813Preps in the Cape – Day 5: Wareham

Friday, July 15, 2022 – Wareham Gatemen

Brandon took to the links again, while I did touristy things – including a $5 sidewalk beard trim in downtown  Hyannis, and tacky shopping at a gift shop in a house built in 1812, and I walked through a John F. Kennedy Museum. Found a restaurant and decided on the seafood chowder over the clam – pretty darn good.

Wareham was our destination for Gm 3 of our trip, and though a part of the Cape Cod League, Wareham technically is no on Cape Cod, instead just west and dubbed the “Gateway to the Cape,” hence the team name Gatemen. The game was a bit of a wash as Hyannis put up five runs in the second and never let up, tripling that total for a decisive, mercy-rule win. Cards on the table, this was probably the least impressive stop of the trip. Wareham High’s Spillane Field was a multi-use football and baseball field on the school’s campus, which also featured an infield made up of gray, crushed asphalt.

Jax Beattie’s summer (which as we mentioned already included BP swings at Fenway, and dominating some Chatham kids in junkball) continued to be awesome as he got to serve as Harbor Hawks bat boy for the game.

The Gatemen did feature a player we saw in his high school days at Clearwater Central Catholic, SS Blake Wright who was 2-for-3 in the loss. Wright finished his summer in the Cape with 13 runs scored, 13 RBI and three doubles.

CCC alum Blake Wright settles under a pop fly while playing against Berkeley Prep in 2019 (813Preps file photo).

Though not the greatest game, we did get to see a scoreless inning from Sickles alum and current University of Central Florida righty Chase Centala (1ip, 2 H, BB, K). Centala made five appearances, finishing with a 4.00 ERA and nine strikeouts in nine innings of work.

The Beattie contingent swelled again as we were able to meet Coach Beattie’s original host family from his playing days in the Cape in 2002-03, as well as the arrival of his parents. After the seven-inning win, we headed out to grab pizza at a downtown Wareham spot with the entire Hyannis team.

Final: Hyannis 15, Wareham 1
Chowder count: 4

Monday, July 11 – “Fenway Day” (Newsome alum Cole Stallings, Fenway Park visit)

Tuesday, July 12 – Harwich (Bloomingdale alum Brock Wilken, Stallings and Family)

Wednesday, July 13 – Chatham (Newsome coach Kevin Ohme, LOL alum Brian Holliday, “5th-Inning Fog)

Thursday, July 14 – Hyannis (Coach Beattie, USF’s Drew Brutcher, and a bunch of folks from the 813)

Saturday, July 16 – Orleans (Plant alum JD Urso)