And then there were four.

It took three games, but the Bourne Braves avoided the fate that befell fellow division champions, the Orleans Firebirds, who were swept out of the Cape Cod Baseball League playoffs by the Yarmouth-Dennis Red Sox in the opening round.

The Red Sox outscored the Firebirds 13-3 across two games, including a decisive 9-2 victory in Game 2. They have led every step of the way so far and have been backstopped by a strong bullpen.

Cotuit required extra innings in both of their playoff wins to sweep the Wareham Gatemen for a second straight year. Landon Beaver (Alabama-Birmingham) etched his name in Kettleers history after his heroics in both games.

Harwich kept hope alive for repeating as Cape League champions after it snuck past the Brewster Whitecaps in Game 3. It wasn’t a pretty series for the Mariners, who blew a three-run lead in the winner-take-all game.

Now’s the time for every team to reset, sharpen up, and leave it all on the field because only two teams will see their seasons continue.

The Divisional Championship is the best-of-three and starts on Aug. 8.

Each series will start at the higher seed, with game two at the lower seed. The if-necessary game three will take place at the higher seed.

Here’s the Cape Cod Times breakdown of the Divisional Championship series and predictions.

East DivisionNo. 4 Yarmouth-Dennis Red Sox vs. No. 2 Harwich Mariners

Game 1: Friday, Aug. 8 at Whitehouse Field, 6:30 p.m.

Game 2: Saturday, Aug. 9 at Red Wilson Field, 4 p.m.

Game 3: Sunday, Aug. 10 at Whitehouse Field, TBD*

*If necessary

The Mariners quest at a chance to repeat as Cape League champions continues. The Game 3 win sets up a rematch of last season’s East Divisional Championship series. The Mariners enter as the favorites as they owned the league’s top defense and fourth-best offense throughout the regular season. That play has carried into the playoffs, where they showed they can win a game with their hitting and their pitching. The Red Sox—arguably one of the best teams in the league—have relied on their pitching, which had a 4.10 ERA during the regular season. Their defense was middle of the road, but they can explode for offense at any time behind the likes of Maryland’s Chris Hacopian and St. Bonaventure’s Jayce Tharnish. This series will be decided on the mound.

Harwich Mariners Player to Watch: Niko Brini (Wofford) has had a lukewarm postseason on the base paths. While he’s only tallied a run and a RBI in three playoff games, his bat has set the tone as he’s 7-for-14 as the team’s lead-off man. He was productive in the regular season with 20 runs scored and 14 RBIs, meaning he’s one swing away from being a major impact. Brini can play across the outfield, where he had 1.000 fielding percentage with 63 put outs.

Yarmouth-Dennis Player to Watch: St. Bonaventure’s Jayce Tharnish appeared in just 15 regular season games for the Red Sox, and his arrival couldn’t have come at a better time in the back half of the season. The lead-off man made his impact felt across two wins against the Orleans Firebirds where he was 6-for-10 with three RBIs and four runs scored. In the series clinching game, Tharnish was 4-for-5 and collected two RBIs and scored three times. That’s exactly what you want from your lead-off man.

Prediction: Harwich wins series 2-1.

West DivisionNo. 3 Cotuit Kettleers vs. No. 1 Bourne Braves

Game 1: Friday, Aug. 8 at Doran Park, 6 p.m.

Game 2: Saturday, Aug. 9 at Lowell Park, 4 p.m.

Game 3: Sunday, Aug. 10, at Doran Park, TBD*

* If necessary

A year later and we have a West Division championship series rematch between the Braves and the Kettleers. The Braves won the series despite being the underdog. Now the roles have reversed. The Braves captured the West Division, while the Kettleers confirmed their playoff position on the final day of the regular season. The matchup will be a battle of attrition between the second-best offense in the Braves (193 runs for) and the second-best defense in the Kettleers (159 runs against and a 3.47 ERA). The Kettleers pitching staff, which closed out Wareham behind their bullpen, gives them a chance in this one. The Braves are 3-2 against the Kettleers this season, and they won the last meeting in the regular season finale, 7-4.

Bourne Player to Watch: Vanderbilt’s Ryker Waite tied for fourth league-wide during the regular season with 26 runs scored. He was tied for first on the Braves with 17 RBIs, fourth with 15 walks drawn and second in batting with a .287 average throughout the season. He’s one of the most dangerous players in the Cape League in every offensive capacity, which is saying something considering the depth that the Braves have in their lineup.

Cotuit Player to Watch: Leave it to Beaver. The day after the Alabama-Birmingham product Landon Beaver scored the winning run in extra innings, he was the hero that sent the Kettleers to the West Division championship series after he hit a two-run homer in the 11th inning. He arrived in the last three games of the regular season and has been nothing short of an impact man since. He was hitting .400 entering the playoffs, but has gone just 3-for-10 in the postseason. His hits and base running have come in clutch as he’s batted in four runs and scored twice in two low-scoring games.

Prediction: Bourne wins series 2-1.

Allen Gunn covers high school sports for the Cape Cod Times. You can contact him at agunn@gannett.com and follow him on X at @allentgunn.

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