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Chatham’s winning streak ends with 8-5 loss at Cotuit
Mental lapses can prove costly in baseball. In a game with such finite details, one play can dictate the entire outcome — especially when playing against high-level competition.
Chatham and Cotuit each entered Thursday’s game as the second-place teams in their respective divisions. The Kettleers came in just a half a game behind Y-D for the best record in the CCBL, meaning the margin for error would be thin.
The Anglers found that out the hard way against the Kettleers. Chatham led 5-3 in the bottom of the sixth inning. Boosted by two Chayton Krauss (Dallas Baptist) home runs, Chatham was in full control. But Cotuit’s bats came alive. Five runs across the final three innings put the nail in the A’s coffin.
Chatham’s (15-12, East) five-game winning streak came to a screeching halt at the hands of Cotuit (17-9, West), falling 8-5 in eight innings due to a lack of light. The Anglers were in the driver’s seat for the majority of a very contentious and heated matchup. Yet mistakes on routine plays were Chatham’s downfall. Cotuit capitalized and ultimately outmatched the A’s, handing them their first loss in more than a week.
Sunlight was fading fast at Lowell Park from the middle innings on. As one of a few Cape League stadiums without lights, games ending early are never out of the question. With each waning pitch, it became apparent the question wasn’t if the game would be stopped, but when.
Chatham has the luxury of playing under lights at Veterans Field, but manager Jeremy “Sheets” Sheetinger is well aware that at certain stadiums, a full nine innings isn’t likely. He made sure to plan around it when formulating his game plan. Chatham just didn’t execute it.
“We had the game in control and just a couple of innings got away from us, and had a couple of missed opportunities. That's the beauty of baseball, it takes it away from you,” Sheetinger said.
The plan was going smoothly early on. Chance Cox (Austin Peay) started for Chatham in his first start of the season. His biggest mistake across 3.2 innings came in the bottom of the fourth inning with Chatham leading 3-0. Cox left a fastball over the plate for Tyler Cerny. The shortstop pummeled a three-run homer, instantly tying the game at 3-3.
Tanner Franklin (Tennessee) replaced Cox two batters later. The righty did his job, pitching two scoreless innings. Amid Franklin's outing, Krauss put the Anglers back in front with his second home run in the top of the fifth.
Chayton Krauss celebrates in Chatham's dugout following his first of two home runs in the Anglers' 8-5 loss at Cotuit / Photograph by Ella Tovey
The Anglers' trouble started back up again in the bottom of the sixth. Franklin recorded two outs but after 33 pitches, his night was done, making way for Augie Mojica, who didn’t have the same success — though he was unlucky.
Temo Becerra lined one just past Kraus at third base for a double. Mojica seemingly ended the inning, inducing a ground ball to Robin Villeneuve at first base. But a wicked bounce took the ball away from him, making it a one run game.
For the second time, Chatham had a multi-run lead. The first came when Krauss blasted the Anglers in front with a two run shot in the second inning. Will Bermudez made it 3-0 two innings later with his first hit for Chatham — an RBI double to the left field gap. But before that, tensions started boiling over.
Throughout his first season, Sheetinger has prided himself on bringing a fun brand of baseball to Chatham. The dugout has often been talkative while fostering a positive environment — even with constant roster movement.
Something that hasn’t seen much change across Chatham’s recent games is its third-inning roll call. It’s been a staple from the Anglers bullpen in both home and away games. This time it caused some controversy.
A lengthy and extra-loud chant from right field serenaded each Chatham fielder. Cotuit manager Mike Roberts had words directed toward Sheetinger who barked back.
Sheetinger didn’t make much of it postgame, stating it was “two competitive guys going at it.” He added that he’s happy his guys are enjoying themselves.
We want to promote an environment that allows our guys to be who they are and what they're about,” Sheetinger said. “I'll stand on that and plant my flag on that all day long.”
The roll-call created an air of tension that bled into the seventh inning as Chatham clung to a one-run lead.
Without a clear timetable of how much longer the game would go, Sheetinger decided to go to Xavier Richards (Sacramento State). The manager pointed to Richards as a possible new closer due to a litany of losses in the bullpen throughout the summer.
With Hayden Murphy (Auburn) unavailable after a two-out save the night before against Bourne, Richards was the choice.
The Sacramento State product entered with one out in the seventh inning. In the top of the frame, Chatham placed runners on first and third with nobody out but came up empty-handed, meaning Richards would protect a one-run lead.
He forced Tanner Thach to pop up, but Nathan Hall got on with a two-out single. Then came three straight mistakes.
An errant pickoff attempt allowed Hall to advance into scoring position. A wild pitch put him 90 feet away from tying the game. Still, Richards came within one strike of possibly handing Chatham a win with darkness being a factor.
Richards got Brandon Compton to a 1-2 count, but he fouled off three straight pitches. The seventh pitch of the at-bat was a single into center field, leveling the game at 5-5.
The next inning, Krauss stood on second after a walk and sacrifice bunt from Bryce Roddey (North Greenville). Zach Dueñas proceeded to shut the door, striking out Jayden Davis (Vanderbilt) and Kyle Lodise (Georgia Tech), respectively.
As it got more dark, it became evident. The bottom of the eighth would likely be the last frame.
Two doubles in three at-bats from Easton Winfield and Devin Taylor signaled the inevitable as Cotuit took a 6-5 lead — its first of the game. A wild pitch from Richards added another before Thach dispatched his third hit of the night, which was the final dagger.
Cotuit didn’t even have to send another batter to the plate. At that point, the umpires saw no point in continuing play, providing an anticlimactic ending to what looked to be a promising game for Chatham.
“The beauty of it is in this league you’re gonna play again tomorrow,” Sheetinger said. “So you have to make sure you wake up with a brand new smile on your face and a new attitude and opening day mentality."
Chatham and Cotuit each entered Thursday’s game as the second-place teams in their respective divisions. The Kettleers came in just a half a game behind Y-D for the best record in the CCBL, meaning the margin for error would be thin.
The Anglers found that out the hard way against the Kettleers. Chatham led 5-3 in the bottom of the sixth inning. Boosted by two Chayton Krauss (Dallas Baptist) home runs, Chatham was in full control. But Cotuit’s bats came alive. Five runs across the final three innings put the nail in the A’s coffin.
Chatham’s (15-12, East) five-game winning streak came to a screeching halt at the hands of Cotuit (17-9, West), falling 8-5 in eight innings due to a lack of light. The Anglers were in the driver’s seat for the majority of a very contentious and heated matchup. Yet mistakes on routine plays were Chatham’s downfall. Cotuit capitalized and ultimately outmatched the A’s, handing them their first loss in more than a week.
Sunlight was fading fast at Lowell Park from the middle innings on. As one of a few Cape League stadiums without lights, games ending early are never out of the question. With each waning pitch, it became apparent the question wasn’t if the game would be stopped, but when.
Chatham has the luxury of playing under lights at Veterans Field, but manager Jeremy “Sheets” Sheetinger is well aware that at certain stadiums, a full nine innings isn’t likely. He made sure to plan around it when formulating his game plan. Chatham just didn’t execute it.
“We had the game in control and just a couple of innings got away from us, and had a couple of missed opportunities. That's the beauty of baseball, it takes it away from you,” Sheetinger said.
The plan was going smoothly early on. Chance Cox (Austin Peay) started for Chatham in his first start of the season. His biggest mistake across 3.2 innings came in the bottom of the fourth inning with Chatham leading 3-0. Cox left a fastball over the plate for Tyler Cerny. The shortstop pummeled a three-run homer, instantly tying the game at 3-3.
Tanner Franklin (Tennessee) replaced Cox two batters later. The righty did his job, pitching two scoreless innings. Amid Franklin's outing, Krauss put the Anglers back in front with his second home run in the top of the fifth.
Chayton Krauss celebrates in Chatham's dugout following his first of two home runs in the Anglers' 8-5 loss at Cotuit / Photograph by Ella Tovey
The Anglers' trouble started back up again in the bottom of the sixth. Franklin recorded two outs but after 33 pitches, his night was done, making way for Augie Mojica, who didn’t have the same success — though he was unlucky.
Temo Becerra lined one just past Kraus at third base for a double. Mojica seemingly ended the inning, inducing a ground ball to Robin Villeneuve at first base. But a wicked bounce took the ball away from him, making it a one run game.
For the second time, Chatham had a multi-run lead. The first came when Krauss blasted the Anglers in front with a two run shot in the second inning. Will Bermudez made it 3-0 two innings later with his first hit for Chatham — an RBI double to the left field gap. But before that, tensions started boiling over.
Throughout his first season, Sheetinger has prided himself on bringing a fun brand of baseball to Chatham. The dugout has often been talkative while fostering a positive environment — even with constant roster movement.
Something that hasn’t seen much change across Chatham’s recent games is its third-inning roll call. It’s been a staple from the Anglers bullpen in both home and away games. This time it caused some controversy.
A lengthy and extra-loud chant from right field serenaded each Chatham fielder. Cotuit manager Mike Roberts had words directed toward Sheetinger who barked back.
Sheetinger didn’t make much of it postgame, stating it was “two competitive guys going at it.” He added that he’s happy his guys are enjoying themselves.
We want to promote an environment that allows our guys to be who they are and what they're about,” Sheetinger said. “I'll stand on that and plant my flag on that all day long.”
The roll-call created an air of tension that bled into the seventh inning as Chatham clung to a one-run lead.
Without a clear timetable of how much longer the game would go, Sheetinger decided to go to Xavier Richards (Sacramento State). The manager pointed to Richards as a possible new closer due to a litany of losses in the bullpen throughout the summer.
With Hayden Murphy (Auburn) unavailable after a two-out save the night before against Bourne, Richards was the choice.
The Sacramento State product entered with one out in the seventh inning. In the top of the frame, Chatham placed runners on first and third with nobody out but came up empty-handed, meaning Richards would protect a one-run lead.
He forced Tanner Thach to pop up, but Nathan Hall got on with a two-out single. Then came three straight mistakes.
An errant pickoff attempt allowed Hall to advance into scoring position. A wild pitch put him 90 feet away from tying the game. Still, Richards came within one strike of possibly handing Chatham a win with darkness being a factor.
Richards got Brandon Compton to a 1-2 count, but he fouled off three straight pitches. The seventh pitch of the at-bat was a single into center field, leveling the game at 5-5.
The next inning, Krauss stood on second after a walk and sacrifice bunt from Bryce Roddey (North Greenville). Zach Dueñas proceeded to shut the door, striking out Jayden Davis (Vanderbilt) and Kyle Lodise (Georgia Tech), respectively.
As it got more dark, it became evident. The bottom of the eighth would likely be the last frame.
Two doubles in three at-bats from Easton Winfield and Devin Taylor signaled the inevitable as Cotuit took a 6-5 lead — its first of the game. A wild pitch from Richards added another before Thach dispatched his third hit of the night, which was the final dagger.
Cotuit didn’t even have to send another batter to the plate. At that point, the umpires saw no point in continuing play, providing an anticlimactic ending to what looked to be a promising game for Chatham.
“The beauty of it is in this league you’re gonna play again tomorrow,” Sheetinger said. “So you have to make sure you wake up with a brand new smile on your face and a new attitude and opening day mentality."
