The premier amateur baseball league in the nation since 1885, the Cape Cod Baseball League embarks this June on one of its most exciting slates to date. The Open CCBL Tryout, the annual Cape League All-Star game to be held for the third year at Fenway Park and a 44 game regular season ending with quarter, semi and championship two-out-of-three game series to crown a league champion are all eagerly anticipated.

After being populated mostly by GI’s returning form World War I in 1919 and World War II in the late 1940’s, the CCBL continued to be populated by a combination of local and regional college players until 1963, when it became officially sanctioned by the NCAA.

Following a decade of using aluminum bats from 1974 to 1984 the Cape League became the first collegiate summer league to return to wooden bats in 1985. Since returning to wooden bats the league has become even more popular with major league scouts, college players and coaches.

With over 1,000 alumni performing at all levels of professional baseball in 2010, a record total of 217 former Cape Leaguers populate major league rosters, including veteran catcher Jason Varitek (Hyannis ‘91 & ‘93), Cy Young award winner Tim Lincecum (Harwich ‘05), slugging first baseman Mark Texeira (Orleans ‘99), AL Manager of the year Eric Wedge (Yarmouth-Dennis ‘88), AL Comeback Player of the Year Carlos Pena (Harwich ‘96/Wareham ‘97) former Cy Young Award winner Barry Zito Wareham ‘97 & ‘98), former AL MVP Frank Thomas, (Orleans ‘88), New York Yankees manager Joe Giardi (Cotuit ‘84), All-Star slugger Todd Helton (Orleans ‘94), hard-hitting catcher Omar Quintanilla (Cotuit ‘02), slugging third baseman Garrett Atkins (Cotuit ‘98-’99), Gold Glover Kevin Youkillis (Bourne ‘00), speedy centerfield Jacoby Ellsbury (Falmouth ‘04), and hurler Ryan Speier (Bourne ‘01).

One in seven current MLB players played in the Cape League. In the June 2010 First-Year player draft 250 CCBL alumni were drafted.

The list of Cape League alumni totals over 800 names, including those of Baseball Hall of Famer Harold “Pie” Traynor (Falmouth ‘19), New York Yankees greats Red Rolfe (Orleans ‘30) and Thurman Munson (Chatham ‘67), Major League managers Bobby Valentine (Yarmouth ‘67) and Buck Showalter (Hyannis ‘76), Cy Young Award winners Steve Stone (Chatham ‘68) and Mike Flanagan (Falmouth ‘72), Fireman-of-the-Year Wayne Granger (Sagamore ‘62) and Jeff Reardon (Cotuit ‘74- ’76), Major League scout Lennie Merullo (Barnstable ‘35), slugging first baseman Jeff Bagwell (Chatham ‘87-’88), NL Fireman of the year Billy Wagner (Brewster ‘92), All batting champion Nomar Garciaparra (Orleans ‘93) and Craig Biggio (Y-D ‘86), the only former Cape Leaguer to amass over 3,000 hits in the major leagues.

The Cape League is recognized as the best amateur summer league in the country by college coaches, as well as professional baseball scouts. Players from around the USA and all college divisions are recruited to play in the tenteam loop.

As the Cape Cod Baseball League celebrates its 127th season in 2011 it continues to provide no cost competitive baseball entertainment for fans of all ages. There is no admission charge to attend Cape League games, where country’s top college players display multi-dimensional skills in their purest form in beautiful settings. Seeing your favorite team is never a problem. Teams are located in Bourne, Brewster, Chatham, Cotuit, Falmouth, Harwich, Hyannis, Orleans, Wareham, and Yarmouth-Dennis.

The Cape League relies on communities for their support. From housing and jobs for the players, to volunteer work within the league itself, the league could not enjoy its growing success without a total team effort. The hard work by each franchise pays off, as the ultimate reward is to see the stars of tomorrow take the field on Cape Cod today.

Exciting changes and additions await Cape League fans on the league’s official web site www.capecodbaseball.org. Entering its eleventh season offering free, daily updated statistics to fans and media alike, the web site last summer had more than 17 million hits and over 725,000 visits. Or visit the Cape Cod Baseball League Hall of Fame exhibit at The JFK Museum in Hyannis. •

Courtesy of the Cape Cod Baseball League. Visit www.capecodbaseball.org.

By John Garner, Jr.

This "broadside”, which can be found at the National Baseball Hall of Fame & Museum in Cooperstown, N.Y., is an important part of the Cape Cod Baseball League's history.

It is one of the earliest pieces of printed material that actually mentions baseball on Cape Cod; and it is considered so important that it has taken on almost legendary status, as the league points to its very existence as evidence of our origins.

Like playwright Neil Simon, New York Yankees owner George Steinbrenner, whimsical cartoonist Rube Goldberg and quintessential American songwriter Stephen Foster, the Cape League proudly proclaims that we were "born on the Fourth of July."Happy birthday, America – and Cape League Baseball!

(Image courtesy of the National Baseball Hall of Fame in Cooperstown, N.Y.)