Anglers and Mariners

Tuesday, May 19, 2009

Anglers and Mariners

After months as the only ones who hadn't, Chatham and Harwich have released their rosters. It looks like Harwich did it yesterday, while the Anglers posted theirs today. I'll get into much more detail when I get to their early looks. For now:

We've got four returnees from Chatham -- Matt Harvey, Jacob Thompson, Kevin Scanlan and Addison Johnson, who played in '07. Johnson missed all of last season at Clemson and has struggled this year, so he'll be trying to work his way back into form. Scanlan only saw limited action.

The roster also includes five Cape Leaguers who players for other teams last year: Vanderbilt closer Russell Brewer (Hyannis '08), UNC's Patrick Johnson (Harwich '08), South Carolina's Whit Merrifield (Y-D '08), Clemson's Jeff Schaus (Cotuit '08) and Baylor's Shawn Tolleson (Y-D '08). I don't recall a team ever having that many players from other Cape League squads.

Some other names of note: Southern Cal freshman Ricky Oropesa, who's hitting .318 with 12 home runs and Baylor freshman Logan Verrett, who has 60 strikeouts in 52 innings.

As for the Mariners, they'll have two returnees from their championship squad -- Notre Dame pitcher Brian Dupra and LSU shortstop D.J. LeMahieu. Keep in mind that LeMahieu is a draft-eligible sophomore who could go in the top two or three rounds. Harwich has two players from other teams: Alabama's Ross Wilson (Bourne '08) and North Carolina's Nate Striz (Falmouth '08).

Middle Tennessee State's Bryce Brentz, who's having an astounding season (.485, 27 home runs), is on the roster but has also been invited to Team USA. North Carolina's Levi Michael and Virginia's Phil Gosselin and Dan Grovatt have had great years in the ACC. LSU's Leon Landry and Auburn's Trent Mummey have been great in the SEC. Those guys alone should give Harwich a really strong offense.

The pitching staff features Fullerton ace Daniel Renken, who's got a 2.42 ERA.

2 comments:

Unknown said...: I'm pretty sure you can add Tom Belza to your list of players leaving teams to play in Chatham. He was in Y-D last summer.; May 23, 2009 at 12:46 PM
Will Geoghegan said...: You're right. I knew I recognized his name.; May 23, 2009 at 3:08 PM

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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.

Tuesday, May 19, 2009