On Friday, the Chatham Anglers (5-3-2) will play their second-straight game at Veterans Field, facing the Bourne Braves (6-4) at 7 p.m. for the third time this summer.

Thursday Fog

After returning to winning ways with a 7-0 triumph over Brewster on Wednesday, the Anglers recorded their second tie of the season, a 3-3 draw with Hyannis, in a fogged-out five-inning game. The contest, while truncated by four innings, counts as an official game because the fifth inning was completed.

“We were talking about it yesterday. The warm weather is here and it won’t get foggy,” A’s manager Tom Holliday said after Thursday’s game. “It’s cold and foggy. This is part of the experience of being in the Cape.”

Last Time Out

Spencer Torkelson launched a two-run homer against Bourne on June 17.
(Julia Hopkins/Chatham Anglers)

 

Last Sunday, the Anglers visited Doran Park in Bourne, where it won both games of a doubleheader against the Braves, 7-2 and 4-1. 

In game one, Bourne struck first. Anthony Prato (UCONN) and Spencer Brickhouse (East Carolina) each singled in the first inning, and a Jack Conlon (San Jacinto) wild pitch later allowed Prato to score. Chatham went on to score five runs in the final three innings of the seven-inning game en route to victory.

In the nightcap, the game was knotted at one through five innings until Chatham’s Blake Sabol (USC) sent a two-run shot over the right-field fence, giving the visitors the lead. Cam Jabara (Orange Coast) followed up a stellar start by Alek Manoah (West Virginia) by striking out three hitters and allowing one hit in the final two innings.

The Opponent

After falling twice to Chatham last Sunday, Bourne has won three-straight games.

Brickhouse highlights a Braves offense that has produced the most hits (85) in the league. The East Carolina product boasts a .400 batting average and has registered 14 hits and 10 RBIs on the season.

The Bourne pitching staff has allowed the fourth-most runs (39) and joint-most hits (79) in the Cape League. Meanwhile, the A’s staff, along with the Harwich Mariners, has allowed the fewest hits with 62.

On the Mound

The two pitchers Anglers manager Tom Holliday plans to use on Friday, Dan Hammer (Pittsburgh) and Jackson Wark (Saint Louis), had contrasting first outings.

Hammer tossed five innings of scoreless, one-hit ball in relief last Saturday in a 10-1 win over Hyannis. The right-hander relieved Troy Miller (Michigan) after four innings and handled the remainder of the game, shutting down the Harbor Hawks in a blowout win. After the game, Holliday commended Hammer’s effort.

"Danny Hammer went out there and pitched like it was nothing-nothing,” Holliday said. “In a game where sometimes you tend to look at the scoreboard, he never did that. That's a special outing. 

In Wark’s first start of the summer, the Anglers suffered its worst defeat of the season, a 10-1 loss to Brewster. The right-hander lasted three innings, surrendering five runs on five hits. A’s pitchers Manoah, Jabara and Spencer Van Scoyoc (Arizona State) each improved from their first start when they took the mound for a second time, and Wark will have the opportunity to do the same.

A’s at the Plate

Spencer Torkelson (Arizona State) headlines a dangerous Chatham offense that leads the league in home runs (10) and walks (47). Torkelson sports an eight-game hit streak and has launched four long balls, tied for the most in the league, in 10 games so far this summer.

Five other A’s — John Rave (Illinois State), Tristin English (Georgia Tech), Ben Ramirez (USC), Kyle McCann (Georgia Tech) and Greg Jones (UNC Wilmington) — have tallied at least seven hits on the summer. Chatham is one of three teams, along with Harwich and Bourne, with at least six players with seven or more hits.