CHRONICLE SPORTS


Chatham Makes The Playoffs, Falls Short Of Eastern Division Title

 10 August, 2005


 

 
CHATHAM — Snapping a three-year post-season drought, the Chatham A’s are back in the playoffs – the reward for their 28-15-1 record – but will have to win at least one game on the road to advance to the Cape League championship series.

This after Chatham’s bid to capture the East Division title and home field advantage came up just short, falling 3-2 to the Orleans Cardinals (30-14) in Sunday night’s regular season finale before a season-record crowd of 5,555 fans at Veterans Field who witnessed the pulsating playoff preview.

Chatham began its best-of-three Eastern Division playoff series against Orleans at Eldredge Park Tuesday night, past The Chronicle’s deadline. 

The A’s had their share of chances to wrap up what would’ve been their first division crown since 1999, but squandered too many opportunities, stranding eight base runners. 

Orleans was no better, leaving 11 on board. But Brett Pill made Chatham pay for its inability to execute, snapping a 2-2 tie in the ninth with a two-out single to shallow left that proved the difference and gave the Cardinals their first division title since 2002. 

Though settling for second was not the plan, Chatham rationalized the loss as nothing more than an ordinary defeat.

“It’s an upsetting loss, but after the game coach [John] Schiffner told us this was just like an exhibition game, and that it really doesn’t mean anything,” said Chatham third baseman Chris Coghlan. “He told us everybody knows Y-D won the championship last year, but no one remembers who won the division, so to forget this game, take Monday off, and come back Tuesday ready to play. And I’m confident we’ll come back Tuesday and get them.” 

The Cardinals took four of the six meetings against the A’s (two over July fourth weekend), but did not face Chatham aces Andrew Miller (6-0) and Jared Hughes (7-0), who are slated to pitch the first and third game (if necessary) of the series, respectively. Robert Woodard (5-1, 2.53 ERA) has been penciled in as the starter for the second game. 

“Pitching and defense will be the key, and we’ve got the best two pitchers in the league in Andrew and Jared,” Coghlan said. “I don’t see us losing to anybody in a best-of-three series.”

Echoing that thought, Baron Frost said Chatham – winners of four of their final five and 12 of their last 16 – enters the post-season supremely confident. 

“We’ve proven we can beat any team in the league, so I like our chances,” said Frost. “There’s no reason why we shouldn’t win it all, and leaving here without a ring would be a disappointment. I think it’s going to come down to how we play as a team, and how we play on that particular day.” 

Grabbing an early lead, and a sizeable one at that, will also be integral, as the A’s mounted only a few comebacks this season and admitted they tend to play apprehensive when playing from behind, as was the case on Sunday. 

“We were coasting along, playing like any other game, but once they put a two-spot up on us, we played tighter and not as relaxed as we normally do,” Coghlan said. 

Chatham seized a 1-0 lead in the first frame when Frost rocked Andy Graham’s 0-2 offering to deep center, allowing first base runner Alex Presley to score standing up. 

The A’s were primed to build on their small lead when Evan Longoria led off the sixth with a double, followed by the Cardinals’ decision to intentionally walk Coghlan. But Graham struck out the final batter he faced, and his replacement Daniel Albritton fanned the final two to stymie the rally.

The momentum on their side, Orleans answered in the seventh with back-to-back, two-out RBI singles by Pill and Colin Curtis that provided the Cardinals with their first lead of the game. 

The damage could’ve been worse, but a 7-5-2 rally – from Frost to Coghlan to catcher Nick Derba – nailed the speedy Manny Burris (the league leader in steals) in a bang-bang play at the plate following Curtis’ hit. 

Chatham rallied in the eighth when Frost reached second on successive errors, moved over on Evan Longoria’s sacrifice bunt, and scored the tying run on Josh Morris’ RBI single.

In the ninth, David Uribes sliced a broken-bat singled down the right field line. He then moved over on passed ball, before scoring the winning run on Pill’s heroic hit off reliever Brooks Brown.

Chatham got the tying run aboard in the home half of the inning when Derba was hit with a pitch with one out, but Steven Wright induced two quick and easy outs to secure the win.

Pill may have stolen the headlines, but former Chatham A’s shortstop Matt Camp was just as worthy of the acclaim, avenging his old team with a wall-scaling, jaw-dropping catch in right field to rob Adrian Ortiz of a home run that preserved the Cardinals 2-1 lead in the seventh.

The high stakes match up also featured a game within a game, as Coghlan, Frost and Presley – the league’s top three hitters – battled to become the Cape League batting champion.

Coghlan, who entered a mere 15 points ahead of Presley and 18 points ahead of Frost, went 0-for-3. But the Ole Miss all-star hung on, finishing with a .346 average, just ahead of Frost (.343) and Presley (.341). It is the first time in recent memory three batters from the same team finished first, second and third in the category. 

“It’s a huge accomplishment, but one I’ll look at a little fonder later on the down the road,” said Coghlan. “Any three of us could’ve won it, and Alex and Baron were just as deserving.” 

Longoria won the home run title with eight round trippers and posted a league-best 35 RBIs. The Long Beach State all-star hit .299, nearly becoming the first Cape Leaguer to win the triple crown. 

Todd Frazier, who’s come on like a firestorm lately, finished the season with a league-best five triples – three alone in the final week. He and Longoria were tied for most extra base hits (16). Longoria’s .500 slugging percentage was a league-best, Frazier’s .480 mark ranked second in that department.

Chatham boasted the league’s top offense, hitting .273 as a team, and featured a dynamic pitching staff to boot, which compiled a 2.29 ERA – second best along side Western Division winner Bourne.

After missing the first half of the season, David Huff (2-2) recorded a 1.46 ERA. Hughes finished with a 1.62 ERA and Miller with a 1.65 ERA. Together, the torrid trio struck out a whopping 169 batters.

Chatham closer Derrick Lutz recorded an astonishing 0.00 ERA and 12 saves (in 19 games and 25 innings), matching Zane Carlson, who recorded a dozen saves in 2001 and again in 2002. Derrick DePriest holds the Chatham team record with 15, which he set in 1999.

Chatham qualified for the playoffs last Wednesday, defeating Cotuit 5-0, though technically they wrapped up a post-season berth by virtue of Y-D’s loss to Brewster earlier in the day.

by Eric Adler
Eric Adler 


 


 

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