Farris' 2002 Gatemen returned 2001 MVP Murton, who was out with a broken hand during the first half of the season. He returned to hit .400 in 16 games in the second half, and also won the league's All-Star Game Home Run Derby. In the playoffs, Wareham disposed of Cotuit in the semi-final series and met Orleans in the championship round. The star of Game 1 was 6-foot-4 Gatemen righty Kevin Guyette, who tossed a five-hit complete game and allowed just one run in Wareham's 5–1 victory at Eldredge Park. The late-inning fireworks in Game 2 began when Cards manager Carmen Carcone and pitching coach Kelly Nicholson were tossed in the eighth for arguing a balk call. The game went to the bottom of the ninth with the Cardinals clutching a slim 2–1 lead. It looked as though the series would be headed back to Orleans for Game 3 after the first two Gatemen made outs, but Murton poked a single that would start a championship rally. Murton moved to third on a David Murphy single, and came home on an Orleans error to tie the score. With the Clem Spillane crowd in a frenzy, Brown University's Matt Kutler promptly thumped the game-winner off the left-field fence, bringing in Murphy and securing Wareham's second consecutive league crown. For his title-clinching poke, Kutler was named playoff MVP.