[Congressional Record Volume 169, Number 128 (Tuesday, July 25, 2023)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E711]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




   RECOGNIZING THE 100TH ANNIVERSARY OF THE CAPE COD BASEBALL LEAGUE

                                 ______
                                 

                        HON. WILLIAM R. KEATING

                            of massachusetts

                    in the house of representatives

                         Tuesday, July 25, 2023

  Mr. KEATING. Mr. Speaker, I rise today in honor of the Cape Cod 
Baseball League's 100th anniversary.
  Now 1 of the country's top collegiate summer baseball leagues, the 
Cape Cod Baseball League was founded in 1923. At its inception, the 
league consisted of 4 teams: Chatham, Falmouth, Hyannis, and 
Osterville. During the early years, teams were not limited to only 
playing other teams within the league. Falmouth even played the major 
league Boston Braves, who later became the Atlanta Braves, in 1929 and 
lost by only 1 point in the exhibition game.
  Recovering from the Great Depression and with World War II on the 
horizon, the Cape League shutdown in 1940. However, when the league 
reopened in 1946, fans and players quickly came back. The league 
continued to grow and was divided into the Upper Cape and Lower Cape 
divisions. When the Cape Cod Baseball League returned after the war, 
the league also implemented a new rule that teams could no longer hire 
professional or semi-professional baseball players who received a 
salary. Previously, teams consisted of a mix of local, semipro, and 
college players, but as the Cape Cod Baseball League grew in 
popularity, teams like the Sagamore Clouters began to recruit college 
baseball players. This strategy helped the Clouters to secure 4 
championship titles in the 1950s. With more college players being 
recruited, the Cape Cod Baseball League was sanctioned by the NCAA as a 
summer collegiate league on March 9, 1965.
  Today, the Cape Cod Baseball League is an elite collegiate baseball 
league made up of 10 teams: the Bourne Braves, Brewster Whitecaps, 
Chatham Anglers, Cotuit Kettleers, Falmouth Commodores, Harwich 
Mariners, Hyannis Harbor Hawks, Orleans Firebirds, Wareham Gatemen, and 
Yarmouth-Dennis Red Sox. The Cape Cod Baseball League has more than 350 
alumni playing in the major leagues each year. Since the league's 
inception in 1923, over 1,600 Cape Cod Baseball League players have 
gone on to play in the major leagues.
  Mr. Speaker, I am proud to honor the Cape Cod Baseball League. I ask 
that my colleagues join me in wishing the league continued success and 
all the best in the years to come.

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