Firebirds Fall to 11-11-3 After 2-0 Loss to Gatemen

Tonight's game against the Wareham Gatemen featured very little offense supporting the stereotypical idea of the Cape League as primarily a pitchers' league. Wareham's Joshua Turley (Baylor) dominated the Firebirds offense tonight, striking out 8 and allowing just 1 hit through 5 innings pitched.

On the Firebirds side of things, Ryan Carpenter (Gonzaga) threw 6 strong innings despite picking up the loss. Carpenter's two big mistakes came in the second inning when he game up back-to-back solo home runs to Daniel Palka (Georgia Tech) and Johnny Field (Arizona). Carpenter allowed 5 hits and 2 runs through 6 innings while striking out 7 Gatemen.

A strong bullpen combination of Pat Butler (UConn), Kyle Hunter (Dartmouth), and Tyler Gebler (Rutgers) finished off the game for Orleans.

The Firebirds only hit through the first 8 and 2/3 innings came in the first inning off the bat of Matt Duffy (Long Beach State). With two outs in the ninth, Jayce Boyd (Florida State) tried to rally the 'Birds with a double but it was just too little too late.

The Firebirds now sit in third place in the East Division with a record of 11-11-3 and 25 points. Harwich and Brewster sit at the top of the East with 32 and 29 points respectively. Y-D is in fourth place with 23 points followed by Chatham's 13.

Ben Waldrip's (Jacksonville State) 5 home runs have him tied for the league lead with Victor Roache (Georgia Southern) of Cotuit. There is the possibility we may see him in the Home Run Derby at Fenway Park before the Cape League All-Star Game on July 29.

Matt Duffy and Matt Koch (Loyola Marymount) are tied for the team's high batting average at .294. Andrew Aplin (Arizona State) follows them with a .290 average; Steve Selsky (Arizona) trails with his .253 average.

Ryan Carpenter leads the Orleans pitching staff with 20 strikeouts. Closer, Trevor Gott's (Kentucky) 6 saves seem to be going unnoticed. Gott has a 0.77 ERA with 14 strikeouts.

The Firebirds try to end their two-game losing skid tomorrow night against the Y-D Red Sox at 5:00pm.

Firebirds Getting Hot, Win 4 of Last 5!

The Firebirds quickly ended their two-game losing streak against the Falmouth Commodores on Friday (6/17). Steve Selsky (Arizona) drove in 4 runs on a double and two singles. Ben Waldrip (Jacksonville State) added a home run to the offensive show. The 'Birds took this one 7-4.

The Firebirds came into Saturday's game against Wareham looking to stay hot. They did just that. Jake Hernandez (USC) highlighted the Orleans offense with a 3-run triple in the second inning. Steve Selsky added a home run in the 5th. Orleans held off Wareham 7-3.

The Firebirds hosted a double-header against Cotuit on Sunday. Although game one was only won by a score of 4-3, the Firebirds put on a home run derby. Maxx Tissenbaum (Stony Brook) hit a 2-run homer in the third inning. Ben Waldrip followed that up with a solo shot of his own in the fourth. Then, Steve Selsky joined the home run parade in the fifth inning. Ryan Carpenter (Gonzaga) got the win and Trevor Gott (Kentucky) picked up the save.

In game two, Marcus Stroman (Duke) took the hill for Orleans. He struck out three in three innings. He did not allow any runs (as he hasn't in any of his 29 innings pitched, dating back to last summer). Shon Roe (Loyola Marymount) put Orleans on the board with an RBI-single. Rudy Flores (FIU) hit the go-ahead home run for the Firebirds in the sixth inning resulting in a 2-1 Orleans victory.

On Tuesday night, Orleans lost to Brewster 4-2. Brandon Williams' (Georgia State) RBI-single gave Orleans their first run. Williams scored the second run on Mike Marjama's (Long Beach State) RBI-double late in the game. Brewster's 3-run fourth inning and an insurance run in the sixth was enough to hold off the Firebirds.

Carpenter's Near No-No Caps Orleans' 3-1 Win Over Bourne!

Ryan Carpenter (Gonzaga) took a no-hitter into the ninth inning for the Firebirds. Creede Simpson (Auburn) pinch-hit to start the ninth inning and tripled to deep right to break up the no-hitter. Scott Woodward's (Coastal Carolina) sacrifice fly then scored Simpson. Marcus Stroman (Duke) relieved Carpenter and shut the door on Bourne to record his eighth save of the summer.

Bourne's starter, Will Jolin (UConn) took a no-hitter through five innings until Kolten Wong (Hawai'i) broke it up with a single. Steve Selsky (Arizona) then drove him home with an RBI double to give Orleans a 1-0 lead. Jayce Boyd (Florida State) grounded out to second to move Selsky over to third base. Riccio Torrez (Arizona State) singled home Selsky to give Orleans a 2-0 lead. In the eighth, Ronnie Shaeffer (UC-Irvine) doubled home Jayce Boyd to provide Orleans with some insurance.

Ryan Carpenter took home the win, Will Jolin got the loss, and Marcus Stroman got the save. Carpenter's nine strikeouts, one hit allowed, and one earned run helped drop his ERA to 2.43. Stroman has been outstanding on the summer. He allowed no hits and struck out one tonight, and has not allowed a run in 23 innings pitched this summer.

The Orleans Firebirds improve to 17-18-1 on the season and sit one point behind Harwich who lost tonight in a great comeback by Wareham. However, Harwich plays Y-D in a double header tomorrow. Orleans moves eight points ahead of Chatham for the final playoff spot in the East. The Firebirds host Cotuit tomorrow night at 7:00pm at Eldredge Park. You can tune into the Firebirds' TeamLine Broadcast tomorrow night to see the game. The link is located in the "Helpful CCBL Links" page on the bar near the top of the page.

Firebirds Beat Harwich, Fall To Y-D, And Fall To Harwich All By One Run

The Firebirds beat the Harwich Mariners 3-2 on Monday. A three-run fifth inning capped the offense for Orleans. Steve Selsky (Arizona) doubled home Jayce Boyd (Florida State) to score the first run. Then, Matt Koch's (Loyola Marymount) single and a throwing error by the left fielder scored Selsky and Preston Tucker (Florida). Ryan Carpenter (Gonzaga) started the game and allowed the two Harwich runs over five and one-third innings. Jack Leathersich (UMass-Lowell), Will Clinard (Vanderbilt), Mitchell Lambson (Arizona State), and the closer Marcus Stroman (Duke) finished the remainder of the game without allowing a hit.

The Orleans Firebirds lost to the Yarmouth-Dennis Red Sox 3-2 on Tuesday. Y-D's first three runs came early and Orleans couldn't climb back. Shon Roe (Loyola Marymount) and Preston Tucker drove home the Firebirds' runs. Matt Sisto allowed three earned runs and watch his ERA increase to 1.73 on the season. Kolten Wong (Hawai'i) and Kevin Muno (San Diego) each had three hits for Orleans.

The Firebirds were defeated by Harwich 2-1 in 14 innings on Thursday at Whitehouse Field. Orleans and Harwich each scored a run in the first inning and could not score one throughout the next twelve. Orleans' run was scored on a Jason Esposito (Vanderbilt) RBI single. In the fourteenth, Clint Moore (Army) hit a ball back to Kenny Long (Illinois State). Long threw it passed the first baseman and it seemed that the ball went out of play. Selsky put his hands up to signal to the umpire that the ball had gone out of play, but the umpire did not stop play. Harwich scored on the play and got the win. The Firebirds protested the game and the call will be reviewed.

Firebirds Win 2 In A Row!

On Monday, the Firebirds faced the Chatham Anglers at Veterans Field and won 2-1.

Ryan Carpenter (Gonzaga) started the game and went five and one-third innings, allowing one run, four hits, two walks, and five strikeouts. The run came on a Brian Humphries (Pepperdine) sacrifice-fly that scored Dan Paolini (Siena) in the third. Burny Mitchem (Dayton), John Brebbia (Elon), and Mitchell Lambson (Arizona State) combined to throw a perfect two and two-thirds innings. Marcus Stroman (Duke) pitched the ninth and allowed one hit while striking out one. Stroman earned himself the save.

The two Firebird runs came in the seventh and eighth when Will Piwnica-Worms (Duke) and Kolten Wong (Hawai'i) scored unearned runs due to errors.

Today, the Firebirds took on the Yarmouth-Dennis Red Sox at Red Wilson Field in a game that lasted ten innings. The Firebirds won this one 5-3.

The Firebirds were finally able to benefit from errors in the first inning when Kolten Wong (who reached base on an error) scored on another error.

Matt Sisto (Hawai'i) continued his excellence on the mound so far this season. Sisto went five innings, allowing no runs, two hits, no walks, and four strikeouts. Sisto dropped his earned run average to 0.84 on the season!

Jack Leathersich (UMass-Lowell) (who was released and then signed to a full contract due to the release of Elliott Glynn (UConn)) gave up a two-run home run to Matt Watson (Boston College). In the seventh, Matt Vinson (Arkansas) doubled home a run off of Joe Loftus (Vanderbilt). Loftus was relieved by Will Clinard (Vanderbilt).

In the bottom of the ninth, the Y-D Red Sox loaded the bases against Clinard. Mitchell Lambson came on in relief and was miraculously able to work Orleans out of a bases loaded, no out jam!

The Firebirds took advantage of Lambson's performance and wasted no time at all. Kolten Wong singled, followed by a Matt Newman (Arizona State) single. Then, with one out, Jayce Boyd (Florida State) singled them both home to give Orleans a 5-3 lead. The lead was preserved by Mitchell Lambson's one-two-three tenth inning.

Orleans improves to 9-12-0 and is currently tied with Harwich for the last playoff position. They are off tomorrow but host Yarmouth-Dennis on Thursday.

Also, I found out that the reason Alex Panteliodis (Florida) is not playing in Orleans is because he is having hip surgery over the summer.