Comeback 'Caps: Brewster Erases 7-1 Deficit to Tie Yarmouth-Dennis

Cesar Trejo's two-out, three-run double tied the game at seven in the sixth inning (c) Marielle McLoughlin 2017

By: Koki Riley

YARMOUTH, MA - On Tuesday evening, the Brewster Whitecaps erased a six-run deficit against the Y-D Red Sox to leave Red Wilson Field with a satisfying 7-7 tie.
 
"That's a win for us today," said Whitecaps coach Jamie Shevchik.

Cesar Trejo’s (UNC-Greensboro) bases clearing double in the sixth inning tied the game at seven. Trejo’s rocket, which missed a home run by mere feet, was part of a five-run Whitecaps inning in which Brewster batted around and had seven baserunners reach.

"I was looking to get a good pitch to hit," Trejo said. "I was looking for a  fastball and put a good swing on it."

Earlier in the inning, singles from Devin Foyle (Kansas) and Christian Molfetta (Stanford) put men on the corners for A.J. Graffanino (Washington),  who would take a walk and load up the bases for first baseman Mickey Gasper (Bryant).
 
Gasper, who entered the game leading the team in runs-batted-in with four, would also walk, cutting Brewster’s deficit to four. Michael Curry (Georgia) would then reach after an errant throw by Red Sox third baseman Christian Koss (UC-Irvine) prevented what would have been a double play and allowed another run to cross the plate.
 
A Kyle Datres (North Carolina) walk would load the bases again, leading to the Trejo double and an explosion of applause and cheers from the Whitecaps’ dugout.

"I feel like this team has good chemistry going on," said Trejo. "Everybody is pulling for one another regardless of whether they’re playing or not."

The reason for the Brewster deficit was a deluge of Y-D runs over the game’s first three innings.
 
Nico Hoerner (Stanford), Carlos Cortes (South Carolina), and Luke Miller (Indiana) would all score in the first inning off Whitecaps starting pitcher Ryan Avidano (Georgia).
 
Avidano, who was making his second appearance for Brewster, only lasted 2.1 innings, giving up six runs, although only three were earned.
 
The Whitecaps’ defensive woes continued, however, as three errors in the third inning led to Y-D’s 6-1 lead.
 
Three runs came home in the bottom of the third after a couple of errors by Curry and Gasper, followed by a Red Sox RBI infield single.

"Defensively we just have to be better," said Shevchik. "We have to be better defensively."
 
The Red Sox kept constant pressure on the Whitecaps’ defense with an extremely aggressive approach on the base paths.

​Y-D stole five bases as a team, four on Curry who got his first start behind the plate for Brewster and was 0-24 on attempted base stealers this season for Georgia.

What kept Brewster in the game and helped make the comeback possible was stellar work by the Whitecaps’ bullpen.

"Obviously Cesar had a big hit there," said Shevchik. "But for our bullpen to come in there and shut those guys down for six innings was huge for us."

Pauly Milto (Indiana) replaced Avidano, making his Cape League debut, and promptly escaped the bases loaded, one out jam unscathed.

"He's a guy that we're going to use out of the bullpen in a lot of big situations," said Shevchik of Milto. "He's going to be a good mix-up guy for us."

Brewster’s relief trio of Milto, Joe DeMers (Washington), and Zach Liginfleter (Tennessee) would only allow one run on four hits in six-and-two-thirds innings of work while striking out six.

"I know Milto gave up a run, but that's an out in every other ballpark in the country," Shevchik added.

Y-D’s final run of the game, which gave Brewster its six-run deficit, came in on a Carlos Cortes home run to straight-away center field.

Brewster’s first run of the game came in the third inning when the red-hot Gasper hit a bloop single over the first baseman to bring in Foyle, making the score 3-1.

The Whitecaps would then score their second run in the fifth inning on a Gasper double, scoring Graffanino from second base. The shortstop had also doubled in his at-bat to lead off the inning.

After leaving 28 runners on base over their last three games, hitting with runners on continues to plague this Brewster team.

"We can't afford to leave guys on the bases," said Shevchik. "Even against Cotuit the other day, we didn't hit our way into a big inning and that's something we have to create."

Other than Trejo, Gasper had a spectacular game at the plate going 2-4 with three runs batted in, while Graffanino also had a great day at the plate going 3-4 and raising his batting average on the season to a stellar .500.

WHAT’S NEXT: The Whitecaps finally play their home opener on Wednesday against Falmouth at 5 p.m.