It was a different day but the same result on Tuesday night for Cotuit, as the Kettleers played clean baseball and took advantage of Hyannis mistakes to power over the Harbor Hawks 8-1. Behind solid starting pitching and a great approach at the plate, Cotuit (4-4) is back in the win column with no signs of slowing down. The Kettleers now have the lead in the season series vs. their western division rival, and move to third place in the division.

Moments that mattered:

Cotuit’s patient approach pays off in the first

For the second straight night the Cotuit lineup took advantage of Hyannis mistakes to get on the board early. Cole Cummings (UCSB) led off the game with a four-pitch walk and immediately advanced to third on a throwing error by the pitcher. With Cummings on third, RJ Schreck (Duke) worked another four-pitch walk to put runners on the corners. After a wild pitch and another Hyannis walk to catcher Ben Rice (Dartmouth), the bases were loaded for Luke Gold (Boston College). After a wild pitch scored Cummings from third, Gold poked a two-RBI single to left-center field that made the score 3-0 in favor of the Kettleers. Although Cotuit only tallied one hit during the inning, the four walks proved to come back to bite Hyannis. The top of the Kettleers lineup didn’t try to force the issue in the first, instead they let the Harbor Hawks put themselves in tough spots.

Brooks’ efficient start

A Cotuit starter turned in a second straight solid outing against Hyannis on Tuesday night. This time it was Jake Brooks (UCLA) going 5.2 scoreless, recording three strikeouts, and scattering five hits. Brooks was spotting up his high-80’s sinker, creating a lot of weak contact to the tune of seven groundouts. The UCLA product has now thrown 11 total innings on the year and has yet to allow a run. “I haven’t started since college so it was definitely nice to get stretched out.” said Brooks. “My fastball has that natural two-seam run, and I don’t try to throw the sinker, but it’s playing right now.”

Gold stays hot in the fifth

After a Dylan Beavers (California) walk and a Brett Roberts (Florida State) single to start the top of the fifth, Gold would come to the plate again with runners in scoring position. The Boston College product wasted no time, ripping a line drive over the Hyannis centerfielder’s head to score Beavers and Roberts. “He threw me a slider and I was ready for it” said Gold, who looked comfortable all night. Gold has been the best hitter in the Ketts lineup as of late, hitting .421 since being inserted into the everyday lineup.

Notables:

Gold: 2-3, 4RBI

Eric Brown (Coastal Carolina): 2-3, 2R, BB

Brooks (1-0): 5.2IP, 3K, BB

Up Next:

The Kettleers return home on Wednesday to take on the Orleans Firebirds at 5:00 PM. Cotuit lost the last matchup with Orleans 6-4 last Thursday.