By: Patrick Briand 

After a somewhat slow start to the season, the New Bedford Bay Sox have played a winning brand of baseball throughout the month of July, enabling them to be in the thick of the playoff battle in the NECBL’s Southern Division. Coming into July 30th’s game, the Bay Sox have won 9 of their last 14 games, with their 3rd-place record sitting at .500 with a 21-21 record. If things go according to plan, the Bay Sox will scoop up the #3 seed in the playoffs, though the team could fall to 4th, the final playoff spot. In preparation for potential playoff match-ups, it’s important to know what teams the Bay Sox could be up against. Here’s a look into the two competitors the Bay Sox could meet in the playoffs. 

    If the Bay Sox wind up in 3rd place to end the season, they will most likely play the Newport Gulls, who are currently in 2nd place in the Southern division with a record of 23-19. The Bay Sox have fared well against Newport, winning 4 of 6 contests against them as of July 30th. The Gulls boast two of the league’s best hitters in outfielder Stephen Scott, 19, and catcher Troy Dixon, 21. Scott is hitting .284 with a .969 OPS, fueled by 10 doubles and 10 home runs. Dixon, meanwhile is leading the NECBL in batting average at .375. From July 19th to the 27th, Dixon tallied an incredible seven multi-hit games in a row, raising his average 80 points. On the mound, Harry Schryver has been unstoppable for Newport, going 5-1 with a 1.75 ERA, 1.00 WHIP, and limiting opponents to a .180 average and .504 OPS, while averaging 9.5 K/9. Closer Blake Cairnes has generated 5 saves and a 1.02 ERA with 22 strikeouts and just 11 hits allowed in 17 innings out of the pen. Newport will also likely use pitchers Andrew Gist and Adam Wolf in the event of a short series. 

    The other possible outcome for the Bay Sox is a matchup against the Southern division’s best team, the Mystic Schooners. Mystic is an NECBL-best 26-15 on the season, and won 4 of their 6 games against the Bay Sox this season. The league’s most complete team, Mystic boasts an offense that wears out opposing pitchers. Their team on-base percentage stands at a staggering .396, led by shortstop Nick Mascelli’s .475 mark. Richard Slenker, batting .350, Chace Lunceford (.341), and Toby Handley (.327) round out Mystic’s impressive lineup. On the pitching side, Mystic is likely to line up left-hander Kevin Magee (3-1, 2.67 ERA) and 18 year-old righty Jonathan Signore (3-0, 1.35 ERA) in a prospective series. Doug Domnarski (5-1, 2.56 ERA) should also be a factor, as Mystic will rely on a strong top of the rotation to flank their offense. 

    As the Bay Sox season comes to a close, playoffs are on the mind of not only the fans but the players. That’s why it will be up to New Bedford stars such as Samuel Nepiarsky, Darrien Ragins, Andrew Penner, and Ryan Wolfsberg to make the final games of the season count. With the stakes this high, the next week of Bay Sox baseball should be highly entertaining, and not to mention, highly competitive.