggled mightily with the wood bat
in his hands this summer, finishing the 44-game regular
season schedule with a batting average well shy of the
Mendoza line at .105.
McCann has put all
doubts to rest in the postseason with a .308 average and
now, a game-winning two-run home run to propel the
Cotuit Kettleers into their third straight Cape League
Championship Series.
McCann, who
rejected an invitation to try out for Team USA earlier
in the summer in favor of the Cape League, drilled the
first pitch he saw in the sixth inning Tuesday several
rows up into the left field bleachers at Wareham's
Spillane Field to break a 1-1tie with the Gatemen which
had held since the fourth. The Kettleers swept their
first two best-of-three playoff series, as did Eastern
Division Champion Yarmouth-Dennis, which will host the
first game of the Championship Series on Wednesday at 3
p.m.
“With any player
that we play against, you've got to respect and know
that they can hit it,” Cotuit manager Mike Roberts
said. “Yes, James has struggled, but he has never
struggled in his work habits and his belief in
himself.”
Cotuit has lost in
the Championship the past two seasons and Roberts is
still searching for his first ring in seven years at the
helm. The Kettleers have won a league record 14 titles,
with the last coming in 1999. Yarmouth-Dennis exploded
for 36 runs in the two games against Orleans to advance.
“(Y-D is) the
best team in the league this year. They've proven it,”
Roberts said. “Hopefully they'll let us in the
ballpark tomorrow and we'll do the best we can.”
Each starting
pitcher Tuesday went seven strong innings and it was the
long ball that got it done for both teams. Wareham's
Tyler Bream (Liberty) tied the game in the fourth with a
solo shot in the same direction as McCann's. Bream
nearly did it again in the seventh, but Cotuit left
fielder Michael Yastremski (Vanderbilt) snagged the
tailing liner on the warning track.
Cotuit starter
Bobby Shore (Oklahoma) surrendered just two hits over
the seven innings and struck out five. He also walked
four, but none came back to hurt him.
“I had to battle
today,” Shore said. “I didn't have the best command
today but I went out and battled and the defense picked
me up.”
Brooks Pinckard
(Baylor) cruised through a pair of perfect innings to
earn the save. Pinckard will be relied upon heavily
against Y-D, as Kettleers closer Ryan Duke (Oklahoma)
left the team after Monday's game. Third baseman Levi
Hyams (Georgia) went home the day before and Bulldogs
teammate Zach Cone shook hands with teammates after
Wednesday's win.
Wareham southpaw
Eric Pfisterer (Duke) settled in after Cotuit gained the
advantage in the second inning. He left the bases loaded
in the second and third innings, then allowed three hits
the rest of the way. A fielding error by second baseman
Adam McClain (Memphis) allowed a baserunner which came
in on McCann's homer and was an unearned run. Pfisterer
walked five through the first three innings but finished
with six strikeouts and no further free passes.
Cotuit had a
baserunner on third with one out in the eighth but Devin
Burke (Duke) struck out the top two in the Kettleers
batting order to end the threat. Jordan Leyland (UC-Irvine)
entered the game with a .700 postseason average but he
and Cone went a combined 0-for-9 on the day.
“It's a team
game. That's why there's nine guys in the lineup,”
McCann said. “If one guy can't get it done one day,
someone else has got to pick them up.”
McCann, Chad Wright
(Kentucky) and Deven Marrero (Arizona St.) all had two
hits for Cotuit, while L.J. Mazzilli led off the first
inning with the only other Wareham hit.
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