The Cape Cod Baseball League (CCBL or Cape League) is a

collegiate summer baseball Collegiate summer baseball leagues are amateur baseball leagues in the United States and Canada featuring players who have attended at least one year of college and have at least one year of athletic eligibility remaining. Generally, they operat ...

wooden bat league located on

Cape Cod Cape Cod is a peninsula extending into the Atlantic Ocean from the southeastern corner of mainland Massachusetts, in the northeastern United States. Its historic, maritime character and ample beaches attract heavy tourism during the summer mont ...

in the U.S. state of

Massachusetts Massachusetts (Massachusett language, Massachusett: ''Muhsachuweesut assachusett writing systems, məhswatʃəwiːsət'' English: , ), officially the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, is the most populous U.S. state, state in the New England ...

. One of the nation's premier collegiate summer leagues, the league boasts over one thousand former players who have gone on to play in the major leagues.

History

Pre-modern era

Origins

As early as the 1860s, baseball teams representing various Cape Cod towns and villages were competing against one another. The earliest newspaper account is of an 1867 game in

Sandwich A sandwich is a food typically consisting of vegetables, sliced cheese or meat, placed on or between slices of bread, or more generally any dish wherein bread serves as a container or wrapper for another food type. The sandwich began as a po ...

between the hometown "Nichols Club" and the visiting Cummaquid team. Though not formalized as a league, the games provided entertainment for residents and summer visitors. In 1885, a Fourth of July baseball game was held matching teams from Barnstable and Sandwich. According to contemporary accounts, the 1885 contest may have been at least the twelfth such annual game. By the late 19th century, an annual championship baseball tournament was being held each fall at the Barnstable County Fair, an event that continued well into the 20th century, with teams representing towns from Cape Cod and the larger region. In 1921, the Barnstable County Agricultural Society determined to limit the fair's annual baseball championship to teams from Cape Cod. Falmouth won the championship in 1921, and

Osterville Osterville is one of seven villages within the town of Barnstable, Massachusetts, United States. The village of Osterville is located on the south side of Barnstable on Nantucket Sound. Osterville is a residential community that includes marshes, ...

in 1922. Interest in baseball was growing, as was a movement to create a formal league of Cape Cod teams.

The early Cape League era (1923–1939)

The "Cape Cod Baseball League" was formed in 1923, consisting of four teams: Falmouth, Osterville, Hyannis, and

Chatham Chatham may refer to: Places and jurisdictions Canada * Chatham Islands (British Columbia) * Chatham Sound, British Columbia * Chatham, New Brunswick, a former town, now a neighbourhood of Miramichi * Chatham (electoral district), New Brunswic ...

. Teams were made up of players from local colleges and prep schools, along with some semi-pro players and other locals. One notable player during this period was

North Truro North Truro is a village in the town of Truro, Massachusetts, United States. Due to its proximity to urbanized Provincetown, it is somewhat more densely developed than the rest of the town, with houses and small resort facilities lining the ...

native Danny "Deacon" MacFayden, who went on to play for seventeen years in the major leagues. Throughout the 1920s and 1930s, the composition of the league varied from season to season. Towns did not opt to field teams in every season, and teams from other towns such as

Bourne Bourne may refer to: Places UK * Bourne, Lincolnshire, a town ** Bourne Abbey ** Bourne railway station * Bourne (electoral division), West Sussex * Bourne SSSI, Avon, a Site of Special Scientific Interest near Burrington, North Somerset * Bourne ...

Harwich Harwich is a town in Essex, England, and one of the Haven ports on the North Sea coast. It is in the Tendring district. Nearby places include Felixstowe to the north-east, Ipswich to the north-west, Colchester to the south-west and Clacton-on- ...

, Orleans, Provincetown, and Wareham joined the league. Teams were not limited to league play, and often played teams from towns and cities in the larger region, as in 1929 when Falmouth played an exhibition game against the major league

Boston Braves The Atlanta Braves, a current Major League Baseball franchise, originated in Boston, Massachusetts. This article details the history of the Boston Braves, from 1871 to 1952, after which they moved to Milwaukee, and then to Atlanta. During it ...

. The league enjoyed widespread popularity throughout the 1930s, and even engendered competition in the form of the Barnstable County Twilight League and the Lower Cape Twilight League. However, as the cumulative effects of the

Great Depression The Great Depression (19291939) was an economic shock that impacted most countries across the world. It was a period of economic depression that became evident after a major fall in stock prices in the United States. The economic contagio ...

made it increasingly more difficult to secure funding for teams, the Cape League disbanded in 1940.

The Upper and Lower Cape League era (1946–1962)

With young men returning home after World War II, the Cape League was revived in 1946. The league now excluded paid professional or semi-pro players, and for a while attempted to limit players to those who were Cape Cod residents. The league was split into Upper Cape and Lower Cape divisions, and in addition to many of the town teams from the "old" Cape League, new teams now joined such as those representing the Massachusetts Maritime Academy, Otis Air Force Base, and the Cape Verdean Club of Harwich among others.

Modern era (1963–present)

In 1963, the Cape Cod Baseball League was reorganized and became officially sanctioned by the

NCAA The National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) is a nonprofit organization that regulates student athletics among about 1,100 schools in the United States, Canada, and Puerto Rico. It also organizes the athletic programs of colleges an ...

. The league would no longer be limited to Cape Cod residents, but would recruit college players and coaches from an increasingly wide radius. In 1985, the league moved away from the use of aluminum bats, and became the only collegiate summer league in the nation at that time to use wooden bats. This transition began a period of significant growth in the league's popularity and prestige among MLB scouts, as well as among college players and coaches. This popularity has translated into over one thousand former players who have gone on to major league playing careers, including multiple members of the

National Baseball Hall of Fame The National Baseball Hall of Fame and Museum is a history museum and hall of fame in Cooperstown, New York, operated by private interests. It serves as the central point of the history of baseball in the United States and displays baseball-r ...

Structure and season

The CCBL regular season runs from mid-June through mid-August. Teams are geographically divided into the East Division and West Division. Each division consists of five teams which each play 44

regular season In an organized sports league, a typical season is the portion of one year in which regulated games of the sport are in session: for example, in Major League Baseball the season lasts approximately from the last week of March to the last week of Se ...

games, 6 games against each team from within their division, and 4 games against each team from the other division. During the latter half of the regular season, an all-star game is contested between the all stars from the East and West divisions, and features a pre-game

home run In baseball, a home run (abbreviated HR) is scored when the ball is hit in such a way that the batter is able to circle the bases and reach home plate safely in one play without any errors being committed by the defensive team. A home run i ...

hitting contest. The CCBL All-Star Game was played at

Fenway Park Fenway Park is a baseball stadium located in Boston, Massachusetts, United States, near Kenmore Square. Since 1912, it has been the home of the Boston Red Sox, the city's American League baseball team, and since 1953, its only Major League Base ...

from 2009 to 2011, but is normally played at one of the CCBL home fields. Following the regular season, the top four teams in each division qualify for the

playoffs The playoffs, play-offs, postseason or finals of a sports league are a competition played after the regular season by the top competitors to determine the league champion or a similar accolade. Depending on the league, the playoffs may be eithe ...

, which is an elimination tournament consisting of three rounds of

best of three There are a number of formats used in various levels of competition in sports and games to determine an overall champion. Some of the most common are the ''single elimination'', the ''best-of-'' series, the ''total points series'' more commonly kn ...

series to determine the league champion and winner of the Arnold Mycock trophy.

Teams

Current teams

Origin of team nicknames

Prior to 2009, six of the ten teams in the CCBL shared their team nickname with a team in

Major League Baseball Major League Baseball (MLB) is a professional baseball organization and the oldest major professional sports league in the world. MLB is composed of 30 total teams, divided equally between the National League (NL) and the American League (AL), ...

(MLB). However, in late 2008 MLB announced that it would enforce its trademarks, and required those CCBL teams to either change their nicknames or buy their uniforms and merchandise only through MLB-licensed vendors. Three of the teams eventually changed their nicknames. In 2009, the Chatham Athletics became the Anglers, and the Orleans Cardinals became the Firebirds. The following season, the Hyannis Mets became the Harbor Hawks. The Bourne Braves and Yarmouth–Dennis Red Sox, teams who share nicknames with Boston's two historic professional baseball franchises, chose to keep their nicknames and use MLB licensees for their merchandise. MLB could not enforce the "Mariners" trademark against the Harwich Mariners because the use of the nickname by Harwich predated the entry of the

Seattle Mariners The Seattle Mariners are an American professional baseball team based in Seattle. They compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) American League West, West division. The team joined the American League ...

into MLB as an

expansion Expansion may refer to: Arts, entertainment and media * ''L'Expansion'', a French monthly business magazine * ''Expansion'' (album), by American jazz pianist Dave Burrell, released in 2004 * ''Expansions'' (McCoy Tyner album), 1970 * ''Expansio ...

team in 1977. The four teams whose nicknames were not in conflict with MLB have locally themed names such as the nautical monikers of the Falmouth Commodores and Brewster Whitecaps. The Cotuit Kettleers nickname recalls a legendary local Native American land transaction whose terms of sale involved the exchange of a brass kettle. The Wareham Gatemen are the only team that does not play its home games on Cape Cod, as the town of Wareham sits on the edge of the mainland, at the "gateway" to Cape Cod.

Franchise timelines

Origins ''Below is a partial list of Cape Cod baseball teams from the 1860s until the formation of the Cape League in 1923.'' *Barnstable Cummaquids *Barnstable Osceolas *Barnstable Village *Chatham *Falmouth Cottage Club *Harwich *Hyannis *Orleans Pants Factory *Osterville *Sandwich Athletics *Sandwich Nichols Club *West Barnstable Mastetuketts *West Falmouth *Yarmouth Mattakeesetts
Early Cape League era (1923–1939) DateFormat = mm/dd/yyyy ImageSize = width:1100 height:auto barincrement:26 PlotArea = left:20 right:20 bottom:20 top:20 Period = from:1923 till:1939 TimeAxis = orientation:horizontal format:yyyy Colors = id:majorGridColor value:rgb(0.9,0.9,0.9) id:lineColor value:gray(0.5) id:ohio value:rgb(0.85,0.80,0.80) id:notpro value:rgb(0.82,0.80,0.80) id:black value:rgb(0.0,0.0,0.0) id:west value:rgb(1,0.80,0.80) id:east value:rgb(0.82,0.91,1) ScaleMajor = start:1925 increment:5 gridcolor:majorGridColor # -- Text Positions Define $Up = shift:(,1) Define $Left = anchor:from align:right shift:(-1,) Define $LeftIn = anchor:from align:left shift:(10,) Define $LeftMargin = anchor:from align:left shift:(3,) Define $UpLeft = anchor:from align:right shift:(-1,1) Define $UpLeftIn = anchor:from align:left shift:(-1,1) Define $UpLeftMargin = anchor:from align:left shift:(1,1) Define $Right = anchor:till align:left shift:(25,) Define $RightMargin = anchor:till align:right shift:(-2,) Define $RightIn = anchor:till align:right shift:(-25,) Define $UpRight = anchor:till align:left shift:(2,1) Define $UpRightMargin = anchor:till align:right shift:(-2,1) Define $UpRightIn = anchor:till align:right shift:(-25,1) Define $UpUpRight = anchor:till align:left shift:(2,10) Define $Down = shift:(,-10) Define $Downx2 = shift:(,-20) Define $DownRight = anchor:till align:left shift:(2,-10) Define $DownLeft = anchor:from align:right shift:(-2,-10) Define $DownLeftMargin = anchor:from align:left shift:(1,-10) Define $t = textcolor Define $champ = text:"•" $t:white fontsize:L shift:(-4, -1) Define $I = text:"(I)" BarData = # -- Cape League bar:Falmouth bar:Chatham bar:Hyannis bar:Osterville bar:ChatHarw bar:Wareham bar:Orleans bar:Harwich bar:Barnstable bar:Provincetown bar:Bourne PlotData = color:notpro $t:black width:20 fontsize:M mark:(line, black) anchor:middle # other options are anchor:from anchor:till align:center # other options are align:left align:right shift:(0,-7) # -- Falmouth bar:Falmouth from:01/01/1923 till:12/31/1939 color:west $LeftIn text:"Falmouth, 1923–1939" # -- Barnstable bar:Barnstable from:01/01/1931 till:12/31/1937 color:west $LeftIn text:"Barnstable, 1931–1937" bar:Barnstable from:01/01/1939 till:12/31/1939 color:west $LeftIn text:"1939" # -- Bourne bar:Bourne from:01/01/1933 till:12/31/1939 color:west $LeftIn text:"Bourne, 1933–1939" # -- Hyannis bar:Hyannis from:01/01/1923 till:12/31/1930 color:west $LeftIn text:"Hyannis, 1923–1930" # -- Osterville bar:Osterville from:01/01/1923 till:12/31/1930 color:west $LeftIn text:"Osterville, 1923–1930" # -- Chatham bar:Chatham from:01/01/1923 till:12/31/1926 color:west $LeftIn text:"Chatham, 1923–1926" bar:Chatham from:01/01/1930 till:12/31/1931 color:west $LeftIn text:"1930–1931" # -- Harwich bar:Harwich from:01/01/1930 till:12/31/1939 color:west $LeftIn text:"Harwich, 1930–1939" # -- ChatHarw bar:ChatHarw from:01/01/1927 till:12/31/1929 color:west $LeftIn text:"Chatham-Harwich, 1927–1929" # -- Wareham bar:Wareham from:01/01/1927 till:12/31/1928 color:west $LeftIn text:"Wareham, 1927–1928" bar:Wareham from:01/01/1930 till:12/31/1932 color:west $LeftIn text:"1930–1932" # -- Orleans bar:Orleans from:01/01/1928 till:12/31/1934 color:west $LeftIn text:"Orleans, 1928–1934" bar:Orleans from:01/01/1937 till:12/31/1938 color:west $LeftIn text:"1937–1938" # -- Provincetown bar:Provincetown from:01/01/1933 till:12/31/1933 color:west $LeftIn text:"Provincetown, 1933"
Upper and Lower Cape League era (1946–1962) F4U and TBM aircraft at Otis Field in August 1944

F4U and TBM aircraft at Otis Field in August 1944

DateFormat = mm/dd/yyyy ImageSize = width:1100 height:auto barincrement:26 PlotArea = left:20 right:20 bottom:20 top:20 Period = from:1946 till:1962 TimeAxis = orientation:horizontal format:yyyy Colors = id:majorGridColor value:rgb(0.9,0.9,0.9) id:lineColor value:gray(0.5) id:ohio value:rgb(0.85,0.80,0.80) id:notpro value:rgb(0.82,0.80,0.80) id:black value:rgb(0.0,0.0,0.0) id:west value:rgb(1,0.80,0.80) id:east value:rgb(0.82,0.91,1) ScaleMajor = start:1950 increment:5 gridcolor:majorGridColor # -- Text Positions Define $Up = shift:(,1) Define $Left = anchor:from align:right shift:(-1,) Define $LeftIn = anchor:from align:left shift:(10,) Define $LeftMargin = anchor:from align:left shift:(3,) Define $UpLeft = anchor:from align:right shift:(-1,1) Define $UpLeftIn = anchor:from align:left shift:(-1,1) Define $UpLeftMargin = anchor:from align:left shift:(1,1) Define $Right = anchor:till align:left shift:(25,) Define $RightMargin = anchor:till align:right shift:(-2,) Define $RightIn = anchor:till align:right shift:(-25,) Define $UpRight = anchor:till align:left shift:(2,1) Define $UpRightMargin = anchor:till align:right shift:(-2,1) Define $UpRightIn = anchor:till align:right shift:(-25,1) Define $UpUpRight = anchor:till align:left shift:(2,10) Define $Down = shift:(,-10) Define $Downx2 = shift:(,-20) Define $DownRight = anchor:till align:left shift:(2,-10) Define $DownLeft = anchor:from align:right shift:(-2,-10) Define $DownLeftMargin = anchor:from align:left shift:(1,-10) Define $t = textcolor Define $champ = text:"•" $t:white fontsize:L shift:(-4, -1) Define $I = text:"(I)" BarData = # -- Upper Cape League bar:FalmouthAllStars bar:Sagamore bar:Barnstable bar:Bourne bar:Maritime bar:Mashpee bar:Sandwich bar:Cotuit bar:Osterville bar:Otis bar:FalmouthFalcons bar:Wareham bar:Chatham bar:Harwich bar:Yarmouth bar:Dennis bar:Orleans bar:Brewster bar:Verdean bar:Eastham bar:Truro bar:Wellfleet PlotData = color:notpro $t:black width:20 fontsize:M mark:(line, black) anchor:middle # other options are anchor:from anchor:till align:center # other options are align:left align:right shift:(0,-7) # -- FalmouthAllStars bar:FalmouthAllStars from:01/01/1946 till:12/31/1962 color:west $LeftIn text:"Falmouth (All-Stars), 1946–1962" # -- FalmouthFalcons bar:FalmouthFalcons from:01/01/1951 till:12/31/1953 color:west $LeftIn text:"Falmouth (Falcons), 1951–1953" # -- Mashpee bar:Mashpee from:01/01/1946 till:12/31/1951 color:west $LeftIn text:"Mashpee, 1946–1951" bar:Mashpee from:01/01/1953 till:12/31/1955 color:west $LeftIn text:"1953–1955" # -- Sandwich bar:Sandwich from:01/01/1946 till:12/31/1949 color:west $LeftIn text:"Sandwich, 1946–1949" # -- Bourne bar:Bourne from:01/01/1946 till:12/31/1950 color:west $LeftIn text:"Bourne, 1946–1950" bar:Bourne from:01/01/1961 till:12/31/1962 color:west $LeftIn text:"1961–1962" # -- Sagamore bar:Sagamore from:01/01/1946 till:12/31/1962 color:west $LeftIn text:"Sagamore, 1946–1962" # -- Cotuit bar:Cotuit from:01/01/1947 till:12/31/1962 color:west $LeftIn text:"Cotuit, 1947–1962" # -- Osterville bar:Osterville from:01/01/1948 till:12/31/1950 color:west $LeftIn text:"Osterville, 1948–1950" # -- Barnstable bar:Barnstable from:01/01/1946 till:12/31/1946 color:east $LeftIn text:"Barnstable, 1946–1952" bar:Barnstable from:01/01/1947 till:12/31/1952 color:west bar:Barnstable from:01/01/1955 till:12/31/1956 color:west $LeftIn text:"1955–1956" bar:Barnstable from:01/01/1959 till:12/31/1962 color:west $LeftIn text:"1959–1962" # -- Otis bar:Otis from:01/01/1949 till:12/31/1950 color:west $LeftIn text:"Otis AFB, 1949–1950" bar:Otis from:01/01/1955 till:12/31/1955 color:west $LeftIn text:"1955" bar:Otis from:01/01/1957 till:12/31/1961 color:west $LeftIn text:"1957–1961" # -- Maritime bar:Maritime from:01/01/1946 till:12/31/1947 color:east $LeftIn text:"Mass. Maritime Academy, 1946–1947; 1949–1961" bar:Maritime from:01/01/1949 till:12/31/1961 color:west # -- Wareham bar:Wareham from:01/01/1952 till:12/31/1962 color:west $LeftIn text:"Wareham, 1952–1962" # -- Brewster bar:Brewster from:01/01/1948 till:12/31/1951 color:east $LeftIn text:"Brewster, 1948–1951" bar:Brewster from:01/01/1956 till:12/31/1960 color:east $LeftIn text:"1956–1960" # -- Chatham bar:Chatham from:01/01/1946 till:12/31/1962 color:east $LeftIn text:"Chatham, 1946–1962" # -- Dennis bar:Dennis from:01/01/1946 till:12/31/1961 color:east $LeftIn text:"Dennis, 1946–1961" # -- Eastham bar:Eastham from:01/01/1949 till:12/31/1955 color:east $LeftIn text:"Eastham, 1949–1955" # -- Harwich bar:Harwich from:01/01/1946 till:12/31/1962 color:east $LeftIn text:"Harwich, 1946–1962" # -- Verdean bar:Verdean from:01/01/1949 till:12/31/1950 color:east $LeftIn text:"Harwich Cape Verdean Club, 1949–1950" # -- Truro bar:Truro from:01/01/1952 till:12/31/1957 color:east $LeftIn text:"North Truro AFS, 1952–1957" # -- Orleans bar:Orleans from:01/01/1947 till:12/31/1962 color:east $LeftIn text:"Orleans, 1947–1962" # -- Wellfleet bar:Wellfleet from:01/01/1956 till:12/31/1956 color:east $LeftIn text:"Wellfleet, 1956" # -- Yarmouth bar:Yarmouth from:01/01/1946 till:12/31/1962 color:east $LeftIn text:"Yarmouth, 1946–1962"
Beginnings of the modern era (1963–1987) From 1963 to 1969, the newly reorganized league maintained the Upper Cape/Lower Cape divisional structure, with the championship series played by the winners of each division. Beginning in 1970, the divisional structure gave way to a single combined league, with the top four teams in the league advancing to the playoffs. This combined league structure continued through 1987. DateFormat = mm/dd/yyyy ImageSize = width:1100 height:auto barincrement:26 PlotArea = left:20 right:20 bottom:20 top:20 Period = from:1963 till:1987 TimeAxis = orientation:horizontal format:yyyy Colors = id:majorGridColor value:rgb(0.9,0.9,0.9) id:lineColor value:gray(0.5) id:ohio value:rgb(0.85,0.80,0.80) id:notpro value:rgb(0.82,0.80,0.80) id:black value:rgb(0.0,0.0,0.0) id:west value:rgb(1,0.80,0.80) id:east value:rgb(0.82,0.91,1) ScaleMajor = start:1965 increment:5 gridcolor:majorGridColor # -- Text Positions Define $Up = shift:(,1) Define $Left = anchor:from align:right shift:(-1,) Define $LeftIn = anchor:from align:left shift:(10,) Define $LeftMargin = anchor:from align:left shift:(3,) Define $UpLeft = anchor:from align:right shift:(-1,1) Define $UpLeftIn = anchor:from align:left shift:(-1,1) Define $UpLeftMargin = anchor:from align:left shift:(1,1) Define $Right = anchor:till align:left shift:(25,) Define $RightMargin = anchor:till align:right shift:(-2,) Define $RightIn = anchor:till align:right shift:(-25,) Define $UpRight = anchor:till align:left shift:(2,1) Define $UpRightMargin = anchor:till align:right shift:(-2,1) Define $UpRightIn = anchor:till align:right shift:(-25,1) Define $UpUpRight = anchor:till align:left shift:(2,10) Define $Down = shift:(,-10) Define $Downx2 = shift:(,-20) Define $DownRight = anchor:till align:left shift:(2,-10) Define $DownLeft = anchor:from align:right shift:(-2,-10) Define $DownLeftMargin = anchor:from align:left shift:(1,-10) Define $t = textcolor Define $champ = text:"•" $t:white fontsize:L shift:(-4, -1) Define $I = text:"(I)" BarData = # -- Cape League bar:Cotuit bar:Falmouth bar:Wareham bar:Bourne bar:Sagamore bar:Hyannis bar:Chatham bar:Harwich bar:Orleans bar:Yarmouth bar:Otis PlotData = color:notpro $t:black width:20 fontsize:M mark:(line, black) anchor:middle # other options are anchor:from anchor:till align:center # other options are align:left align:right shift:(0,-7) # -- Falmouth bar:Falmouth from:01/01/1963 till:12/31/1987 color:west $LeftIn text:"Falmouth, 1963–1987" # -- Bourne bar:Bourne from:01/01/1963 till:12/31/1964 color:west $LeftIn text:"Bourne, 1963–1964" bar:Bourne from:01/01/1967 till:12/31/1969 color:west $LeftIn text:"1967–1969" bar:Bourne from:01/01/1971 till:12/31/1972 color:west $LeftIn text:"1971–1972" # -- Sagamore bar:Sagamore from:01/01/1963 till:12/31/1966 color:west $LeftIn text:"Sagamore, 1963–1966" # -- Cotuit bar:Cotuit from:01/01/1963 till:12/31/1987 color:west $LeftIn text:"Cotuit, 1963–1987" # -- Hyannis bar:Hyannis from:01/01/1976 till:12/31/1987 color:west $LeftIn text:"Hyannis, 1976–1987" # -- Wareham bar:Wareham from:01/01/1963 till:12/31/1987 color:west $LeftIn text:"Wareham, 1963–1987" # -- Otis bar:Otis from:01/01/1963 till:12/31/1964 color:east $LeftIn text:"Otis AFB, 1963–1964" # -- Chatham bar:Chatham from:01/01/1963 till:12/31/1987 color:east $LeftIn text:"Chatham, 1963–1987" # -- Harwich bar:Harwich from:01/01/1963 till:12/31/1987 color:east $LeftIn text:"Harwich, 1963–1987" # -- Orleans bar:Orleans from:01/01/1963 till:12/31/1987 color:east $LeftIn text:"Orleans, 1963–1987" # -- Yarmouth bar:Yarmouth from:01/01/1963 till:12/31/1987 color:east $LeftIn text:"Yarmouth/Y-D, 1963–1987"
Present Day In 1988, the Bourne Braves and the

Brewster Whitecaps The Brewster Whitecaps are a collegiate summer baseball team based in Brewster, Massachusetts. The team is a member of the Cape Cod Baseball League (CCBL) and plays in the league's East Division. The Whitecaps play their home games at Stony Brook ...

joined the CCBL as

expansion team An expansion team is a new team in a sports league, usually from a city that has not hosted a team in that league before, formed with the intention of satisfying the demand for a local team from a population in a new area. Sporting leagues also ...

s and the resulting ten-team league was split into East and West divisions. Since 1988, there have been no changes to the league's franchise composition or divisional alignments.

League championships

* During the 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 the league split its regular season and crowned separate champions for the first and second 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. Lou Lamoriello

Emmanuel Burriss on July 11, 2015 cropped

All-Star Game

The first CCBL All-Star Game took place in 1946, as a squad of Cape League stars battled a collection of

Boston Red Sox The Boston Red Sox are an American professional baseball team based in Boston. The Red Sox compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) East division. Founded in as one of the American League's eight ...

tryout players. Throughout the Upper and Lower Cape League era (1946–1962), the two divisions routinely featured both intra-divisional all-star contests, as well as an annual inter-divisional CCBL All-Star Game. From 1957 to 1961, the CCBL All-Star Game was sponsored by P. Ballantine and Sons Brewing Company. Ballantine was a major advertising sponsor of the

New York Yankees The New York Yankees are an American professional baseball team based in the Boroughs of New York City, New York City borough of the Bronx. The Yankees compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) Amer ...

, and arranged for appearances at the CCBL festivities by Yankee alumni including

Phil Rizzuto Philip Francis Rizzuto (September 25, 1917 – August 13, 2007), nicknamed "The Scooter", was an American Major League Baseball shortstop. He spent his entire 13-year baseball career with the New York Yankees (1941–1956), and was elected to th ...

, Elston Howard,

Whitey Ford Edward Charles "Whitey" Ford (October 21, 1928 – October 8, 2020), nicknamed "the Chairman of the Board", was an American professional baseball pitcher who played his entire 16-year Major League Baseball (MLB) career with the New York Yankees ...

Moose Skowron William Joseph Skowron (December 18, 1930 – April 27, 2012), nicknamed "Moose", was an American professional baseball first baseman. He played 14 seasons in Major League Baseball (MLB) from 1954 to 1967 for the New York Yankees, Los Angeles Dod ...

Bill Stafford William Charles Stafford (August 13, 1938 – September 19, 2001) was a professional baseball player who pitched in the Major Leagues from 1960 to 1967. Stafford was a successful pitcher for the New York Yankees from 1961 to 1962, winning a combi ...

Eddie Lopat Edmund Walter Lopat (originally Lopatynski) (June 21, 1918 – June 15, 1992) was a Major League Baseball pitcher, coach (baseball), coach, manager (baseball), manager, front office executive, and scout (sport), scout. He was sometimes known a ...

, and

Mel Allen Mel Allen (born Melvin Allen Israel; February 14, 1913 – June 16, 1996) was an American sportscaster, best known for his long tenure as the primary play-by-play announcer for the New York Yankees. During the peak of his career in the 1940s, ...

, as well as

Brooklyn Dodgers The Brooklyn Dodgers were a Major League Baseball team founded in 1884 as a member of the American Association (19th century), American Association before joining the National League in 1890. They remained in Brooklyn until 1957, after which the ...

great Roy Campanella. As the league's modern era began, the All-Star Game continued to be contested between the CCBL's Upper Cape (western) and Lower Cape (eastern) divisions from 1963 to 1969. In 1963, an additional All-Star Game was played by a team from the CCBL against a team from the southeastern Massachusetts-based Cranberry League. The game was played at Keith Field in Sagamore, and the CCBL came out on top, 15–2. From 1970 to 1987, a team of stars from the CCBL played an annual interleague All-Star Game against stars from the

Atlantic Collegiate Baseball League The Atlantic Collegiate Baseball League (ACBL) is a collegiate summer baseball league operating in the Mid-Atlantic region of the United States. The league has experienced moderate success in having alumni appear in Major League Baseball. Fourt ...

(ACBL). The games were typically played at major league stadiums including

Yankee Stadium Yankee Stadium is a baseball stadium located in the Bronx, New York City. It is the home field of the New York Yankees of Major League Baseball, and New York City FC of Major League Soccer. Opened in April 2009, the stadium replaced the origi ...

and Shea Stadium in New York, and Philadelphia's

Veterans Stadium Veterans Stadium was a multi-purpose stadium in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, United States, at the northeast corner of Broad Street and Pattison Avenue, part of the South Philadelphia Sports Complex. The seating capacities were 65,358 for footb ...

. Since 1988, the All-Star Game has been contested between stars representing the CCBL's East and West divisions, and has also featured a pre-game

hitting contest. The event is normally held at one of the CCBL home fields, though it returned to Fenway Park for a three-year stretch from 2009 to 2011. Mike Flanagan 1977

Washington Nationals manager Jim Riggleman

Annual award winners

Joey Cora coaching the Pittsburgh Pirates in 2017

Baltimore Orioles catcher Matt Wieters (32)

Stephen Piscotty (40603348973) (cropped)

The league annually presents several individual awards, including: * The Pat Sorenti MVP Award * The Robert A. McNeece Outstanding Pro Prospect Award * The BFC Whitehouse Outstanding Pitcher Award * The Russ Ford Outstanding Relief Pitcher Award * The Daniel J. Silva Sportsmanship Award * The Manny Robello 10th Player Award * The John J. Claffey Outstanding New England Player Award * The Thurman Munson Award for Batting Champion

Statistical records

Individual season records below are for a 42-game regular season from 1963 to 1987 and a 44-game regular season from 1988–present.
Aluminum bats were used from 1975 through 1984.

Individual batting, season (1963–present)

Individual pitching, season (1963–present)

No-hit games

1976 Cleveland Indians Postcards Stan Thomas

Presidents and commissioners

Hall of Fame and Museum

The CCBL Hall of Fame and Museum is a history

museum A museum ( ; plural museums or, rarely, musea) is a building or institution that cares for and displays a collection of artifacts and other objects of artistic, cultural, historical, or scientific importance. Many public museums make these ...

and

hall of fame A hall, wall, or walk of fame is a list of individuals, achievements, or other entities, usually chosen by a group of electors, to mark their excellence or Wiktionary:fame, fame in their field. In some cases, these halls of fame consist of actu ...

honoring past players, coaches, and others who have made outstanding contributions to the CCBL. Since its inaugural class in 2000, the Hall of Fame has held annual inductions of new members, enshrining over 160 members to date. Originally opened to the public in 2003 at the

Heritage Museums and Gardens Heritage Museums and Gardens (100 acres), formerly the Heritage Plantation of Sandwich, is located at 67 Grove Street, Sandwich, Massachusetts. The public garden, with its nationally significant collection of rhododendrons hybridized by Charles De ...

, the Hall of Fame and Museum moved in 2008 to the lower level of the

John F. Kennedy Hyannis Museum The John F. Kennedy Hyannis Museum is a historical museum located at 397 Main Street Hyannis, Massachusetts. The museum includes a thematic panorama of photographs, archival films, artifacts, text panels, and oral histories of John F. Kennedy ...

Hyannis, Massachusetts Hyannis is the largest of the seven villages in the town of Barnstable, Massachusetts, in the United States. It is the commercial and transportation hub of Cape Cod and was designated an urban area at the 1990 census. Because of this, many refer t ...

. In 2017, it moved from this location, and is currently awaiting the completion of its new home within the planned Total Athletics of Cape Cod sports training facility in Hyannis. Inductees (by year): * 2000 –

Dick Bresciani Richard L. Bresciani (January 16, 1938 – November 29, 2014) became the Vice President/Publications and Archives for the Boston Red Sox in 2003 after serving as Vice President of Public Affairs since November, 1996. He had been Vice President of ...

; Bill Enos; Mike Flanagan; Ed Lyons;

Lennie Merullo Leonard Richard Merullo (May 5, 1917 – May 30, 2015) was an American Major League Baseball (MLB) shortstop who played for the Chicago Cubs from 1941 to 1947, and scouted for MLB from 1950 to 2003. Chicago Cubs A native of East Boston, Mass ...

;

Thurman Munson Thurman Lee Munson (June 7, 1947 – August 2, 1979) was an American professional baseball catcher who played 11 seasons in Major League Baseball (MLB) with the New York Yankees, from 1969 until his death in 1979. A seven-time All-Star, Mun ...

; Arnold Mycock;

Jeff Reardon Jeffrey James Reardon (born October 1, 1955) is an American former professional baseball relief pitcher who played in Major League Baseball (MLB) from 1979–1994 with the New York Mets, Montreal Expos, Minnesota Twins, Boston Red Sox, Atlanta B ...

; Danny Silva; Frank Thomas; Mo Vaughn; Merrill "Red" Wilson * 2001 – Cal Burlingame; Fred Ebbett;

Darin Erstad Darin Charles Erstad (; born June 4, 1974) is an American former professional baseball player and the former head coach of the University of Nebraska Cornhuskers baseball team. Erstad spent most of his playing career with the Los Angeles Angels o ...

;

Chuck Knoblauch Edward Charles Knoblauch (; born July 7, 1968) is an American former professional baseball player. He played 12 seasons in Major League Baseball, from 1991 through 2002, for the Minnesota Twins, New York Yankees, and Kansas City Royals. He played ...

;

Tony Plansky Anthony Joseph Plansky (June 20, 1900 – February 10, 1979) was an American football running back who played professionally in the National Football League (NFL) for the New York Giants and Boston Braves. Biography A native of South Boston, Ma ...

; Terry Steinbach; Robin Ventura * 2002 – Curly Clement; Ron Darling; Russ Ford; Nomar Garciaparra;

George Greer George W. Greer (born 1942) is a retired Florida circuit judge who served in Florida's Sixth Circuit Court ( Pinellas- Pasco counties), family law division, in Clearwater, Florida. He received national attention in 2005 when he presided over t ...

; George Karras; Bernie Kilroy;

Bill Livesey William Livesey is an American professional baseball manager, scout, and front office executive. He is a special adviser to the general manager of the Pittsburgh Pirates. Career A native of Brewster, Massachusetts, Livesey was a star baseball, b ...

; Paul Mitchell;

Buck Showalter William Nathaniel "Buck" Showalter III (born May 23, 1956) is an American professional baseball manager for the New York Mets of Major League Baseball (MLB). Previously, he served as manager of the New York Yankees (1992–1995), Arizona Diamondb ...

; Dick Sullivan;

Jason Varitek Jason Andrew Varitek (; born April 11, 1972), nicknamed Tek, is an American professional baseball coach and former catcher. He is currently the game planning coordinator, a uniformed coaching position, for the Boston Red Sox. After being traded a ...

* 2003 – Ed Baird; Sean Casey; Joe Jabar; Noel Kinski; Jack McCarthy;

Carlos Pena Carlos may refer to: Places ;Canada * Carlos, Alberta, a locality ;United States * Carlos, Indiana, an unincorporated community * Carlos, Maryland, a place in Allegany County * Carlos, Minnesota, a small city * Carlos, West Virginia ;Elsewhere ...

; Jim Perkins; Ron Perry Jr.;

Judy Walden Scarafile Judith Walden Scarafile (born January 31, 1949) is the former president of the Cape Cod Baseball League (CCBL), serving from 1991 to 2015. She is featured in the ''Diamond Dreams'' exhibit of the National Baseball Hall of Fame and Museum in Coope ...

; Cory Snyder; Pat Sorenti * 2004 – Roy Bruninghaus; Bob Butkus;

John Caneira John Cascaes Caneira (born October 7, 1952) is a retired professional baseball player who played two seasons for the California Angels of Major League Baseball. Born in Waterbury, Connecticut, Caneira went to Naugatuck High School in Naugatuck, ...

;

Will Clark William Nuschler Clark Jr. (born March 13, 1964) is an American professional baseball first baseman who played in Major League Baseball (MLB) from 1986 through 2000. He played for the San Francisco Giants, Texas Rangers, Baltimore Orioles, an ...

; Pat Hope;

Eric Milton Eric Robert Milton (born August 4, 1975) is an American former Major League Baseball left-handed starting pitcher who played for several teams between 1998 and 2009, and is currently the head coach at Severna Park High School. Amateur career A na ...

;

Jim Norris James Francis Norris (born December 20, 1948) is a former professional baseball outfielder. He played in Major League Baseball from 1977 to 1980 for the Cleveland Indians and Texas Rangers (baseball), Texas Rangers, playing all three outfield po ...

; Don Reed;

Dave Staton David Alan Staton (born April 12, 1968) is an American former Major League Baseball first baseman. He played for the San Diego Padres from 1993 to 1994. Amateur career A native of Seattle, Washington, Staton graduated from Tustin High School, and ...

; Tello Tontini * 2005 – Mike Curran;

Bobby Kielty Robert Michael Kielty (last name pronounced KELT-ee) (born August 5, 1976) is an American former professional baseball outfielder. He played for the Minnesota Twins, Toronto Blue Jays, Oakland Athletics, and Boston Red Sox during a Major League ...

; Mickey Morandini; Sam Nattile; Pat Pacillo; Manny Pena; Jack Sanford;

Tim Teufel Timothy Shawn Teufel (born July 7, 1958) is an American former professional baseball second baseman and current coach. He played Major League Baseball from to , most notably as a member of the New York Mets with whom he won a world championship ...

; John Thoden; Ken Voges * 2006 –

Steve Balboni Stephen Charles Balboni (; born January 16, 1957) is an American former Major League Baseball player, who played for the New York Yankees, Seattle Mariners, Kansas City Royals, and Texas Rangers. He was a player with home run power and a tendency ...

; Rik Currier; Steve Duda; Jim Hubbard; Ross Jones; Greg Lotzar;

Lance Niekro Lance William Niekro ( ; born January 29, 1979) is a baseball coach and former first baseman, who is the current head baseball coach of the Florida Southern Moccasins baseball, Florida Southern Moccasins. He played college baseball at Florida Sout ...

;

Josh Paul Joshua William Paul (born May 19, 1975) is a retired American professional baseball catcher and professional coach. He most recently served as the quality control coach for the Detroit Tigers of Major League Baseball (MLB). He played in MLB for ...

; Allen (Buzzy) Wilcox * 2007 – Del Bender;

Scott Hemond Scott Mathew Hemond (born November 18, 1965) is an American former professional baseball catcher. He played in Major League Baseball (MLB) from - for the Oakland Athletics, Chicago White Sox, and St. Louis Cardinals. Amateur career Scott was dra ...

; Dick Licini; John Morris; Steve Saradnik; Bob Schaefer;

Walt Terrell Charles Walter Terrell (born May 11, 1958) is a retired Major League Baseball player. A starting pitcher, Terrell pitched from 1982 to 1992 for the New York Mets (1982–1984), Detroit Tigers (1985–1988), San Diego Padres (1989), New York Yankee ...

; Jack Walsh; John Wylde * 2008 – Derrick DePriest;

Bob Hansen Robert Louis Hansen II (born January 18, 1961) is an American former professional basketball player. A guard, he played nine seasons (1983–1992) in the National Basketball Association (NBA). Hansen is currently a commentator for Iowa Hawkeyes ...

;

Jeff Innis Jeffrey David Innis (July 5, 1962January 30, 2022) was an American baseball pitcher who played seven seasons in Major League Baseball (MLB). Nicknamed "I-Man", he played for the New York Mets from 1987 to 1993. He batted and threw right-handed ...

; Robert A. McNeece;

Matt Murton Matthew Henry Murton (born October 3, 1981) is an American former professional baseball outfielder. He played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the Chicago Cubs, Oakland Athletics, and Colorado Rockies. Murton also played in Nippon Professional ...

; Roche Pires;

Ben Sheets Ben Michael Sheets (born July 18, 1978) is an American former professional baseball pitcher who played for the Milwaukee Brewers, Oakland Athletics, and Atlanta Braves of Major League Baseball. Sheets is a four-time MLB All-Star (2001, 2004, 200 ...

;

Mike Stenhouse Michael Steven Stenhouse (born May 29, 1958) is a former outfielder, first baseman, and designated hitter in Major League Baseball who played for the Montreal Expos from -, the Minnesota Twins in , and the Boston Red Sox in . Stenhouse is the CEO ...

* 2009 – Mark Angelo; John Awdycki; Zane Carlson;

Lou Lamoriello Louis P. Lamoriello (born October 21, 1942) is an American professional ice hockey executive who is the president of hockey operations and general manager for the New York Islanders of the National Hockey League (NHL). He is also the former gene ...

; Joe "Skip" Lewis;

Joe Magrane Joseph David Magrane (born July 2, 1964) is an American former Major League Baseball (MLB) pitcher who played for the St. Louis Cardinals, California Angels, and Chicago White Sox between 1987 and 1996, and is currently a color commentary broadcas ...

;

Art Quirk Arthur Lincoln Quirk Jr. (April 11, 1938 – November 22, 2014) was an American professional baseball left-handed pitcher in Major League Baseball (MLB) who played two seasons for the Baltimore Orioles and the Washington Senators. Amateur caree ...

; Bill Schroeder;

Pie Traynor Harold Joseph "Pie" Traynor (November 11, 1898 – March 16, 1972) was an American third baseman, manager, scout and radio broadcaster in Major League Baseball (MLB) who played his entire career between 1920 and 1937 for the Pittsburgh Pirates. ...

;

Greg Vaughn Gregory Lamont Vaughn (born July 3, 1965) is an American former baseball left fielder who played for the Milwaukee Brewers (1989–1996), San Diego Padres (1996–1998), Cincinnati Reds (1999), Tampa Bay Devil Rays (2000–2002) and Colorado Ro ...

* 2010 – David Aardsma;

Casey Close Casey Richard Close (born October 21, 1963) is a former American baseball player and sports agent. University of Michigan Close was born in Columbus, Ohio and graduated from Worthington High School before attending the University of Michigan on ...

;

Jack Cressend John Baptiste "Jack" Cressend III (born May 13, 1975) is an American former professional baseball pitcher. Cressend played for the Minnesota Twins (-) and Cleveland Indians (-). Career Cressend attended Mandeville High School and played college ...

; Peter Ford; Wayne Granger;

Tom Grieve Thomas Alan Grieve (born March 4, 1948) is an American former professional baseball player. He played in Major League Baseball from 1970 to 1979 for the Washington Senators / Texas Rangers, New York Mets and St. Louis Cardinals. He was nicknam ...

; Mike Loggins;

Lou Merloni Louis William Merloni (born April 6, 1971), nicknamed "Sweet Lou", is an American radio personality and a former Major League Baseball player. Merloni played for his hometown Boston Red Sox from – and again for part of 2003. He also played for t ...

; Steve Robbins; Tom Weir * 2011 – David Bush; Doug Fisher; Scott Kamieniecki; Mike Lowell; Paul O'Neill; Mark Smith;

Eric Wedge Eric Michael Wedge (born January 27, 1968) is an American former baseball Major League Baseball (MLB) catcher and manager. As a player, Wedge attended Northrop High School in Fort Wayne and played on the school's state champion baseball team in ...

; Bill Wissler * 2012 – John "Jack" Aylmer; Billy Best; John Carroll; Dan DeMichele; Danny "Deacon" MacFayden; Andrew Miller; Laurin "Pete" Peterson; Jim Sherman * 2013 – Garrett Atkins; Daniel Carte; Merrill Doane; Ed Drucker; Mickey O'Connor; Jim Prete;

Ryan Speier Ryan Andrew Speier (born July 24, 1979) is an American former right-handed professional baseball pitcher. He played with the Colorado Rockies for his entire Major League Baseball (MLB) career, from when he was called up to July 24, when he was ...

;

Matt Wieters Matthew Richard Wieters (; born May 21, 1986) is an American former professional baseball catcher. He played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the Baltimore Orioles, Washington Nationals, and St. Louis Cardinals. Wieters played college basebal ...

* 2014 – Eric Beattie; Phil Corddry; Sam Fuld; Donald Hicks Sr.; Bob St. Pierre * 2015 – ''(None)'' * 2016 – J.C. Holt; Warner Jones; Jim McCollom;

Mark Petkovsek Mark Joseph Petkovsek (born November 18, 1965) is an American former Major League Baseball pitcher. He played for the Texas Rangers (1991 and 2001), Pittsburgh Pirates (1993), St. Louis Cardinals (1995–98) and Anaheim Angels (1999–2000). He ...

;

Kyle Roller Kyle Matthew Roller (born March 27, 1988) is an American professional baseball first baseman. Career Amateur Roller played college baseball at East Carolina University from 2007 to 2010. In 2008 and 2009, he played collegiate summer baseball in ...

;

Kolten Wong Kolten Kaha Wong (born October 10, 1990) is an American professional baseball second baseman for the Seattle Mariners of Major League Baseball (MLB). He has previously played in MLB for the St. Louis Cardinals and Milwaukee Brewers. He made his ...

* 2017 –

Joey Cora José Manuel Cora Amaro (born May 14, 1965) is a former Major League Baseball player with an 11-year career in MLB spanning the years 1987 and 1989–1998 and current third base coach for the New York Mets. He played for the San Diego Padres of t ...

; Dennis Long; Justin Masterson; Tim McIntosh; Steve Newell;

Jeremy Sowers Jeremy Bryan Sowers (born May 17, 1983) is an American former professional baseball pitcher and current executive. He played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the Cleveland Indians from 2006 to 2009, and is currently the manager of major league ...

; Chuck Sturtevant; Tom Yankus * 2018 – Arthur "Ace" Adams; Barbara Ellsworth; Peter Gammons;

Craig Hansen Craig Robert Hansen (born November 15, 1983) is an American former Major League Baseball (MLB) pitcher who played for the Boston Red Sox and Pittsburgh Pirates between 2005 and 2009. College career Hansen's collegiate career began at St. John's ...

; John Schiffner; Mark Sweeney * 2019 – Paul Galop;

Conor Gillaspie Conor Michael Gillaspie (born July 18, 1987) is an American former Major League Baseball (MLB) third baseman who played for the San Francisco Giants, Chicago White Sox and Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim between 2008 and 2017. Early life Gillaspie ...

; Brad Linden; Chris Overman; Scott Pickler;

Kyle Schwarber Kyle Joseph Schwarber (born March 5, 1993) is an American professional baseball outfielder for the Philadelphia Phillies of Major League Baseball (MLB). He played college baseball for the Indiana Hoosiers and was a first-round selection in the 20 ...

; Shaun Seibert; Nick Zibelli * 2020 – Charles P. "Buzz" Bowers; Bob Corradi; Tyler Horan; Harry Nelson; Kevin Newman, Cliff Pennington, Harvey Shapiro; Sol Yas * 2021 – ''(None; class of 2020 ceremonies postponed to 2021 due to coronavirus pandemic)'' * 2022 –

Marcus Stroman Marcus Earl Stroman (born May 1, 1991) is an American professional baseball pitcher for the Chicago Cubs of Major League Baseball (MLB). He previously played in MLB for the Toronto Blue Jays and New York Mets. Stroman is listed at , making him on ...

; Ian Happ; Billy Wagner; Justin Smoak; Patrick Biondi; Steven Wilson

Alumni in the National Baseball Hall of Fame

The following former CCBL players have been inducted into the

Cooperstown, New York Cooperstown is a village in and county seat of Otsego County, New York, United States. Most of the village lies within the town of Otsego, but some of the eastern part is in the town of Middlefield. Located at the foot of Otsego Lake in the C ...

. In addition to the player inductees below, Cooperstown also honored longtime CCBL president

in 2010 by featuring her in the museum's ''Diamond Dreams'' exhibit, which highlights stories of pioneering women in baseball.