by Jeff Shaw
The month of June is known for many things; graduations, maximum daylight, outdoor concerts and endless replays of Alice Cooper’s Schools Out [for summer]. But on Cape Cod, the month of June means the beginning of a wonderful tradition and summer rite of passage: the Cape Cod Baseball League.
If you need a refresher, ten teams located between Wareham (just off-Cape) and Orleans, (Lower Cape), compete annually in this officially NCAA sanctioned summer league. (Though, as many books point out, the origins of organized baseball on Cape Cod are local and amateur.) Most professional scouts love to be assigned to the Cape League because of the concentration of teams. As an example, the distance between Wareham and Orleans, the two farthest outposts of the 10-team league, is a mere 47 miles. Conversely, teams in leagues in larger geographical areas may be separated by 47 miles each!
Indeed, closeness and geography makes the Cape Cod Baseball League special. So why not see for yourself and visit each team’s ballpark this summer? Below is a plan to do just that…in a single weekend. You read that right, it can be done:
Double Header Weekends. The weekends of June 17-19 (Father’s Day) and June 24-26 both have double headers on Sunday. The earliest double header begins at 2pm (at Cotuit) and the latest double header begins at 5pm (at Chatham). Meaning you can easily catch three complete games and probably see even more games if you only stay for a few innings and move along. Watching three complete games sounds like the ultimate ‘summer catch’ [Cape League-based movie pun intended]!
Last Weekend. The July 29-31 games are the last regular season weekend games. If you are savvy, you can catch games (heading East) at Hyannis (6pm) Harwich (6:30pm), Orleans (6:30pm) and Chatham (7pm) on Friday; start Saturday in Brewster (4pm) and then proceed West to Wareham (6pm—crossing the bridge should be okay on a Saturday), then head back over the bridge and down to Falmouth (6pm). On Sunday, start in YD at 4:30pm, then head West to the second half of the Cotuit game (4:30pm) and then the middle of the game at Bourne (6pm).
Unique Game Locations. Four Cape League teams will travel off-Cape for regular season game play. The first game between YD vs. Hyannis will be Wednesday, July 20 at 11:00am at Dunkin’ Donuts Park in Hartford, home of the Class AA Hartford Yard Goats, affiliated with the Colorado Rockies. The second game between Bourne vs. Wareham will be Monday, July 25 at 6:45pm at Polar Park in Worchester, home of the Worcester Red Sox. And of course, don’t forget the All-Star Game on Saturday, July 23 at 6:00pm in Wareham.
Below are the addresses to the fields of all ten teams.
Fields: https://gatemen.org/schedule/directions-to-ccbl-fields/
Brewster Whitecaps (Eastern Division)
Stoneybrook Elementary School, 384 Underpass Rd, Brewster, MA 02631
Chatham Anglers (Eastern Division)
Veteran’s Field; 702 Main Street, Chatham, MA 02633
Harwich Mariners (Eastern Division)
Whitehouse Field; 75 Oak Street, Harwich, MA 02645
Orleans Firebirds (Eastern Division)
Eldredge Park; 78 Eldredge Park Way, Orleans, MA 02653
Yarmouth-Dennis Red Sox (Eastern Division)
Red Wilson Field; 210 Station Avenue, So. Yarmouth, MA 02664
Bourne Braves (Western Division)
Doran Park, 220 Sandwich Road, Bourne
Cotuit Kettlers (Western Division)
Lowell Park; 10 Lowell Avenue, Cotuit, MA 02635
Falmouth Commodores (Western Division)
Guv Fuller Field, Main St., Falmouth Center
Hyannis Harbor Hawks (Western Division)
McKeon Field; 120 High School Road, Hyannis, MA 02601
Wareham Gatemen (Western Division)
Clem Spillane Field, Rte. 6, Wareham Center at 54 Marion Road and Viking Drive
June 3, 2022