The Harwich Mariners are a collegiate summer baseball team based in Harwich, Massachusetts . The team is a member of the Cape Cod Baseball League (CCBL) and plays in the league's East Division. The Mariners play their home games at Whitehouse Field in the historic village of Harwich Center.
152-510: Harwich has won three CCBL championships in the 21st century, most recently in 2024 by defeating the Bourne Braves two games to one to win the best of three championship series. The title was the team's fifth in the CCBL's modern era and sixth overall. The team has been led since 2003 by field manager Steve Englert. Organized baseball in the town of Harwich dates to the late 1800s. As early as 1873,
304-780: A Major League Baseball club that originated in Boston, Massachusetts , and played from 1871 to 1952. Afterwards they moved to Milwaukee (and became the Milwaukee Braves ). Then in 1966 they were relocated to Atlanta , where they were renamed the Atlanta Braves . During its 82-year stay in Massachusetts , the franchise was known by various nicknames, including the Red Stockings , Red Caps , Rustlers , Bees , and "Braves". While in Boston,
456-637: A Massachusetts state senator and head of Keith Car & Manufacturing Company , once the Cape's largest industrial plant. The field was constructed privately by the Marconi Social and Athletic Club on land previously occupied by the Keith plant. The Clouters were initially led by CCBL Hall of Fame manager Pat Sorenti, who later served as president and commissioner of the Cape League. CCBL Hall of Famer George Karras
608-629: A collegiate summer baseball team based in Bourne, Massachusetts . The team is a member of the Cape Cod Baseball League (CCBL) and plays in the league's West Division. The Braves play their home games at Doran Park on the campus of Upper Cape Cod Regional Technical School in Bourne. The Braves are owned and operated by the non-profit Bourne Athletic Association. Bourne won its second consecutive and ninth overall CCBL championship in 2023 by defeating
760-464: A 17-year major league career. Future major league all-stars Brandon Inge and hurler Mark Mulder were CCBL all-stars for the Braves in 1997. Bourne's 2001 team featured CCBL Hall of Fame reliever Ryan Speier , winner of the league's Outstanding Relief Pitcher Award. Speier set a league record with 16 saves, and allowed only 10 hits, one walk, and one earned run in his 20 innings of relief. The team made
912-555: A 2-run walk-off poke to right-centerfield. For his clutch pinch-hit, Fleury was named playoff co-MVP with Jason Stidham, who had driven in seven runs for Harwich in Game 1 of the title series. Throughout the 2010s, Harwich continued to be piloted by Steve Englert, the longest-tenured manager in team history. The club reached the playoffs in eight of ten years in the decade, finishing first in the East Division three times. Englert's 2011 squad
1064-597: A 2.46 ERA with 77 strikeouts in 80.1 innings, and pitched two shutout innings and was the winning pitcher in the CCBL All-Star Game. Fellow all-star pitcher Scott Kamieniecki went 4–1 for the Mariners with a 2.14 ERA and 54 strikeouts. Casey Close was a dual threat, batting .329 with six home runs while going 2–0 with a 3.19 ERA on the mound. Close returned to Harwich in 1985 and again enjoyed an all-star campaign with 11 home runs and 30 RBI. CCBL Hall of Famer Scott Hemond
1216-424: A 3–2 count. The Mariners qualified for postseason play only once in the 1990s, reaching the title series in 1997 under skipper Chad Holbrook , who had played in the Cape League in 1992 for Chatham . Holbrook's squad dropped the 1997 finals series to Wareham , a team that starred a familiar face: league MVP and CCBL Hall of Famer Carlos Peña , who had played for Harwich the previous season. Notable players during
1368-482: A 5–3 victory behind moundsman Dick Smith. The Clouters took Game 3, but Orleans knotted the series with a 10–6 Game 4 victory, setting up a decisive Game 5 to be played on the neutral Chatham field . In the finale, the Clouters held down Orleans early, leading 5–0 after seven behind a masterful performance by Sanford. Orleans rallied to score three in the eighth, and with two down in the ninth, pushed across another and put
1520-573: A CCBL title. Skippered by Steve Ring, the team returned the powerful Pacillo, who was good again for eight homers and a .338 batting average, and even went 1–0 with a 4.82 ERA as a pitcher. Rob Souza went 7–2 on the mound in the regular season, and led the league with a 2.45 ERA. The star of the team however was the league's Outstanding Pro Prospect Award winner, Cory Snyder . The CCBL Hall of Famer clouted an amazing league record 22 home runs with 50 RBI and 47 runs scored. He hit home runs in four consecutive at bats on July 7–8, and twice hit three home runs in
1672-476: A Cape League vice president, and was inducted into the CCBL Hall of Fame in 2010. Harwich's 1966 team featured CCBL Hall of Famer Ed Drucker, who batted .382, set a league record with eight triples, and was named league MVP. The 1967 Harwich team featured Northbridge, Massachusetts native and future major leaguer Glenn Adams , a center fielder who slugged three triples in a single game for the Mariners, and blasted
SECTION 10
#17328584894051824-796: A charter member of the National Association of Professional Base Ball Players . This team and its successors are the oldest continuously playing team in American professional sports. (The only other team that has been organized as long, the Chicago Cubs , did not play for the two years following the Great Chicago Fire of 1871.) Two players hired from the Forest City club of Rockford, Illinois , were pitcher Al Spalding (founder of Spalding sporting goods) and second baseman Ross Barnes . Led by
1976-525: A combined Chatham -Harwich team that competed in the league from 1927 to 1929. The team's home games were split between the two town fields. In the inaugural 1927 season, the team finished fourth in the five-team league, but nevertheless was described as "the hardest hitting team in the league." 1927 Chatham-Harwich first baseman Jack Burns went on to play in seven major league seasons for the St. Louis Browns and Detroit Tigers . In all three seasons from 1927 to 1929,
2128-591: A decade-long hiatus, returned to the league in 1961. The Bourne team of the 1940s featured CCBL Hall of Famer Jack Sanford, a hard-throwing lefty who went on to play with Sagamore until 1954, winning a career total of 60 games in the league, including a no-hitter in 1953. The Clouters played at Keith Field, just steps from the Cape Cod Canal in the shadow of the Sagamore Bridge . Keith Field had been dedicated in 1936 and named in memory of Bourne native Eben Keith,
2280-427: A donation of former Major League Baseball Commissioner Fay Vincent, Jr. in memory of his father, Fay Vincent, Sr. The Commissioner had been a longtime summer resident of Harwich and a fan of the Mariners and the CCBL, and wished to honor his late father who had been the baseball captain at Yale University in 1931. The scoreboard was dedicated on July 6, 1998 as part of "Fay Vincent Night at Whitehouse Field", and
2432-601: A formal collegiate league. Teams began to recruit college players and coaches from an increasingly wide geographic radius. The league was originally composed of ten teams, which were divided into Upper Cape and Lower Cape divisions. The Clouters and Canalmen joined Wareham , Falmouth , and Cotuit in the Upper Cape Division. Bourne reached the playoffs in 1963, but was bumped out in the first round by Wareham . In 1964, CCBL Hall of Famer Lou Lamoriello became Bourne's 21-year-old player-manager. Lamoriello had played in
2584-607: A former state senator, and Maritime head baseball coach Bob Corradi. Aylmer had spearheaded the Cape League's addition of an expansion franchise in Hyannis in 1976, and their positions at the Maritime Academy afforded Aylmer and Corradi a similar opportunity in 1988. The Bourne Braves called the Academy's Hendy Field home from 1988 to 1995, when they moved to Coady School Field next to Bourne High School. In their inaugural 1988 season,
2736-415: A game. The Mariners finished the regular season in third place, but eliminated Hyannis two games to one in the playoff semi-finals to earn a berth in the best-of-five title series against top-seeded Cotuit . In Game 1 of the 1983 championship series, the Mariners came out on the wrong end of a 1–0 pitchers' duel, won on an RBI single by Kettleer Will Clark . Games 2 and 3 were played as a doubleheader. In
2888-732: A homer in the CCBL All-Star Game at Eldredge Park . In 1968, CCBL Hall of Fame manager John Carroll took the reins and led the Mariners to a 26–13 record, winning the Lower Cape Division in the team's final season at Brooks Park. The team included pitcher Bill Richardson , who went on to become the Governor of New Mexico and the United States Ambassador to the United Nations . In the 1968 title series, Harwich faced Upper Cape champ Falmouth , who prevailed three games to one in what
3040-600: A losing record in all but 12 of the 38 seasons after their World Series win. The franchise relocated to Milwaukee in 1953. The Boston franchise played at South End Grounds from 1871 to 1914 and at Braves Field from 1915 to 1952. Braves Field is now Nickerson Field of Boston University . The franchise, from Boston to Milwaukee to Atlanta, is the oldest continuously operating professional baseball franchise. The Boston Braves had an overall win–loss record of 5,118–5,598–138 (.478) during their 77-year major-league tenure in Boston. Six former Boston Braves players were elected to
3192-415: A mean threat." Kenney played in the following season for the major league Boston Bees (Braves) . Mahoney's 1938 team narrowly missed bringing Harwich its second league title, finishing the season just one game behind pennant-winning Falmouth . After a hiatus during the years of World War II , the Cape League was reconstituted in 1946, with Harwich joining the Lower Cape Division. In the inaugural season of
SECTION 20
#17328584894053344-677: A monogram-style device to their front. They only managed one winning season from 1900 to 1913, and lost 100 or more games six times. In 1907 , the renamed Doves (temporarily) eliminated the red from their stockings because their manager thought the red dye could cause wounds to become infected (as noted in The Sporting News Baseball Guide during the 1940s when each team's entry had a history of its nickname(s). See details in History of baseball team nicknames ). The American League club's owner, Charles Taylor, changed his team's name to
3496-514: A no-hitter in a rain-shortened six-inning game against Harwich at Doran Park in 2012, and pitchers Austin Gomber , Josh Laxer, and Ryan Harris teamed up for a combined no-hitter at Cotuit in 2013. Bourne's Spencer Brickhouse was West Division MVP at the 2018 CCBL All-Star Game, going 2-for-2 with a homer, double and two RBI's in the West's 4–3 victory. A pair of Braves hurlers were named co-recipients of
3648-401: A rain-soaked day that produced "mud and slippery ball and bats," Sagamore prevailed in a shortened seven-inning contest, by a score reported variously as 9–3 or 10–3. The Keith team had another successful year in 1911, and again made a strong showing at the season-ending fair tournament. The Keith Car team continued to compete through at least the 1913 season, when the club was described as
3800-472: A shutout inning in the CCBL All-Star Game. Joining Zych on the 2010 staff was the league's Outstanding Pitcher, Grayson Garvin , who went 5–0 with a league-leading 0.74 ERA in 36.2 innings. The Outstanding Pitcher Award went to a Brave for a second consecutive season when Ryan Eades took the 2011 honor. Eades posted a 3–0 record with an 0.84 ERA in 32.1 innings, and was the West Division starting pitcher at
3952-410: A starting pitchers' matchup of Vanderbilt teammates Cunningham and Orleans' Greysen Carter, with the Braves prevailing, 6–4. Bourne dropped Game 2 at home, 4–3, sending the series to a decisive Game 3 at Eldredge Park . Bourne starter Trystan Levesque allowed a pair of solo homers to Firebirds second baseman Jo Oyama early, and the Braves trailed, 2–0, after three innings. Bourne got one run back in
4104-412: A three-run bomb by Steve Finken in a four-run first inning, and Kite went the distance on the hill, striking out 13 Kettleers en route to a 4–2 win. Finken hit a two-run dinger in Game 2 at Lowell Park , and teammate Tom Boyce added a pair of homers, but it wasn't enough as Cotuit prevailed, 9–8 in 10 innings. Cotuit's Troy Chacon allowed only two Mariners hits in Game 3 at Whitehouse Field, but one of them
4256-551: A winner, but the damage from the years prior to his arrival took some time to overcome. The Braves finally managed to compete in 1933 and 1934 under manager Bill McKechnie , but Fuchs' revenue was severely depleted due to the Great Depression . Looking for a way to get more supporters and more money, Fuchs worked out a deal with the New York Yankees to acquire Babe Ruth , who had, coincidentally, started his career with
4408-421: A year earlier, his conditioning rapidly declined in the first month of 1935. While he was still able to hit at first, he could do little else. He could no longer run, and his fielding was so terrible that three of the Braves' pitchers threatened to go on strike if Ruth were in the lineup. Ruth soon discovered that he was vice president and assistant manager in name only, and Fuchs' promise of a share of team profits
4560-438: Is a history museum and hall of fame honoring past players, coaches, and others who have made outstanding contributions to the CCBL. Below are the inductees who spent all or part of their time in the Cape League with Harwich. * During the CCBL's 1923–1939 era, postseason playoffs were a rarity. In most years, the regular season pennant winner was simply crowned as the league champion. However, there were four years in which
4712-457: The Boston Red Sox . Fuchs named Ruth vice president and assistant manager of the Braves, and promised him a share of team profits. He was also to be consulted on all player transactions. Fuchs even suggested that Ruth, who had long had his heart set on managing, could take over as manager once McKechnie stepped down—perhaps as early as 1936. At first, it looked like Ruth was the final piece
Harwich Mariners - Misplaced Pages Continue
4864-481: The Brooklyn Dodgers two years later. The Cape League split its regular season in 1933, and held a playoff for the league title between the winners of the first and second halves of the season. Harwich, winners of the season's second half, faced first-half winners and back-to-back defending league champion Falmouth . Harwich took the first game of the best-of-five championship series with a 4–2 home win, then went on
5016-575: The Brooklyn Dodgers , on April 18, 1950, Sam "Jet" Jethroe was added to the Boston Braves roster. The Dodgers had another young CF in Duke Snider rising in their system, resulting in the trade to the Braves. Going on to be named National League Rookie of the Year at age 32, Jethroe broke the color barrier with Boston. In 1950, Jethroe hit .273 with 100 runs, 18 home runs and 58 RBI. His 35 stolen bases led
5168-485: The Heisman Trophy in 2018. In a season highlighted by a regular season no-hitter by Jacob Palisch, and a playoff combined no-hitter against Chatham by hurlers Connor McCullough and Joe Boyle , the Mariners finished the 2019 regular season with only a .500 record, but cruised to the league championship series with playoff sweeps of Chatham and Y-D before being bounced in the finals by Cotuit . The 2020 CCBL season
5320-536: The National Baseball Hall of Fame . The Cincinnati Red Stockings , established in 1869 as the first openly all-professional baseball team, voted to dissolve after the 1870 season. Player-manager Harry Wright then went to Boston, Massachusetts —at the invitation of Boston businessman Ivers Whitney Adams —with brother George Wright and two other Cincinnati players joined the Boston Red Stockings ,
5472-580: The Orleans Firebirds two games to one to win the best of three championship series. Bourne's baseball history is one of the longest of all teams on the Cape, dating as far back as the 1860s when the town was still part of Sandwich . In 1867, Sandwich had four organized baseball teams: the Nichols, Independent, Shawme, and American clubs. The "Independent Club" defeated the "Mattakeesetts" of Yarmouth that year, winning 41–35 in eight innings. The same year,
5624-583: The "Independent Base Ball Club" had been organized and was playing at the "Brooks Estate" in Harwich. The Harwich town club took on Sandwich in an 1884 contest, and played the " Yarmouth Grays " on multiple occasions in 1886. In 1903, the town's "Old Home Week" featured a three-game baseball series in which the Harwich team defeated Sandwich twice and Hyannis once. The home club was described as "the best that ever represented Harwich," and featured several collegiate players, as well as local hurler Dick Gage, who in 1905
5776-758: The "Nichols Club" played a series of three games against the "Cummaquid Club" of Barnstable . The first game, played "a short distance from the Sandwich Glass Company 's works," was won by the Cummaquids, but the Nichols Club took the second game played in Barnstable. The third game was contested at a "neutral" site in West Barnstable , with the Cummaquid Club taking the rubber match. Of these early contests, it
5928-437: The "strongest team on the Cape." Bourne first joined the Cape League in 1933. The league had begun in 1923 with four teams, but over the years various towns moved in and out of the league. In 1933, Provincetown had joined the league for the first time, but withdrew mid-season. Bourne stepped in and played out the remainder of Provincetown's schedule, but won only one game in its inaugural partial season. Bourne remained in
6080-401: The 1877 and 1878 pennants. The Red Caps/Beaneaters won eight pennants during the 19th century. Their manager was Frank Selee , the first manager not to double as a player as well. The 1898 team finished 102–47, a club record for wins that would stand for almost a century. In 1894 the Braves became the first major league baseball team to wear letterforms on their uniform caps when they added
6232-579: The 1949 and 1950 seasons, Harwich fielded two entries in the Cape League, as the Cape Verdean Club of Harwich joined the league's Lower Cape Division. Harwich did not reach the league title series again until 1962 when the team was downed by Upper Cape powerhouse Cotuit after defeating Chatham for the Lower Cape title. Harwich's 1961 and 1962 teams featured CCBL Hall of Famer and longtime New Jersey Devils general manager Lou Lamoriello , who played in
Harwich Mariners - Misplaced Pages Continue
6384-478: The 1990 team and was named the league's Outstanding Pitcher in both seasons. Wissler had posted an 8–2 record with a 1.56 ERA in 1990. In 1991, he led the league in innings pitched with 92, and posted a 1.96 ERA with seven complete games and three shutouts. The 1991 squad also featured slugger Bobby Higginson , who went on to an 11-year career with the Detroit Tigers . Bill Mueller was a Cape League all-star with
6536-505: The 1990s included Kevin Millar , a future Boston Red Sox fan favorite and member of the 2004 World Series team that ended the Red Sox' 86-year title drought . The Mariners also boasted the league's Outstanding Pitcher Award winner for three consecutive seasons with Eddie Yarnall (1995), Billy Coleman (1996) and Brent Hoard (1997). In 1998, a new scoreboard was installed at Whitehouse Field,
6688-508: The 1992 Braves, then went on to win an American League batting title, and was starting third baseman for the World Series champion 2004 Boston Red Sox . 1992 Braves hurler Ron Villone left the team mid-season to play for Team USA at the 1992 Summer Olympics in Barcelona , and 1994 Brave Mark Kotsay won a bronze medal with Team USA at the 1996 Atlanta Olympics before going on to
6840-518: The 4–3 win for Sagamore in Game 1 at Veteran's Field , but the Canalmen lost a 16–14 slugfest as the teams combined for nine home runs at cozy Keith Field in Game 2. Kinski was on the mound again on the road for Game 3, and tossed a complete game three-hit gem in the 2–1 Sagamore victory. Chatham again knotted the series with a Game 4 win, setting up the Game 5 finale back in Chatham. Making his first start of
6992-462: The Braves a series-clinching 8–1 win to secure the club's second CCBL crown of the modern era. Playoff MVP Bryce Eblin batted .458 in the postseason, and went 4-for-5 in the Game 2 finale. Landers' 2023 Braves returned playoff star Eblin, Joshua Kuroda-Grauer , and pitcher Bryce Cunningham, and also featured sluggers Garrett Michel and CCBL All-Star Game MVP Derek Bender. After a fourth place regular season finish, Bourne swept first-place Cotuit in
7144-494: The Braves actually had a better record in games that Spahn and Sain did not start than in games they did. (Other sources include pitcher Vern Bickford in the verse.) The Braves lost the 1948 World Series in six games to the Cleveland Indians (who had beaten the Red Sox in a tie-breaker game to spoil an all-Boston World Series). This turned out to be the Braves' last hurrah in Boston. Acquired earlier by trade from
7296-460: The Braves put together one of the most memorable seasons in baseball history. After a dismal 4–18 start, the Braves seemed to be on pace for a last place finish. On July 4, 1914, the Braves lost both games of a doubleheader to the Brooklyn Dodgers . The consecutive losses put their record at 26–40 and the Braves were in last place, 15 games behind the league-leading New York Giants , who had won
7448-499: The Braves were 9–27, their season all but over. They ultimately finished 38–115, easily the worst season in franchise history. Their .248 winning percentage is tied for the seventh-worst in baseball history , and the sixth-worst in National League history. It is the second-worst in modern baseball history (behind only the 1916 Philadelphia Athletics ), and the worst in modern National League history. Insolvent like his team, Fuchs
7600-407: The Braves were skippered by Maritime Academy assistant coach Jim Watkins. Worcester, Massachusetts native and Dartmouth College product Mark Johnson played for the Braves in 1988 and 1989, and went on to play several seasons in the big leagues. In 1989, just the Braves' second year in the league, Watkins' squad finished the regular season in first place atop the West Division, but was bumped from
7752-433: The CCBL All-Star Game. Bourne boasted the league MVP twice in the decade, as Travis Jankowski took home the honor in 2011, and CCBL Hall of Famer Max Pentecost won it in 2013. Jankowski hit .329 and stole 15 bases, and led the league in hits, runs and triples. Pentecost was among the league leaders in all three triple crown categories, finishing with a .346 average, 6 homers and 29 RBIs. Braves hurler Jeff Thompson spun
SECTION 50
#17328584894057904-464: The CCBL title series against Cotuit . The championship series opened at Doran Park, with the Braves starting Alex Wimmers on the mound for Game 1. The Braves proceeded to jump all over the Kettleers, scoring seven in the first, and another six in the second, on a total of eight hits and eight walks in the first two frames. Cotuit managed only one run through five innings, but had begun to make noise in
8056-555: The CCBL title series in 1978 and followed up that appearance with a return to the finals in 1979. In both title series, the Mariners were defeated by a dominant Hyannis team that had rolled through the two regular seasons with records of 31–11 and 33–7–1. In both 1981 and 1982, the Mariners boasted the league's Outstanding Pitcher Award winner: Greg Myers in 1981, and Scott Murray in 1982. The 1981 team featured Florida State University 's Mike Yastrzemski, son of Baseball Hall of Famer and Boston Red Sox legend Carl Yastrzemski . Nearing
8208-458: The CCBL until 1964, then skippered Sagamore to the league title in 1965. In 1963, the CCBL was reorganized and became officially sanctioned by the NCAA . The league would no longer be characterized by "town teams" who fielded mainly Cape Cod residents, but would now be a formal collegiate league. Teams began to recruit college players and coaches from an increasingly wide geographic radius. The league
8360-442: The CCBL with Bourne and Wareham . Notre Dame slugger Dick Licini was league MVP in 1968, leading the league with a .382 batting average. Bourne withdrew from the league for the 1970 season, but was back the following season. 1971 and 1972 saw the return of 1965 Sagamore shortstop Bob Schaefer, now the pilot of the Bourne team. Schaefer's 1972 team featured CCBL Hall of Fame pitcher John Caneira , who racked up 119 strikeouts as
8512-421: The Cape League season had no playoffs; a champion was determined by the best regular season record. But as it had done in 1933 and 1935, the league split the 1936 season in two half-seasons, with the winners of the two halves meeting in a postseason series for the overall title. In 1936, no postseason was needed, as Bourne took both the first and second half titles and was declared league champion. The Cape League
8664-489: The Cape League since 1961 with Harwich and Orleans . His 1964 Bourne club starred CCBL Hall of Famer and league batting champion Harry Nelson, who hit .390 for the season. Sagamore's 1963 team featured future major league all-star Billy Grabarkewitz , but the team finished in last place with only six wins on the season. The two teams from Bourne merged for the 1965 season as the Sagamore Canalmen . The 1965 team
8816-595: The Cape to play for Bourne. In 1999, Plansky was ranked by Sports Illustrated as the #25 all-time greatest sports figure from Massachusetts . He was inducted into the CCBL Hall of Fame in 2001. Bourne had its most successful campaign of the era in 1936, winning the Cape League title led by player-manager Larry Donovan, the team's first baseman. In addition to perennial all-star Plansky, Donovan's club featured local star third baseman Ugo Tassinari, as well as several "winning pitchers" including Frank "Quack" Escott, Al Sayce, and Ray Chamberlain. Normally during this period,
8968-410: The Cape." Although the 1910 team lost twice to the powerful Hyannis town team early in the summer, the Keith squad had its revenge at the close of the season in what was billed as the baseball "championship of the Cape" at the annual Barnstable County Fair. In the four-team tournament, Falmouth defeated Hyannis and Sagamore shut out Wellfleet to set up a final game between Sagamore and Falmouth. On
9120-500: The Chatham-Harwich team split and the two towns entered individual teams in the league, with Harwich playing its home games at Brooks Park. Throughout the 1930s as other teams struggled to stay in the league, Harwich was consistently among the best funded and best supported teams in the Cape League. One of the first Harwich players to go on to the major leagues was Milton, Massachusetts native Bill Chamberlain . In 1932, Chamberlain
9272-425: The Kettleers' attack. Bourne took it, 5–1, to complete the sweep and earn the Braves' first CCBL title, and the first for a Bourne team since the 1965 Sagamore club. Roller took home playoff MVP honors, having hit .500 with eight RBIs in the postseason. The Braves reached the playoffs in nine of ten years in the 2010s, advancing to the West Division finals five times. Bourne was back in the title series in 2017, but
SECTION 60
#17328584894059424-400: The Mariners' bullpen. The team also featured future major leaguers John Flaherty , University of Massachusetts infielder Gary Disarcina , and slugger Bob Hamelin , who led the league with 11 home runs. Led by manager Bill Springman, the Mariners finished the regular season with the league's best record, and met Cotuit in the playoff semi-finals. In Game 1, Harwich struck early at home with
9576-414: The Mariners' championship. Playoff MVP honors went to Mariner Mike Garza, who went 5-for-9 in the championship series. Notable players during the 2010s included 2012 league MVP Phil Ervin , who batted .323 with 11 homers for the Mariners, CCBL Hall of Famer Ian Happ , a two-time CCBL all-star in 2013 and 2014, and 2016 league MVP Ernie Clement , a second baseman who hit .353 on the season. Harwich boasted
9728-524: The National League gave permission for the move. After a 3 1 ⁄ 2 -hour meeting at the Vinoy Park Hotel in St. Petersburg, Florida, league approval was granted after Perini promised not to sell the team. During a game against the New York Yankees on March 18, the sale was announced final and that the team would move to Milwaukee, immediately. The All-Star Game had been scheduled for Braves Field. It
9880-406: The National League to move the Braves to Milwaukee, Wisconsin. After the franchise's long history in Boston, the day became known as "Black Friday" in the city as fans mourned the team's exit after eight decades. Perini, however, pointed to dwindling attendance as the main reason for the relocation. He also announced that he had recently bought out his original partners. He announced Milwaukee as that
10032-491: The National League, a feat he would duplicate in 1951. While in Boston, Jethroe was a roommate of Chuck Cooper , of the Boston Celtics who was the first African-American player drafted by an NBA team. A former Negro leagues star and military veteran, Jethroe remains the oldest player to have won Rookie of the Year honors. Amid four mediocre seasons after 1948, attendance steadily dwindled, even though Braves Field had
10184-531: The Red Sox in place of the "Americans". When George and John Dovey acquired the club in 1907, the team was named the Doves ; when purchased by William Hepburn Russell in 1911 reporters tried out Rustlers. The team adopted an official name, the Braves , for the first time in 1912 . Their owner, James Gaffney , was a member of New York City's Tammany Hall , which used an Indian chief as their symbol. Two years later,
10336-495: The US ice hockey team to a gold medal at the 1960 Winter Olympics . The Clouters were back in championship form in 1956 as Pena's men faced Cotuit for the 1956 Upper Cape title, and swept the Kettleers in two games. Sagamore jumped out early in Game 1 at Lowell Park with a six-run second frame, and hurler Johnny Karras made it stand up, tossing a complete game in the 7–5 win. The Clouters pasted Cotuit at Keith Field in Game 2, striking in
10488-488: The Upper Cape Division's Most Valuable Pitcher Award in both seasons. Pena's Clouters reached the championship series again in 1958, but were downed by Yarmouth , then bounced back in 1959 to claim another CCBL championship. Sagamore finished atop the Upper Cape league in both halves of the 1959 regular season, earning a spot in the title series against their familiar foe, Lower Cape champ Orleans . The Clouters jumped ahead in
10640-637: The Wright brothers, Barnes, and Spalding , the Red Stockings won four of the National Association's five championships. The team became one of the National League's charter franchises in 1876, sometimes called the " Red Caps " (as a new Cincinnati Red Stockings club was another charter member). Boston came to be called the Beaneaters by sportswriters in 1883, while retaining red as the team color. Boston won
10792-421: The best-of-three 1959 championship series as Powers went the distance on the mound in the 14–4 Game 1 rout at Keith Field. Sagamore completed the sweep in Game 2 at Eldredge Park , scratching out a 5–3 win to give the Clouters the title. The 1959 series was the Clouters' final championship matchup with longtime foe Orleans, and Sagamore's win evened the score at three titles apiece over the teams' six title tilts in
10944-472: The bottom half of the inning, but Pacillo doubled, and Pequignot came through with a clutch homer to send the game to extra innings. Both teams threatened but did not score in the 10th. Robbie Smith came on in relief of Souza in the 11th and set down Cotuit in order. In the bottom of the 11th, Harwich's Jim Sasko drove in Pequignot from third for the series-winning RBI and Harwich's first Cape League championship in
11096-490: The bottom of the ninth. A leadoff triple by Joe Sanders revived the Mariners' hopes, and with the bases loaded on a walk and hit batsman, skipper Steve Englert brought in pinch-hitter Mark Fleury. No stranger to late-inning heroics, Fleury had secured the East Division's 8–6 win in the CCBL All-Star Game with a two-run eighth-inning homer earlier in the season. Fleury rewarded Englert's confidence by coming through again, delivering Harwich's first league championship in 21 years with
11248-434: The decade included the 2002 CCBL Outstanding Relief Pitcher Award winner Shaun Marcum , and future major league all-star and Cy Young Award winner Tim Lincecum of the 2005 Mariners. The 2003 Mariners battled Orleans at Eldredge Park in a 20-inning marathon that set the record as the longest game in modern-era CCBL history. Harwich pushed across the go-ahead run in the top of the 20th, and second baseman Tug Hulett took
11400-418: The decade of the 1950s. To fans, it seemed that Sagamore would reach the league championship series every season, usually to face the Lower Cape's dominant team, Orleans . The Clouters claimed league titles in 1951, 1954, 1956 and 1959. At a time when most Cape League teams generally abided by the unwritten rule of using predominantly local players, Sagamore led the way in recruiting collegiate talent, and so set
11552-439: The decade. In a repeat of its 1958 title loss, Sagamore was again downed in the 1960 championship series by Lower Cape champion Yarmouth . The 1962 Clouters featured CCBL Hall of Famer Wayne Granger , who hit .329 with six homers. In 1963, the CCBL was reorganized and became officially sanctioned by the NCAA . The league would no longer be characterized by "town teams" who fielded mainly Cape Cod residents, but would now be
11704-486: The end of his major league playing career, the elder Yaz found himself with time on his hands that summer due to the 1981 Major League Baseball strike . As a result, he spent much of June and July in the Harwich Mariners' dugout keeping an eye on his son's progress. The 1982 Mariners featured CCBL Hall of Fame slugger Pat Pacillo , who walloped 10 homers on the season. In 1983, Harwich finally broke through and claimed
11856-419: The end of the 1923 season, it was obvious Mathewson could not continue even in a reduced role, and he would die two years later, with the result that Fuchs was permanently given the presidency. In 1928, the Braves traded for Hall of Famer Rogers Hornsby who had a very productive year in his only season with Boston. He batted .387 to win his seventh and final batting championship. Fuchs was committed to building
12008-474: The final two outs to clinch the series with a 3–2 Harwich victory. In the East Division finals, the Mariners faced Y-D . After a Game 1 shutout of the Red Sox at home, Harwich sent Rogers to the mound with hopes of ending the series in Game 2 at Red Wilson Field . Rogers didn't disappoint, allowing only two Y-D hits through eight innings. Austin Nola homered for the Mariners, and Overman came in with runners on base in
12160-411: The first two innings of Game 3 on home turf, and Nagy came on in relief of starter Dave Menhart. For the second time in the series, Nagy no-hit the Red Sox over 4 1/3 innings of relief, and the Mariners came away with a 7–2 victory to secure the championship. Nagy, the playoff MVP, recorded the final out by way of strikeout against league MVP and batting champ Mickey Morandini , whom Nagy caught looking on
12312-411: The following day as another doubleheader. With their backs against the wall and trailing through much of Game 4 at home, the Kettleers staged a late-inning comeback to knot the series with an 8–7 win. The Game 5 finale at Harwich was an all-time classic. Cotuit got a three-run homer in the top of the first, and Harwich answered in the bottom of the frame with a Pacillo grand slam. Harwich starter Mike Ulian
12464-442: The fourth, then took the lead on a Bender RBI double as part of a three-run sixth inning rally. Bender added an insurance run in the eighth on a solo homer, and Anthony DeFabbia nailed it down in relief with four and a third scoreless innings, sealing the Braves' 5–2 win and second consecutive league title. Eblin finished the playoffs with a team record 23-game hitting streak, and Kuroda-Grauer, who hit .444 with two homers and 13 RBI in
12616-457: The front end of the twinbill, Harwich jumped all over the Kettleers with a seven-run second, including a grand slam by Jon Pequignot. Souza went the distance in a 16–6 Mariner rout at Lowell Park . The back end of the doubleheader was played at Whitehouse Field, where Harwich hurler Jeff Koenigsman stymied the Cotuit attack. The Mariners took it, 7–3, to go up two games to one. Games 4 and 5 were played
12768-416: The game close, but the Clouters found themselves trailing, 5–4, in the bottom of the ninth. Needing only one final out to secure the series, Orleans committed a throwing error that scored Walt Stahura from third base. With the bases loaded and the score now tied, pinch-hitter Bill McCabe drew a walk that sent CCBL Hall of Famer Tello Tontini across the plate with the winning run. The Clouters started Sanford on
12920-492: The league in batting (.360), and became the first CCBL player in 11 years to hit for the cycle when he accomplished the feat at Hyannis . The Braves finished the regular season in first place atop the West Division, and after disposing of Falmouth and Hyannis in the divisional playoffs, met the Brewster Whitecaps in the CCBL championship series for a second consecutive season. Braves skipper Scott Landers, who had been
13072-795: The league split its regular season and crowned separate champions for the first (A) and second (B) halves. In two of those seasons (1936 and 1939), a single team won both halves and was declared overall champion. In the other two split seasons (1933 and 1935), a postseason playoff series was contested between the two half-season champions to determine the overall champion. Played from 1927 to 1929 as combined "Chatham-Harwich" team * Regular seasons split into first and second halves are designated as (A) and (B). (*) - Indicates co-recipient Italics - Indicates All-Star Game Home Run Hitting Contest participant (1988 to present) (*) - Season count excludes 2020 CCBL season cancelled due to coronavirus pandemic . Bourne Braves The Bourne Braves are
13224-464: The league until the league itself folded after the 1939 season, and played its home games at the Bourne High School diamond. In 1934 and 1935, Bourne featured hard-hitting third baseman Bob "Red" Daughters , who went on to play for the Boston Red Sox , and Freddie Moncewicz , a longtime Hyannis/Barnstable infielder who had played for Boston in 1928. Bourne's mainstay during this period
13376-577: The league's Outstanding New England Player Award in 2018, as Justin Lasko of Stratford, Connecticut and the University of Massachusetts shared the honor with Methuen, Massachusetts native Jacob Wallace of the University of Connecticut . University of Hartford lefty Nick Dombkowski provided the highlight of the 2019 season when he tossed a perfect game for Bourne in a 5-inning rain-shortened 6–0 win over Yarmouth-Dennis at Doran Park. The 2020 CCBL season
13528-447: The league's Outstanding Pitcher. The team folded after the 1972 season, beginning a 16-year period when Bourne did not field a team in the league. In 1988, the Cape League expanded from eight teams to ten, adding the Brewster Whitecaps and Bourne Braves , and forming two new five-team divisions. The drive to secure a team for Bourne was led by CCBL Hall of Famers Jack Aylmer , president of Bourne's Massachusetts Maritime Academy and
13680-468: The league's annual All-Star Game Home Run Derby. In 2009, the Braves finished in first place in the West Division, and featured the league's MVP in CCBL Hall of Famer Kyle Roller , who hit .342 with 33 RBIs and a league-best 10 home runs during the regular season, and Pierre LePage, the spark plug of Shapiro's club, who was the league's 10th Player Award winner. In a year when playoff seedings crossed divisional lines, Bourne faced old nemesis Orleans for
13832-472: The league's home run derby champs in 2012 and 2014 as JaCoby Jones and Sal Annunziata claimed the honors. Massachusetts native and multi-sport athlete Pat Connaughton pitched briefly for Harwich in 2013, and went on to a career in the National Basketball Association . Another multi-sport athlete, Kyler Murray of the University of Oklahoma , played for Harwich in 2017 and went on to win
13984-415: The modern era. The 1984 Mariners finished the regular season atop the league with an impressive 27–15 record, due in large part to the contributions of four CCBL Hall of Famers. League Outstanding Pro Prospect Award winner Mike Loggins batted .343 with 13 homers and was MVP of the CCBL All-Star Game at Philadelphia's Veterans Stadium . Joe Magrane led the league with six wins and six complete games, posted
14136-426: The mound and recorded the save for the Mariners in the 5 hour, 52 minute affair. The Mariners' playoff drought continued well into the 2000s, as the team reached the postseason only once during the 20-year span from 1988 to 2007. The Mariners' woes ended in 2008. The club featured future major league all-stars Brandon Belt and DJ LeMahieu , as well as one of the CCBL's top hitters, Tommy Medica , who batted .352 for
14288-413: The mound in Game 4 on the road, and came away with a 10–8 win highlighted by a six-run fourth inning that was manufactured on just two hits. Sanford got the call again in the Game 5 finale at neutral Lowell Park , and twirled a six-hit complete game 8–4 victory to give the championship to Sagamore. Sanford's impressive final line for the series included three wins on the mound, and a 5-for-12 performance at
14440-483: The next 19 years in mediocrity, during which they posted only three winning seasons ( 1921 , 1933 , and 1934 ). The lone highlight of those years came when Giants' attorney Emil Fuchs bought the team in 1923 to bring his longtime friend, pitching great Christy Mathewson , back into the game. Although original plans called for Mathewson to be the principal owner, he had never recovered from tuberculosis that he had contracted after being gassed during World War I . By
14592-438: The ninth to close the door on the 4–2 Harwich victory to complete the series sweep. In the 2011 title series, Harwich faced West Division champ Falmouth . The Mariners took Game 1 of the championship at home in a closely contested 5–4 game decided by first baseman John Wooten's go-ahead homer in the sixth. Wooten blasted another one in Game 2 at Falmouth, and the game went to the bottom of the ninth with Harwich leading, 7–5. With
14744-586: The only team to win a pennant after being in last place on the Fourth of July . They were in last place as late as July 18, but were close to the pack, moving into fourth on July 21 and second place on August 12. Despite their amazing comeback, the Braves entered the World Series as a heavy underdog to Connie Mack 's Philadelphia Athletics . Nevertheless, the Braves swept the Athletics—the first unqualified sweep in
14896-423: The opening round of playoffs to meet Hyannis in the West Division finals for a second consecutive season. After dropping Game 1 at McKeon Park , the Braves took Game 2, 13–3, behind back-to-back homers by Bender and Michel. Bender went deep again in Game 3 as Bourne's 12–4 victory earned the club a return trip to the CCBL finals to face East Division champ Orleans . Game 1 of the championship series featured
15048-542: The pair: First we'll use Spahn then we'll use Sain Then an off day followed by rain Back will come Spahn followed by Sain And followed we hope by two days of rain. The poem received such a wide audience that the sentiment, usually now paraphrased as "Spahn, Sain, then pray for rain" or "Spahn, Sain and two days of rain", entered the baseball vocabulary. Ironically, in the 1948 season,
15200-481: The pitching coach for Brewster during their 2021 finals victory over Bourne, was now poised to help his new club exact its revenge. In Game 1 at Doran Park, the Braves rode a shutout performance by hurlers Matt Duffy and Seth Keener, and scratched out three runs against strong Brewster pitching to take the opener. On the road for Game 2, Bourne jumped out to an early lead with a four-run first inning and never looked back. Shaw and Ryan Enos added late-game homers to give
15352-423: The plate. Orleans topped Sagamore in the 1952 and 1953 championship series, but Sagamore rebounded again as the two clubs met in the title tilt for the fifth consecutive season in 1954. Games 1 and 2 of the 1954 championship were played as a doubleheader. In a matchup of CCBL Hall of Fame hurlers, Orleans took Game 1, 4–3, with Roy Bruninghaus outdueling the Clouters' Jack Sanford. Sagamore answered in Game 2 with
15504-411: The playoffs in the West finals by Hyannis . The 1989 Braves starred infielder Bob Rivell, the league's 10th Player Award winner, who led the league with a .358 batting average, and also featured Cape Cod native Jeff Handler of Harwich , the team's starting third baseman from Eastern Connecticut State University . Bourne struggled throughout the 1990s, and fan support was low at times. The team made
15656-457: The playoffs only twice, being ousted by Wareham in the West Division finals in both 1997 and 1998. Notable players of the decade included local product Steve Corradi of Sandwich and UMass-Amherst , who was a league all-star for the Braves in 1990, and returned to the Braves in 1991 and 1992. The 1991 Braves featured two future CCBL Hall of Famers: Framingham, Massachusetts native Lou Merloni , and tall righty Bill Wissler, who returned from
15808-474: The playoffs, but was once again ousted by Wareham . 2003 saw the arrival of CCBL Hall of Fame manager Harvey Shapiro . In his first year with the team, Shapiro led the Braves to their first appearance in the league's championship series, where they were defeated by Orleans . The Braves were led by the microscopic earned run averages of Kyle Schmidt (0.55) and CCBL Hall of Famer Eric Beattie (0.39). Beattie went 4–0 and struck out 51 while walking only six on
15960-432: The postseason, was named playoff MVP. The CCBL Hall of Fame and Museum is a history museum and hall of fame honoring past players, coaches, and others who have made outstanding contributions to the CCBL. Below are the inductees who spent all or part of their time in the Cape League with Bourne. * During the CCBL's 1923–1939 era, postseason playoffs were a rarity. In most years, the regular season pennant winner
16112-512: The previous three league pennants. After a day off, the Braves put together a hot streak, and from July 6 through September 5, the Braves won 41 games against only 12 losses. On September 7 and 8, the Braves took 2 of 3 from the New York Giants and moved into first place. The Braves tore through September and early October, closing with 25 wins against 6 losses, while the Giants went 16–16. They are
16264-425: The reputation of being more family friendly than Fenway. For a half century, the major leagues had not had a single franchise relocation. The Braves played their last home game in Boston on September 21, 1952 , losing to the Brooklyn Dodgers 8–2 before 8,822 at Braves Field; the home attendance for the 1952 season was under 282,000. On March 13, 1953, owner Lou Perini said that he would seek permission from
16416-413: The revived league, Harwich defeated Barnstable in the playoffs for the Lower Cape title, but was shut down by Upper Cape champ Falmouth in the league championship series. The 1946 season also featured the league's first All-Star Game, held at Harwich's Brooks Park. The contest matched a team of CCBL all-stars against a team of Boston Red Sox tryout players chosen by scouts of the major league team. In
16568-408: The right to advance to the championship series. Game 1 of the semi-final series did not look good for Bourne, as Orleans hurler Jorge Reyes dominated the Braves through eight innings at Doran Park, and took a 2–0 lead into the final frame. But with one out in the ninth, Bourne's Scott Woodward singled, and LePage drew a four-pitch walk that marked the end of Reyes' night. Roller then lined a shot off
16720-408: The road and dished out a 10–1 pummelling at Falmouth Heights. The series returned to Harwich for Game 3, where the home team sent ace hurler Al Blanche to the mound. Blanche, a Somerville, Massachusetts native who went on to play with the major league Boston Braves , outdueled Falmouth's Harold Poole, 3–1, to complete the three-game sweep and secure the title for Harwich. In 1937 and 1938, Harwich
16872-401: The season on the mound, the Canalmen's Bob Ritchie overcame Chatham's four-run first inning to scatter nine hits in a complete game 5–4 win that gave Sagamore the league championship. In 1967, the club reclaimed its former moniker Bourne Canalmen , and the late 1960s saw two more CCBL Hall of Fame players on the team. Former Bourne High School baseball star Jim Prete played several seasons in
17024-462: The season, and was named the league's Outstanding Pitcher. The team again reached the championship series in 2005, but was again shut down by Orleans . In 2006, the Braves moved from Coady Field to a new field constructed behind Upper Cape Cod Regional Technical School . The following season, the field was dedicated as " Doran Park " in honor of George Doran, Sr. The 2006 team was powered by future Boston Red Sox slugger Mitch Moreland , who won
17176-409: The season. The Mariners opened the postseason with a two-game sweep of Orleans in the semi-finals, then faced Cotuit in the title series. After going on the road and pounding the Kettleers, 11–2, in Game 1, Harwich returned home for Game 2 with ideas of a sweep. Over 6,000 fans packed Whitehouse Field for the second game, but the series seemed headed back to Cotuit as the visitors took a 1–0 lead into
17328-578: The second once again with an eight-run frame, and riding the strong arm of Dick Smith to the 13–2 victory. The win sent Sagamore to the Cape League title series against the Lower Cape champion Dennis Clippers . Smith twirled a two-hitter in Game 1 of the title tilt, and the Clouters downed the Clippers at Dennis, 7–1. Game 2 was a tight pitcher's duel early, but Sagamore scratched out a 5–3 win to secure its third Cape League championship in six years. Sagamore's 1958 and 1959 teams featured Bill Powers, who earned
17480-477: The second–place St. Louis Cardinals . They also attracted 1,455,439 fans to Braves Field , the third-largest gate in the National League and a high-water mark for the team's stay in Boston. The pitching staff was anchored by Hall of Famer Warren Spahn and Johnny Sain , who won 39 games between them. The remainder of the rotation was so thin that in September, Boston Post writer Gerald Hern wrote this poem about
17632-401: The seventh to narrow the margin, and Derek Lee proved the hero with a three-run go-ahead blast in the eighth. Nagy no-hit the Red Sox in 4 1/3 frames of relief, and the Mariners took the opener, 5–3. Kite went the distance for Harwich in Game 2 at Red Wilson Field , but scattered four runs and got little help from his bats in a 4–1 loss that knotted the series. Harwich got three runs in each of
17784-534: The shortstop's glove into left field that allowed Woodward to score on a close play at home. LePage scored the game-tying run on a wild pitch, and Stefan Romero belted a long sacrifice fly that brought in Roller from third with the walk-off score. Game 2 at Eldredge Park was not as dramatic. Braves starter Seth Maness set down 10 straight Firebirds to open the game, and Bourne got solo shots from LePage and Roller, going on to shut out Orleans, 8–0, and sweeping its way into
17936-510: The sixth when the game was interrupted multiple times and finally called due to heavy fog, a 15–5 Braves victory. In Game 2 at Lowell Park , LePage again was the spark, belting a two-run single in the third, then stealing second and drawing a throw that allowed Woodward to score from third to put the Braves up, 3–1. Bourne never looked back. Starter Eric Cantrell tossed five plus, then gave way to Logan Billbrough and closer Kevin Munson , who shut down
18088-428: The stage for the league's modern era. The Clouters first reached the title series in 1950, when they were downed by Orleans , but Sagamore had its revenge in the 1951 title rematch. In the most drawn-out championship series in league history, the best-of-five 1951 CCBL championship series was scheduled with just one game each week, and so began in late August and ended on the final day of September. The Clouters were on
18240-488: The team featured Boston College batterymates pitcher Pete Herman and catcher George Colbert, as well as flashy infielder Artie Gore . The trio of Herman, Colbert and Gore later teamed up again with Barnstable to bring that club multiple Cape League championships in the 1930s. Gore went on to a major league umpiring career, working ten years in the National League , including two World Series assignments. In 1930,
18392-462: The team in 1971 and 1972, then again from 1975 to 1977. He went on to serve as CCBL Commissioner from 1984 to 1996, where he was a driving force behind the league's momentous transition to an all-wooden bat league in the mid-1980s. The Mariners qualified for the playoffs in 1974 behind CCBL Outstanding Pitcher Award winner Andy Muhlstock, but were bested in the semi-final round by Orleans . Piloted by first-year manager Don Prohovich, Harwich advanced to
18544-482: The team needed in 1935 . On opening day , he had a hand in all of the Braves' runs in a 4–2 win over the Giants . However, this could not last. Opening Day proved to be the only time the Braves were over .500 all year. A 4–20 May ended any realistic chance of contention. At the same time, it became apparent that Ruth was finished even as a part-time player. While his high living of previous years had begun catching up with him
18696-504: The team won 10 National League pennants and a World Series championship in 1914 that came after a season in which the Braves were in last place as late as July 15—a turnaround that led to the nickname "Miracle Braves". In 1948 , the Braves reached the World Series largely as a result of their two dominant pitchers, Warren Spahn and Johnny Sain , who inspired the Boston Post slogan "Spahn and Sain and pray for rain." The Braves posted
18848-517: The title just three outs away, Englert brought in Overman to try to close out the Commodores in the final frame. Overman, who had not allowed an earned run in 28.1 innings during the season, proceeded to load the bases with no outs, but wiggled out of the jam by getting Falmouth's hot-hitting Reid Redman to pop out, then striking out the next batter, and finishing the job with a popout to the catcher to secure
19000-486: The two half-season champions to determine the overall champion. In 1933, Bourne joined the league mid-season after Provincetown withdrew. * Regular seasons split into first and second halves are designated as (A) and (B). (*) - Indicates co-recipient Italics - Indicates All-Star Game Home Run Hitting Contest participant (*) - Season count excludes 2020 CCBL season cancelled due to coronavirus pandemic . Boston Braves (baseball) The Boston Braves were
19152-458: The tying run on second. With the series on the line, Sanford put Orleans batter Johnny Linnell in the hole with two quick strikes. Linnell managed to foul off the next five offerings before Sanford finally whiffed him on a high ball to claim the crown for the Clouters. From 1955 to 1958, the Clouters featured Billy Cleary , the 1958 Upper Cape MVP, and his brother Bobby Cleary . The Clearys were Harvard ice hockey standouts who went on to lead
19304-521: The verge of being swept after dropping Game 1 at home, 4–2, and Game 2 at Eldredge Park , 2–1. A classic Game 3 saw Sagamore turn the series around on a last-minute rally. Orleans had scored early in Game 3 at Keith Field, and Sagamore manager Karras brought in CCBL Hall of Fame hurler Jack Sanford, just back in his first game after a tour in Korea with the US Army, for long relief in the second inning. Sanford kept
19456-522: The young history of the modern World Series (the 1907 World Series had one tied game)—to win the world championship. Meanwhile, former Chicago Cubs infielder Johnny Evers , in his second season with the Braves, won the Chalmers Award . The Braves played the World Series (as well as the last few weeks of the 1914 regular season) at Fenway Park , since their normal home, the South End Grounds ,
19608-576: Was Massachusetts native Tony Plansky , who was a league all-star for Bourne each year from 1933 to 1939. Plansky, a star fullback from Georgetown University , had played professionally in the National Football League for the New York Giants and Boston Braves . Prior to the NFL, Plansky had played for Hyannis in the Cape League in 1928, and when his football career was over, Plansky returned to
19760-428: Was Sagamore's player-manager from 1948 to 1954. Karras' teams starred CCBL Hall of Famer Tello Tontini, the team's popular infielder, who was a seven-time all-star for Sagamore from 1946 to 1952. Karras was followed by fellow CCBL Hall of Famer Manny Pena, who had played in the league for Falmouth and Sagamore from 1946 to 1955, and skippered the Clouters from 1956 to 1961. Sagamore was a league powerhouse throughout
19912-417: Was a second-inning solo shot by Boyce. Harwich starter Nelson Arriete made the lone run stand up, going the distance in the 1–0 shutout to advance the Mariners to the title series against Y-D . In Game 1 of the 1987 championship series at Whitehouse Field, the Red Sox chased Mariners starter Everett Cunningham from the mound in the fifth, and Nagy came on in relief trailing, 3–1. Boyce hit yet another clout in
20064-506: Was billed by the CCBL as being "the largest scoreboard in New England south of Fenway Park ." The 1998 Mariners were skippered by CCBL Hall of Famer Billy Best, who had played for Falmouth in 1979 where he set a CCBL record with his 32-game hitting streak. The 2004 Mariners featured CCBL Hall of Famer Craig Hansen , a hard-throwing closer who recorded a perfect 0.00 ERA with 41 strikeouts in 22.1 innings of work. Other notable players during
20216-585: Was cancelled due to the coronavirus pandemic . Shapiro's 2021 Braves began the season with an 11-game winning streak, followed it up with another 8-game streak later in the season, and finished the regular season in first place atop the West Division, but were downed in the playoff finals by Brewster . After the 2021 season, Shapiro stepped down as Bourne's manager after 18 seasons. The 2022 Braves were led by first-year pilot Scott Landers and hitting coach and former Boston Red Sox catcher Jarrod Saltalamacchia . Bourne featured league MVP Matt Shaw , who led
20368-475: Was cancelled due to the coronavirus pandemic . The 2021 Mariners boasted the league's MVP as well as its Outstanding Pitcher as third baseman Brock Wilken and hurler Trey Dombroski took home the awards. In 2023, longtime league executive Mary Henderson marked her 40th year as President of the Harwich Athletic Association and was named to the CCBL Hall of Fame. The CCBL Hall of Fame and Museum
20520-490: Was described as "by far the best pitcher on the Cape." In 1923, the Cape Cod Baseball League was formed and initially included four teams: Falmouth , Chatham , Osterville , and Hyannis . This early Cape League operated through the 1939 season and disbanded in 1940, due in large part to the difficulty of securing ongoing funding during the Great Depression . Harwich originally entered the Cape League as part of
20672-468: Was downed by Brewster in a matchup of the two 1988 expansion franchises. Skipper Harvey Shapiro continued to pilot the team throughout the decade, his total years with the Braves surpassing the total of all previous managers combined. In 2010, Bourne featured the league's Outstanding Pro Prospect and Outstanding Relief Pitcher, Tony Zych . Zych allowed only two runs while striking out 29 in 20.1 innings, posting an 0.89 ERA with 12 saves, and contributing
20824-540: Was forced to give up control of the Braves in August 1935, and new owner Bob Quinn tried to change the team's image by renaming it the Boston Bees . This did little to change the team's fortunes. After five uneven years, a new owner, construction magnate Lou Perini , changed the nickname back to the Braves. In 1948 , the team won the National League pennant by capturing 91 games to finish 6 1 ⁄ 2 places ahead of
20976-512: Was hit hard for seven runs, and Souza, who had pitched a complete game the day before, came on and was effective in long relief. Mariner Doug Shields cranked a three-run homer in the seventh, and the score was tied at 7–7 going to the final frame. Cotuit's Greg Barrios launched a two-run dinger in the top of the ninth to put the Kettleers up, 9–7, and hope was waning for the Whitehouse faithful. The Mariners came down to their final out with nobody on in
21128-476: Was hot air. In fact, Ruth discovered that Fuchs expected him to invest some of his money in the team. Seeing a franchise in complete disarray, Ruth retired on June 1, only six days after he clouted what turned out to be the last three home runs of his career, in what remains one of the most memorable afternoons in baseball history. He had wanted to quit as early as May 12, but Fuchs wanted him to hang on so he could play in every National League park. By this time,
21280-418: Was league MVP for Harwich in 1986; the outfielder/catcher slugged six home runs and led the league with a .358 batting average. Harwich wore the league crown again in 1987 for the second time in five years. On the mound, team MVP Dan Kite posted six wins and four complete games with a 2.21 ERA, and future major league all-star Charles Nagy of the University of Connecticut and Andy Berg were CCBL all-stars in
21432-580: Was led by CCBL East Division All-Star Game starting pitcher Taylor Rogers , along with fellow all-stars Luke Voit at catcher, slugger Jabari Henry, and CCBL Hall of Fame reliever Chris Overman. As the playoffs began, the Mariners got a scare, with Brewster taking Game 1 of the first round series, but Harwich bounced back with an 8–2 Game 2 rout. The Mariners went down 2–0 early to the Whitecaps in Game 3, but scratched their way back behind 5.1 innings of scoreless relief by Eddie Butler , and Overman came on to get
21584-464: Was led by player-manager Neil Mahoney , an all-Cape League selection at catcher who went on to be scouting director of the Boston Red Sox . Mahoney's 1937 Harwich team featured Holy Cross pitcher Art Kenney and former Chicago White Sox outfielder Bill Barrett . Barrett had played several productive seasons in the major leagues, and finished tops in the Cape League in 1937 with a .440 batting average, as his "potent bat of bygone glory still [carried]
21736-597: Was moved to Crosley Field and hosted by the Cincinnati Reds . The Braves franchise moved their triple-A Brewers from Milwaukee to Toledo, Ohio. After the Braves moved to Milwaukee in 1953 , the Braves Field site was sold to Boston University and reconstructed as Nickerson Field , the home of many Boston University teams. The Braves Field scoreboard was sold to the Kansas City A's and used at Municipal Stadium ;
21888-488: Was originally composed of ten teams, which were divided into Upper Cape and Lower Cape divisions. Harwich joined Orleans , Chatham , Yarmouth and a team from Otis Air Force Base in the Lower Cape Division. The Harwich teams of the mid- and late-1960s featured several notable players. Harwich's native son and Boston College hurler Peter Ford spent four summers with the team, posting a combined ERA of 3.36 with 18 wins and two league all-star selections. Ford later served as
22040-531: Was pitching for Harwich when he was noticed by a scout for the Chicago White Sox . Chamberlain was playing in Chicago by the end of the season. In 1933, Harwich won its first Cape League championship. The team starred all-league selection Frank Skaff of Villanova , an outfielder who "covers acres of territory, catches everything in sight," and was "the dread of all opposing pitchers", and who went on to play for
22192-568: Was reported that, "a large party from this and adjoining villages were present to witness the game, and as it was new to very many of the number, it was of unusual interest." In 1909, a team from Bourne sponsored by the Keith Car & Manufacturing Company of Sagamore played a pair of games against the Falmouth town team . In 1910, the Sagamore club was described as "one of the finest local teams on
22344-533: Was revived after World War II , and the new league began play in 1946 with 11 teams playing in Upper Cape and Lower Cape divisions. The town of Bourne was represented in the Upper Cape Division by Bourne and Sagamore teams. Bourne's team became known as the Bourne Canalmen , and Sagamore's as the Sagamore Canal Clouters , or Sagamore Clouters . The Canalmen played in the league until 1950, then after
22496-400: Was simply crowned as the league champion. However, there were four years in which the league split its regular season and crowned separate champions for the first (A) and second (B) halves. In two of those seasons (1936 and 1939), a single team won both halves and was declared overall champion. In the other two split seasons (1933 and 1935), a postseason playoff series was contested between
22648-405: Was skippered by Lou Lamoriello, now no longer in a player-manager role. Powered by an array of talented ballplayers, including league MVP Ron Bugbee, and CCBL Hall of Famers Dan DeMichele, shortstop Bob Schaefer , and pitcher Noel Kinski, who won 10 games for the team. The 1965 club went 25–9 in the regular season and met Lower Cape champ Chatham in the best-of-five CCBL title series. Kinski got
22800-431: Was the first of Falmouth's four consecutive titles from 1968 to 1971. The following year the Mariners moved to their new home at Whitehouse Field . The CCBL held its 1969 All-Star Game at the new ballpark, the Lower Cape emerging with a 4–0 victory. CCBL Hall of Famer Fred Ebbett took over the Mariners' managerial post in 1971 after over 20 highly successful seasons coaching baseball at Harwich High School. Ebbett skippered
22952-399: Was too small. However, the Braves' success inspired owner Gaffney to build a modern park, Braves Field , which opened in August 1915. It was the largest park in the majors at the time, with 40,000 seats and also a very spacious outfield. The park was novel for its time; public transportation brought fans right into the park. After contending for most of 1915 and 1916, the Braves spent much of
23104-482: Was where the Braves had their top farm club, the Brewers. Milwaukee had long been a possible target for relocation. Bill Veeck had tried to move his St. Louis Browns there earlier the same year (Milwaukee was the original home of that franchise), but his proposal had been voted down by the other American League owners. Going into spring training in 1953, it appeared that the Braves would play another year in Boston unless
#404595