Nic Severini on baseball: Cutters’ collapse on Sunday was an anomaly for 2026 season
Trending
The 2026 Williamsport Crosscutters are, by nearly all metrics, having a historically dominant season.
Winners of the MLB Draft League First Half, the Cutters' first half records alone include the highest run differential in Draft League history (+94,) the least amount of runs conceded in a half season in Draft League history (116,) and the second most overall wins in the first half since the format switched to a 30-50 game format (ironically, only losing to the 2024 First Half Cutters who secured 22 wins.)
And up until the end of last weekend, that dominant run has continued. Going into Sunday's contest against the Trenton Thunder, the Cutters were tied for the Aberdeen Ironbirds in the second half standings, continued their pace of run differential dominance (their +123 mark currently would be the Draft League record if the season ended today,) and overall, continued their two way dominance.
Even by the eighth inning of Sunday's series finale, the Cutters looked like they would make it another routine series sweep. There were some runs conceded here, some hard hit balls there, but by the eighth inning in a contest that had Williamsport leading 7-2, all seemed rudimentary.
But then, the 2026 Crosscutters, for the first-time all season, got punched in the mouth.
Trenton, who led a majority of the first half season before settling for second place, finally got their lick back starting in the eighth inning. With the bases loaded from a single and two walks, Trenton batter Drew Wyers, who sported a sub .150 batting average of the game, blasted the visitors back into it when he torched a grand slam over the left field wall. All of the sudden, another comfortable win turned into a 7-6 scoreline going into the ninth.
That feeling of dread would turn into a nightmare quickly. After conceding a double play to end the eighth, the crowd would grow less merciful when the Cutters walked the bases loaded to start the top of the ninth.
A late pitching change would not save the day. A Julian Swift double, singles from AJ Swader and Wyers and a Jake Kooning three run blast later, and it was 13-7 Trenton.
Williamsport 1-2-3 later, and the game was over. While it was not on paper their worst loss of the season or even their most runs conceded, it was easily signified as their worst loss of the season.
But in defeat is typically when you can see what a team is all about, and the Crosscutters, despite their historic start, are not content with losing.
Walking into the clubhouse after, you could hear a pin drop and the anger dissipating from the athletes lockers to the coaches room. The message from the clubhouse was clear: that a defeat in that fashion was unacceptable.
"It's a good thing we don't have tomorrow off," said manager Kenny Thomas in a tone that can only be described as a tone of intent. "I would sure hate to go home and have to sleep two nights on that performance right there."
With the format of the Draft League, it would be easy to be complacent. After all, Williamsport's first half title means that they can cruise to the championship game in September no matter their record for the rest of the summer.
Historically, this has been the case; (Not a single first half champion has finished above .500 since 2022.) But for Williamsport, it is clear the expectations are for greater things.
"We can sit and say, 'Hey, we are in the championship game. What difference does it make?' I'm not built like that, that's not who I am," described Thomas. "I've already had people saying that to me... I'm built to go out there and play the game like it is supposed to be played every day, every pitch, every inning, and we did not do that today."
On a journey to be the first team in the Draft League era to clinch both halves of the league, the Cutters see themselves half a game behind Aberdeen for first place.