Article By: Joseph McLaughlin

After a fun day in the sun at Water Wizz, the Wareham Gatemen return refreshed and focused for the final stretch of the regular season. Sitting at 18-16 through 34 games, they enter the last week with six straight matchups leading into the 2025 Cape Cod Baseball League playoffs.

The Gatemen are coming off a 2-1 loss to the Hyannis Harbor Hawks on Sunday, a tightly contested pitcher’s duel. Pitching has anchored Wareham’s recent success — the staff has allowed two runs or fewer in each of the last five games — but the offense has cooled off, managing just five combined runs over the last three contests.

Tonight, they take on the Chatham Anglers for the final time this summer. Wareham defeated Chatham 5-1 on July 22 at Veterans Field during ESPN’s SportsCenter's 50 States in 50 Days, and now looks to even the season series at two games apiece. With postseason spots on the line, the stakes are high.

No team has officially clinched a playoff berth yet, but that could change tonight. Both the Wareham Gatemen and the Harwich Mariners have a chance to punch their ticket to the postseason.

The Gatemen can clinch a playoff spot tonight with a win over Chatham and a Falmouth loss to Y-D. If that happens, Wareham would improve to 19-16 with 38 points, while Falmouth would drop to 13-21-1 with 27 points. With only five games remaining, the most Falmouth could finish with is 37 points, which would be one fewer than Wareham, even if the Gatemen were to lose their final five games. 

Harwich can clinch with a win over Orleans and a Wareham victory over Chatham. That would leave Harwich at 43 points and Chatham capped at a possible 41. While neither Chatham nor Falmouth would be eliminated tonight, their paths to the playoffs would grow increasingly narrow.

For Wareham, a win tonight would not only inch them closer to the West Division crown but also mark a second straight playoff appearance after ending a five-year postseason drought in 2024.

Starting Pitchers

The Gatemen will start southpaw TJ Schlageter (Louisville). Schlageter has been a stellar relief pitcher for the Gatemen this season, posting a 0.77 ERA in seven appearances. This season, he pitched 11 ⅔ innings with 10 hits, four runs (one earned), three walks, and 10 strikeouts. 

Tonight marks his first start of the season. If he can pitch the way he has all summer for five innings, he will be a valuable piece to the Gatemen’s starting rotation heading towards the postseason.

The Anglers will start right-hander Jacob Turner (Bowling Green). Green is a familiar sight for the Gatemen as he was the starting pitcher they faced on July 22. In that start, Turner pitched three innings, allowed six hits, three runs (two earned), and struck out two batters.

This season, Turner has pitched five innings with eight hits, five runs (three earned), three walks, and four strikeouts. He will need to be sharp against the Gatemen, whose lineup has already faced just a week ago.

Players to Watch

For Wareham:

• Caden McDonald (Florida) has had an amazing month of July, being named the CCBL Franklin Player of the Week a couple of weeks ago and, recently, being seen as an unstoppable force on the mound, going five innings scoreless against the Orleans Firebirds on Thursday. However, he has faced a hitting slump, going hitless in the past three games. He has been the beating heart of a dominant Gatemen lineup and will need to ignite the flame for his offense. 
• Chase Krewson (Rutgers) had a great night against Hyannis on Sunday, being the only Gateman to get two hits. The 2025 CCBL All-Star can drive the ball well and will need to do so again tonight.

For Chatham:

• Jackson Freeman (Northwestern) was the silver lining in Sunday’s 6-1 loss to Bourne, grabbing two of the Anglers’ four hits on the night. He will need to get his offense going early to stay ahead of Wareham.
• Daniel Jackson (Georgia) is the Anglers’ best hitter, batting .284 this summer. However, he went cold against Bourne, going 0-for-4 in the game. He will need to step up and compliment Freeman on getting Chatham ahead early.

First pitch for tonight’s game will be at 6:00 p.m. at Spillane Field in Wareham. You can attend the game for free, or you can tune into the Gatemen’s broadcast on Cape League TV with Cory Miller, Josh Richardson, and Rayna Maggelet on the call by clicking HERE.