More than any other sport, baseball is a game of the given day. In the Bigs this year, the Nationals have the league's worst record. The Dodgers have the best. But if the Nationals beat the Dodgers one day, no one will be surprised. Anything can happen on one day. That's why they play 162 games. That's why a playoff series goes five games or seven games. When you're deciding a champion, you can't go one-and-done.
The Cape League is doing it, though, and it's going to be very interesting to see how it plays out. The next round and the championship will still have a best-of-three format, but today, it's win or you're gone.
I'm still not completely sure how I feel about the new system. It seems slightly unfair, but at least this year, it worked out reasonably well. There wasn't a huge gap. I think Cotuit and Wareham both deserve to be in. To a slightly lesser extent, Chatham could make a case, too. The Anglers were only two points off Wareham's pace.
And now they'll get their shot. Today is their given day, and regardless of what we think about it, it's going to be really exciting.
I guess it's just a like a game three, without the first two.
I'd love to break it down more -- that was the plan -- but my internet connection is freaking out. So I will leave you with some predictions.
Wareham beats Cotuit behind a strong start from Cole Green.
Orleans takes care of business against Chatham, getting some big hits from its big guns.
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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.
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.
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.
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1 comment:
Really Nice post thanks and Join independent s baseball leagues in florida in North, Central and South Florida to play Spring, Summer, Fall or Winter Baseball.
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