June 26, 2011
By Jon Cooper
Sting Daily
Another week is in the books for the various college baseball summer leagues.
Here is Sting Daily’s weekly look at some of the going’s on around the country, from a Georgia Tech point of view.
Cape Cod Baseball League
Jake Davies: The junior first baseman had a rough opening week for the Harwich Mariners, hitting .091 (one hit in his first 11 trips to the plate). The hit was a productive one, however, as it was an RBI single in Harwich’s 2-1 win over the Falmouth Commodores. Coincidentally, in the sixth inning of that game, Davies drew a walk against Yellow Jacket teammate DeAndre Smelter.
DeAndre Smelter: The Jackets freshman right-hander had a good week, throwing two scoreless, hitless innings, with two strikeouts. He retired six of the eight batters he faced, allowing one hitter to reach in each game, one by an error, the other, the walk to Davies.
Buck Farmer: Farmer got no decision in his Cape Cod League debut for the Chatham Anglers. Farmer went four innings against the Yarmouth-Dennis Red Sox, allowing nine hits and seven runs (five earned). He struck out five but did not walk a batter. Chatham squandered a 9-3 lead, but won the game, 10-9.
Daniel Palka: The first baseman heated up this week for the Wareham Gatemen, hitting .300 (3-for-10), including his second multi-hit game of the summer (a 2-for-4 night in the 7-3 win over Yarmouth-Dennis on June 19). Palka also had a .364 on-base percentage. For the week, he raised his batting average 44 points to .258 and his on-base percentage 57 points to .324.
Brandon Thomas: It was another strong week for Thomas, who had five more hits. including two more multi-hit games, batted .333, with three runs scored, a .375 on-base percentage and a .400 slugging average. Unfortunately, Thomas actually saw his average fall to .368. But he’s still boasting a .447 slugging percentage, and a .405 on-base percentage (an .852 OPS).
Kyle Wren: Wren had a tough week, going 4-for-19, with an RBI and two stolen bases in three attempts. His caught stealing at home in the fifth inning on June 19 against the Orleans Firebirds came after he’d singled then stole second and third. It was only Kyle’s second CS in eight tries. Cotuit struggled last week, scoring seven runs in five games, losing all five, three by one-run.
Coastal Plains League
Jonathan Roberts: It was a bizarre week for the freshman right-hander, as he made three appearances, covering 2 1/3 innings, and allowed only only one hit (a single) and two walks, yet allowed three runs (all earned), and suffered two losses. He saw his ERA go to 5.68, yet his opposing batting average fell to .125 in his seven appearances covering 6 1/3 innings.
Devin Stanton: Stanton pitched 4 2/3 innings over three appearances, allowing one earned run, one hit, with five strikeouts. He’s now struck out 11 while walking four. The freshman lefty’s ERA dropped to 2.31 in eight appearances (covering 11 2/3 innings) and opposing hitters are now batting .171 against him.
Great Lakes Summer League
Dusty Isaacs: The freshman righty had a solid week, earning a win in two appearances (covering six innings), one starting, the other in relief. Isaacs allowed a total of two runs (one earned), on five hits, striking out seven and walking five. He won his start on June 22 at Lake Erie (5.0 IP, 2R, 1ER, 6Ks, 5BB), then finished the June 25 8-7 win over Copperhead, throwing a scoreless inning, allowing one hit and striking out one.
New England Collegiate Baseball League
Paul Kronenfeld: The outfielder hit .235 for the week with three RBIs and three runs scored, but had a solid .381 on-base percentage, walking four times. One of those walks ignited Sanford’s four-run ninth-inning rally in the Mainers 4-3 win Saturday night over the Newport Gulls. Sanford is 7-4 and in first place in the Eastern Division.
Sunbelt Baseball League
Evan Martin: The junior outfielder continued his hot hitting, batting .364 (4-for-11) with a .563 on-base percentage. Martin drew five walks, stole three bases in four attempts (he’s now 6-for-7 for the summer) and scored five runs. He’s hitting .367 for the Atlanta Crackers, with a .513 on-base percentage.
Valley Baseball League
Sam Dove: Dove is on a torrid stretch that has seen him hit .565 over his last five games (13-for-23), with three three-hit games, and a pair of two-hit games. He’s also scored at least one run in each game (he has seven runs scored during the stretch) and has driven in a run in each of the last three games, six over those three. He’s hitting a team-high .385, with a .429 OBP, and is fourth on the team in hits (20) and total bases (26) — this despite missing the team’s first seven games. The Harrisonburg Turks have a league-best 15-4 record and are 10-2 since Dove’s arrival, with one of those losses being a 9-8 loss in 10 innings.
Chris Triplett: Triplett had a tremendous week, batting .440 (11-for-25), getting at least one hit in all six games he played, and producing four straight two-hit games, and five two-hit games overall. Triplett leads the Front Royal Cardinals with 22 hits, 12 runs scored and a .405 on-base percentage. He also is second on the team in hitting at .310. The Cardinals lead the North Division and have the second-best record in the league (13-7).
