11 August 2006

Brewcaps battle for Cape crown

They're pressed into using a pitcher as designated hitter, but the Brewster Whitecaps forced the first-place Y-D Red Sox to a third game in their best-of-three Cape Cod League East Division championship series.

The third game was scheduled for Thursday afternoon, after the Cape Codder went to press. The winner moved on to face the Wareham Gatemen, the West Division champs.

Game one at Y-D's Red Wilson Field drew a gigantic crowd Tuesday, and they saw 13 innings of drama as Brewster won 4-2.

"All of our guys did a nice job," said Brewster manager Bob Macaluso. "Getting one run on (Y-D's Josh Field) was huge with Barry Enright's sacrifice fly. It's tough to get a run off him. We got it done."

Brewster ace Shaun Seibert (6-0 0.39) and Y-D's Terry Doyle (5-1 2.89, including a no-hitter) were locked in a scoreless duel over six innings when Brewster's Colt Sedbrook was hit by a pitch in the seventh.

Doyle caught him trying to steal and threw to shortstop Buster Posey for the out, but the play was ruled a balk. Y-D manager Scott Pickler argued, and the call was reversed. Macaluso came out to argue with all four umpires, and eventually commissioner Paul Galop was called to the field.

All of this took nearly half an hour, and the out call stood.

The long delay chased Seibert from the game. Y-D's Jordan Pacheco reached on an infield hit off Will Atwood, who walked the next two batters. Brad Emaus singled to right, scoring Pacheco, but Sedbrook gunned down Tyler Henley at the plate.

The Whitecaps tied the game in the top of the ninth when Colin Cowgill and Mike Fisher walked off Field. They each advanced a base when David Adams grounded out, and Cowgill scored on a grounder to short by Trent Kline.

Brewster grabbed the lead in the 10th when Andrew Romine, son of former Boston Red Sox outfielder Kevin Romine, singled to left. Justin Snyder followed with a double to center, and slugger Matt LaPorta was intentionally walked to fill the bases with one out.

Pinch-hitting pitcher Barry Enright lofted a sacrifice fly to right, giving Brewster a 2-1 lead.

"I haven't hit in the last year-and-a-half," Enright said. "But we got to hit pitchers' batting practice when we pitched a shutout. Coach asked me about batting, and I've bugged him all year to get me one (at bat). Thank goodness I got a pitch to hit. He said, 'He's a pitcher,' and gave me nothing but fastballs."

The Whitecaps never gave up.

"We've been upbeat all year. We've got great team chemistry," Enright said. "I'm glad to be here."

The Red Sox tied it up in their in the bottom of the 10th off reliever Adam McDaniel. Alden Carrithers and Emaus singled with one out, and Steve Strausbaugh hit a two-out RBI double.

Brewster won the game in the 13th after Kline walked and Tavo Hall singled to right off Dan Turpin. The Red Sox called on Nolan Gallagher, but he hit Sedbrook and walked Romine to force in Kline. Hall scored on a passed ball.

Adam Crabtree, who came on in the 11th, was the winner, and Colt Hynes got the save.

Y-D tied the series at Stony Brook Field Wednesday, despite a solid 7 2/3 innings by Harwich native Cody Crowell (2-2 3.14). The Vanderbilt lefty gave up seven hits, fanned five and walked one but lost 3-1.

The Red Sox scored twice in the first when Henley and Carrithers reached on infield hits and Strausbaugh tripled to right.

Y-D's Mike Taylor crushed an inside pitch in the fifth, belting the ball high into the oak trees in left. He also doubled in the seventh, but was thrown out at home by Snyder.

"This team likes to throw me inside, and I've been working on some things with my hands to get them in front," Taylor said. "I knew they'd throw a fastball, and I got it middle-in and I was able to do some damage."

Brewster scored its lone run off starter Nate Boman in the third when Snyder singled in Enright, who was in the lineup as the DH and had walked.