The March to Summer

Monday, April 13, 2009

The March to Summer

We are 60 days away, so it's about time I get this thing in gear.

I am currently working on the early look features, with rundowns of each team and bios of every player. Wareham should be up within the week.

A few other things to share:

1. I am now burning the blogging candle at both ends, or something like that. Last year, I decided I wanted to start a college baseball blog. I fired one up, called it Omaha Sky and made one post in three months. I was about ready to chalk it up as a failed endeavor when I got the itch again while digging my car out of the eighth or ninth snow storm, and thinking, "Hey, they're playing baseball somewhere." So I got it going again. It's been a bit of an adventure. Keeping tabs on 300 teams is a lot harder than keeping tabs on 10 teams, and every once in a while, I freak out, miss a few days and become terrified of looking at scores to see what I missed. Neuroses aside, it's up and running. If you're a college baseball fan -- and most of you have at least a passing interest -- then you should check it out. It's getting about seven hits a day, so I could use a few friends over there. The address is omahasky.blogspot.com.

2. On a related note, I promise not to let Omaha Sky interfere with Right Field Fog.

3. I'm not sure about this whole All Star Game at Fenway Park business. I tend to liken it to a high school state championship game getting played at a big venue. It's cool for the players and it's something different, but at the end of the day, the place is 90 percent empty and the game feels more small-time than it would if it was in a home gym.

It's not exactly the same scenario with the Cape League going to Fenway, but it stirs a similar feeling for me. The players will love it, and it'll be a once-in-a-lifetime experience. But the place will also be empty -- even an enormous all-star game crowd of 10,000 wouldn't come close to filling it up -- and the atmosphere will be different. There's something quintessentially Cape League about the all-star game, and I fear having it at Fenway will take away a lot of that charm.

But while I'm not sold on it, I commend the league for taking the chance. Ideally, I think it would be perfect to have a Cape League vs Team USA game (or even NECBL) at Fenway, with the all-star game still on the Cape. That's kind of the best of both worlds. But I guess you have to start somewhere.

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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.

Monday, April 13, 2009