CHATHAM, Mass. – Tonight the Chatham Anglers and Orleans Firebirds meet under some of the most entertaining circumstances in Cape League baseball—game three of the divisional series. After a tremendous Angler pitching performance staved off elimination by a score of 1-0 Tuesday, the squads are set to play a winner-take-all contest 7 p.m. tonight at Eldredge Park in Orleans. The victor meets the Yarmouth-Dennis Red Sox in the East Championship Series.

Before heading into tonight’s affair, here is a look back at three of the most importnant numbers from Chatham's victory last night— one of the most unbelievable team pitching performances in Cape League playoff history.

3 pitchers

The Anglers used three pitchers to record a shutout against an Orleans team averaging a league-best 4.96 runs per game. The Firebird offense propelled Orleans to a regular-season franchise record 31 wins and had only been shutout one time throughout the 44-game regular season—July 10 against the Yarmouth-Dennis Red Sox. Despite the firepower of the Firebirds, Parker Dunshee (Wake Forest), Brandon Miller (Millersville), and Aaron McGarity (Virginia Tech), did not allow a walk, let alone a run, in nine innings Tuesday. The summation of the Firebirds’ earned offense was two seeing-eye singles.

Manager John Schiffner: “All three of those guys were amazing. Dunshee starts it off with six incredible innings, then Miller goes six up six down, and McGarity nailed it shut.”

77% first-pitch strikes, 78% strikes in any count

The Chatham trio on the mound threw first-pitch strikes to 23 out of 30 batters, good for an impressive 77%. Dunshee set the tone getting ahead of 18 of 21 batters faced, and Miller and McGarity combined for first-pitch strikes to five of the final nine hitters. In the same fashion, Dunshee set the pace for strikes in any count, throwing a videogame-like 60 strikes to 15 balls. The relievers likewise followed the starter’s lead, combining for 23 strikes to nine balls in the final three innings. At the game’s conclusion the Angler staff had thrown 83 strikes in 107 pitches.

Dunshee: "There are a lot of good hitters in that lineup. Getting ahead and staying ahead is always a key, especially going against a strong lineup." 

12 batters in 0-2 counts

The Angler’s ability to repeatedly get ahead of the Firebird hitters helped them force 12 batters into 0-2 counts. Only one Orleans batter managed to reach base from an 0-2 count (on an E5), and eight the 11 Orleans strikeout victims were pushed into an 0-2 hole. By comparison, only two Firebird batters had the luxury of a 2-0 count, and only one forced a three-ball count.

Schiffner: "All three of those guys have thrown well all summer. It's been fun to watch."

Tonight

The Chatham pitching staff has not allowed Orleans to score a run over the last 12 consecutive innings, and the Angler hurler who will most likely try to continue this trend is Ty Damron (Texas Tech). Damron held the Firebirds to two runs on two hits and a walk on July 18, the only time he faced Orleans this summer. He will likely meet Corbin Burnes (Saint Mary’s), who faced the Anglers on July 4 this season. Burnes allowed 2 earned runs and was pulled after 5.1 innings in that contest.

First pitch will be 7 p.m. at Eldredge Park in Orleans. Dominic Cotroneo and Jonny Wincott will have the call live, starting with the Anglers Extra Pregame Show at 6:40 p.m. on TRZ Teamline and at 1-800-846-4700, code 3841.