Josh Kuroda-Grauer’s Heroic Hit Propels Bourne to 7-5 Win

By Mojo Hill

Josh Kuroda-Grauer stepped to the plate in one of the biggest spots of Bourne’s season thus far.

He had gone 0-for-4 thus far on Tuesday. He’d been in a slump lately. But he was bumped up to the leadoff spot by manager Scott Landers anyway, granted that dose of faith despite the way things have been going.

“Coach Landers instills confidence in me,” Kuroda-Grauer said. “0-for-4 going into that last at-bat, I still knew that he had full trust in me, and the confidence that I was gonna pull through.”

The Braves were on the comeback trail, cutting their deficit to 5-4 after a critical RBI single by Nu’u Contrades. But with second and third and no outs, they punched out back-to-back times. They were on the precipice of blowing a key opportunity and falling short in another tight contest.

“Great players, when the lights go on, they gotta play. And they gotta step up,” Landers said. “And from now on until the end of the season, the lights are on. We gotta make a move.”

Kuroda-Grauer smashed a go-ahead two-run double, sparking a 7-5 win over the Harwich Mariners at Whitehouse Field. The Braves trailed multiple times but consistently fought back, churning out at-bats until they eventually came out on the winning side. It was a crucial victory to bounce back from a 7-0 loss in the nightcap of Monday’s doubleheader, keeping them above .500 with a 19-17-1 record.

“I think it shows a lot of grit by this team,” Landers said. “And that’s what we have to have down the stretch.”

Bourne struck first to kick off the night. Caden Bodine, batting third and catching with Derek Bender day-to-day after tweaking his hamstring, stayed hot by lining a single in the first inning. He advanced to second on a wild pitch, and Bryce Eblin knocked him in with a hit that took a lucky hop over the second baseman. The Braves found themselves with an early 1-0 lead thanks to some luck swaying in their favor.

Ryan Fischer, back in the rotation after a relief appearance on Friday, faced the minimum in unconventional fashion through the first three innings. He allowed a single in each inning, but he induced two inning-ending double plays, and Bodine caught a runner stealing to end the third.

Bourne added another in the fourth. Sam Petersen singled, advanced to third on an errant pickoff throw, then scored on a Contrades sacrifice fly. It was 2-0 Braves.

The Mariners led off the bottom of the fourth with a hit, and this time, Fischer couldn’t hold them to the minimum. He surrendered three consecutive singles, tying the game up at two apiece. Peculiarly, the inning still featured another inning-ending double play, and Fischer avoided any stranded runners once again.

Fischer’s final line saw him go four innings with two runs allowed on six hits. It was the second straight start where he’s walked nobody and struck out just one.

“He had a lot of bad contact until the fourth inning when they had two hits,” Landers said. “He really minimized, and I thought he pitched his butt off for us. Kept us right there when we needed it.”

A different Ryan F., Ryan Free, took over in the fifth. He worked around a pair of two-out hits to throw a scoreless frame, but he wasn’t so fortunate in the sixth. The Mariners retook the lead with three well-struck hits against him. The inning ended on Bourne’s fourth double of the play of the night, as Jonathan Vastine snared a scorching line drive and doubled the runner off second.

The Braves struck right back and tied it thanks to some sloppy play from Harwich. Kuroda-Grauer reached on an error and advanced to second on a wild pitch. He moved to third on a Vastine sacrifice bunt, then scored on Bodine’s sacrifice fly to knot things up at 3-3.

But the Mariners responded once again. Justin Lovell issued free passes to the first two batters he faced, and a sacrifice bunt put them in prime scoring position. Lovell got a key strikeout for the second out, but then surrendered Kevin Karstetter’s fourth hit of the night. Harwich bolted in front, 5-3.

Bourne’s onslaught came in the eighth, with four runs to put the Bravos on top 7-5 – a lead that they’d never surrender. The first three batters reached, with Contrades cutting Bourne’s deficict to 5-4 after his clutch hit. Garrett Michel and Gage Harrelson struck out, leaving the inning down to Kuroda-Grauer — or “JKG,” as he’s often called.

“I got the scouting report on the guy. I was looking offspeed,” Kuroda-Grauer said. “But my biggest thing was just stay calm, collected, and do whatever I can. Grind it out for the team.”

Kuroda-Grauer got the offspeed pitch he was looking for right in his wheelhouse, and he capitalized in a massive situation. The Braves could breathe a little easier knowing they were back in front.

“Playing up here, it’s just great competition. Every game is close,” Kuroda-Grauer said. “To come up in a situation like that and pull through for the team, especially down the stretch when we’re trying to win every game we can going into the postseason, it was a great feeling.”

Vastine lifted the weights even higher off the Braves’ chests by adding an insurance RBI single. Matthew McShane took it from there, striking out five of the last six batters he faced to shut the door on a momentum-driving victory.

“I feel like we haven’t come back in games too much this season,” Landers said. “We’ve got out to early leads, and that’s catapulted us in the wins. But I think this one really helps us out. Back and forth, and we were down two going into the last two innings, and found a way to win.”

The Braves will now return home to play Cotuit on Wednesday at 6 p.m. before getting another day off. Then, over the next six days, they’ll play the final six games of the regular season.

Crunch time is coming, and Bourne certainly shifted its momentum in the right direction on Tuesday.