games tonight: thursday, june 28

Thursday, June 28, 2007

games tonight: thursday, june 28

Brewster at Bourne, 5 p.m.
Wareham at Hyannis, 5 p.m.
Chatham at Yarmouth-Dennis, 5 p.m.
Cotuit at Harwich, 7 p.m.
Falmouth at Orleans, 7 p.m.

*I'd call Chatham vs. Yarmouth-Dennis the game of the day. If the A's win, they'll tie Y-D for first place in the East.

Brewster (6-5) at Bourne (7-3-1), Doran Park, 5 p.m.
Ryan Cook (0-0) vs. TBA
Pitching matchup: Cook (USC) has been great for Brewster, with a 2.38 ERA in two starts. He has struck out 15 in 11.1 innings and hasn't walked anybody. For Bourne, don't underestimate TBA. He's good.
What to watch: Bourne has won four straight to grab first place in the West. The Braves haven't had any trouble scoring runs in that span, but Cook will be a tough match-up.
Who to watch: Brewster's Danny Lima (Tennessee) is hitting .351, making him one of the top shortstops in the league so far.

Wareham (1-10) at Hyannis (5-5-1), McKeon Park, 5 p.m.
Jeremy Bleich (0-0) vs. Matt Daly (0-2)
Pitching matchup: Bleich (Stanford) is back for his second summer with Wareham. This is his first start. In the college season, the lefty struggled. For Hyannis, Daly (Hawaii) has a 5.40 ERA in two starts.
What to watch: Wareham has lost 10 consecutive games, but on paper they shouldn't be that bad. They've lost a lot of close games. If they're going to start turning it around, tonight could be the night. Daly has struggled in two starts. Wareham will need Bleich to have a good night.
Who to watch: Wareham outfielder Diallo Fon (Arizona) is hitting .343 and has stolen five bases.

Chatham (7-4) at Yarmouth-Dennis (8-3), Red Wilson Field, 5 p.m.
Charles Brewer (0-0) vs. Steve Dodson (1-1)
Pitching matchup: Brewer (UCLA) is making his second start. He went four innings the first time out and allowed one run. Dodson (Georgia) has a 2.19 ERA in two starts.
What to watch: The A's will be trying to catch Y-D for first place in the East. They've won two straight.
Who to watch: Chatham third baseman Jermaine Curtis (UCLA) is off to a blistering start. In five games, he's hitting .444.

Cotuit (6-5) at Harwich (3-8), Whitehouse Field, 7 p.m.
Christian Staehely (0-1) vs. Danny Farquhar (1-1)
Pitching matchup: Staehely (Princeton) has made two appearances so far, one in relief, one a start. He has a 6.35 ERA. Farquhar (La.-Lafayette) has put up good numbers for Harwich. He has struck out 16 with a 2.70 ERA in 10 innings.
What to watch: Before a loss Wednesday, Cotuit had averaged more than eight runs per game in their last four. The Kettleers are third in the league in batting average.
Who to watch: Cotuit catcher Robert Stock (USC) is an interesting story. He skipped his senior year of high school to play at USC this year, which I'm guessing makes him the youngest player on the Cape. He's hitting .231 so far.

Falmouth (4-7) at Orleans (7-4), Eldredge Park, 7 p.m.
Aaron Crow (0-0) vs. Mike Schwimer (1-0)
Pitching matchup: Crow (Missouri) has made two appearances, both in relief. He hasn't allowed a run in 3.1 innings. Schwimer (Virginia) pitched five shutout innings in his only prior start.
What to watch: With a victory and a Y-D loss, Orleans can move into a three-way tie atop the Eastern Division standings.
Who to watch: Falmouth's Matt Hague (Washington) is leading the league in hitting with a .429 average. He was an 11th round pick this year. He's trying to raise his stock and doing a good job of it so far.

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as the fog settles in

The left-field sunset has faded. It is chilly now. You slip a sweatshirt on. The stat sheet you hold in your hands almost feels wet, the air is so damp. But the ink doesn't run. You can read it. That kid from LSU is still leading the league in home runs. That pitcher who they say throws 95 -- he's way up on the list in strikeouts.
The game is close, 3-2 through seven innings. You're staying till the end.
You look out at the field. Some fog has slipped in. It settles like smoke, just off the grass in front of the right fielder, like a cloud. When he runs through it to catch a fly ball, it looks almost magical, maybe even spiritual, like he's playing baseball in heaven.
Maybe he is.
The baseball is pure here. The players eager. The fans, maybe some of them don't know what they're seeing, maybe they just heard it was a fun night out, good for the family and everything -- but they know. They know somehow that this thing, this Cape League, is special.
Really, there's nothing like it.
I'm going to try and keep up.

Stop waxing poetic

The Cape Cod Baseball League is the top college summer league in the nation. Plenty of other leagues have cropped up of late, and some are having success, but the Cape League is still the model -- and the pinnacle. In 2006, 198 Major Leaguers had spent time in the Cape League.
The rosters are like a who's who of the best college baseball players. All the top prospects want to spend their summers on the Cape. The only better opportunity is Team USA. There are 10 teams in the league, divided into two divisions. Over the course of two months, they play 44 games. Scouts will watch many of them. They come because of the combination of talent and wood. Unlike college baseball, the Cape uses only wooden bats, providing an accurate picture of what players might do at the next level.
What else? Players live with host families. Some have part-time jobs (Jeff Bagwell worked at Friendly's). There's no admission charge at games. The level of baseball has been compared to Single A.
That should sum it up. If you have never experienced Cape League Baseball, you have missed out.

Thursday, June 28, 2007