Davis Diaz (Vanderbilt) at the plate in the seventh inning. Diaz launched a double in that at-bat and eventually scored off Werner’s RBI single. Photo credit: Sadie Parker
By Mark Rappaport
YARMOUTH—The Brewster Whitecaps (6-11-2) got runners on base Saturday, but their struggles knocking them in continued, leaving 10 runners on base in a devastating 3-2 loss.
The Whitecaps fell 3-2 Saturday evening to the first-place Yarmouth-Dennis Red Sox (11-7-1), dropping a fifth-straight game, this time to the East division rival.
The Red Sox bats were hot early in the first inning against Brewster’s Josh Timmerman (Ohio State). Zander Darby (UC Santa Barbara) walked and Hunter Hines (Mississippi State) launched a blast to right, giving Y-D an early 2-0 lead. Hines, who leads the Cape League in home runs with seven and runs batted in with 25, hit his third two-run blast in three games against Brewster this season.
Brewster retaliated in the bottom of the second. James Tibbs (Florida State) singled to lead off the frame and advanced to second off an error. Ike Irish (Auburn) singled and Dylan Leach (Missouri State) walked to load the bases for Payton Green (NC State).
Green walked on four pitches to bring the Whitecaps within a run with the top of the order due up. With the tying and go-ahead runs on base, Davis Diaz (Vanderbilt) struck out and Will Turner (South Alabama) popped out to first base, stranding three. Brewster had another chance with the bases loaded in the third inning but again failed to muster a rally.
Infielder Trevor Werner (Texas A&M) had another strong day at the plate, going 2-4 and reaching base three times with a double and an RBI. Photo credit: Sadie Parker
The Red Sox struck again off Timmerman in the bottom of the second inning. William Gleed (UC Irvine) hit a home run to left, just beyond Red Wilson Field’s 350-foot center field fence and the leaping Turner.
Timmerman got in and out of trouble in the third and pitched a 1-2-3 inning in the fourth. In the end, Timmerman threw four innings, giving up three earned runs, alongside three hits and four strikeouts. Timmerman was not at his best though he battled through to keep his team in the game.
“In the past sometimes I get a little sped up and kind of try to do too much and end up spiraling out of control,” Timmerman said. “Try to stay calm and get back in the zone.”
Shevchik was impressed by Timmerman’s ability Saturday evening and all season to fight to keep the Whitecaps in close games.
“He didn’t have his best stuff today but he competed,” Shevchik said. “He gave everything that he had when he competed and he’ll be better his next start.”
Joey DeChiaro (Old Dominion) and Josh Sanders (Texas Tech) combined to pitch the game’s final four innings out of the bullpen. The duo blanked the Red Sox, giving up no runs and just one hit alongside no walks and three punchouts.
In the seventh, Diaz doubled to center, just a few feet short of a home run, and eventually scored off a Trevor Werner (Texas A&M) RBI single to right-center. However, Brewster’s offense could not score again in the seventh and fell one run shy of the Red Sox at the game’s end.
The Whitecaps offense notched seven hits and five walks but could not muster more than two runs, a persistent issue over the five-game losing streak.
“Not enough runs,” head coach Jamie Shevchik said about Brewster’s offense in the loss. “We had bases loaded twice in the early innings and couldn’t muster a big inning.”
Saturday’s start was memorable for Timmerman for another reason; he got the chance to pitch against his Ohio State teammate Landon Beidelschies, who struggled through his three innings of work, giving up one earned run off four hits and four walks, alongside five strikeouts of his own.
Starter Josh Timmerman postgame alongside Ohio State teammate and Y-D starting pitcher Landon Beidelschies. Photo credit: Sadie Parker
“Yeah, that was awesome. I heard we’d be starting against each other last night. He’s a great player, so I thought that was fun and pretty cool,” Timmerman said about pitching against Beidelschies.
The Whitecaps look to snap their five-game skid Sunday evening, welcoming back the Chatham Anglers, who Brewster beat last Sunday at home. First pitch at Stony Brook Field is scheduled for 5 p.m.