19 January 2002
Page 3
 Cal Burlingame A native of Cotuit and graduate of Barnstable High School, former Boston Red Sox minor league pitcher Cal Burlingame played in the Cape Cod Baseball League for the Cotuit Kettleers, the old Barnstable Town Team and Yarmouth. Five times he was named a Cape league All-Star and was considered by many as the best player of his era. A pitcher and outfielder, Burlingame also played in the National Baseball Congress Tournament in Wichita, KS for Orleans and followed his stellar amateur and professional baseball career as an umpire in the Cape Cod Baseball League. |
Fred Ebbett Fred Ebbett's illustrious baseball career began in 1959 when he first came to Harwich High School as a teacher. For 22 years Ebbett coached the Harwich High School baseball team and in those 22 season his teams amassed an amazing 15 championships. Following his high school coaching career, Ebbett went on to manage the Harwich Mariners and later, he served as Commissioner of the Cape Cod Baseball League (1984-1996). Instrumental in returning the league to strict use of wooden bats in 1986, Ebbett is also enshrined in the Massachusetts Baseball Coaches Hall of Fame. |
Darin Erstad A former Cape Cod Baseball League two-time all-star (1993-94) and 1994 Cape League MVP, Erstad played brilliantly for the Falmouth Commodores before embarking on a stellar Major League Baseball career with the Anaheim Angels, a career he remains in the midst of. An American League All-Star and Gold Glove Award winner, Erstad first showed his athletic brilliance in high school as the Associated Press North Dakota Athlete-of-the-Year, while earning all-state honors in football, hockey and track. ironically, Erstad's high school in Jameston, North Dakota did not have a baseball team -- he played American Legion baseball throughout high school. He was first drafted by the New York Mets in 1992, and later drafted again by the Anaheim Angels in 1995 as the first pick in the first round of the Major League Baseball First-Year Player Draft. Recruited by Creighton and the University of Nebraska, Erstad went on to play both football and baseball for the Cornhuskers, not only leading the baseball team in virtually every offensive category, but playing in the Orange Bowl for the NCAA Football National Championship. Twice, Erstad was named to the final Cape League All-Star Team (1993 and 1994). |
Chuck Knoblauch Chuck Knoblauch was the Cape League batting champion in 1988 with a .361 average, following that all-star summer with the Outstanding Pro Prospect Award and a first round draft selection. The American League Rookie of the Year in 1991, Knoblauch was named to the American League All-Star team 4 times and was a Gold Glove Award winner in 1997. A four-time World Champion with the Minnesota Twins and New York Yankees, Knoblauch is now with the Kansas City Royals. |
Tony Plansky South Boston native Tony Plansky played for Bourne in 1929, following that summer with an All-Pro season with the New York Football Giants. He would later play for Bourne from 1933-1939. A gifted athlete, Plansky ended coaching the track team at Williams College for 31 years. The track at the school now bears his name. He was a six-time Cape League all-star and two-time batting champion. He played minor league baseball for the Philadelphia Phillies organization in 1931 and was National Decathlon Champion at Georgetown University. He was named the 62nd Greatest Athlete of the 20th Century by the Boston Globe. |
Terry Steinbach Terry Steinbach played for the Cotuit Kettleers in 1982 and left an indelible mark on Elizabeth Lowell Park, hitting .431 and leading the league in hits (75), total bases (129) and RBI (54). A 14-year veteran of Major League Baseball with the Oakland A's and Minnesota Twins, Steinbach was a three-time American League all-star and was an integral part of the World Champion 1989 Oakland A's. Following the 1982 Cape League season, Steinbach was named league Most Valuable Player. |
Robin Ventura |
Robin Ventura Robin Ventura played alongside Albert "Joey" Belle for the Hyannis Mets in 1987 after an incredible college season at the University of Oklahoma. Billed as the top college prospect that season, Ventura went on to win the prestigious Golden Spikes Award as the nation's top collegiate player, and was eventually named the Collegiate Player of the Decade for the 1980s by Baseball America. A longtime American and National League All-Star and numerous Gold Glove Award recipient, Ventura was a 1987 Cape Cod Baseball League all-star, batting .370 just behind 1987 Cape League batting champ Mickey Morandini who came in at .376. Ventura played in 40 games that summer, collecting 54 hits and driving in 37 runs, tops in the league in that department. He was second in runs scored with 41, fourth in total bases with 83, third in walks with 37, fourth in hits with 54, first in game-winning RBI with 7 and tied for third in home runs with 6. He played for the United States in the 1988 Olympics, was a three-time All-American and was also named the top Cape League Pro Prospect in 1987. |
-- Sean Walsh
| Back
to Hall of Fame Ceremony
20 January 2001 | Page 1 | Page 2 | Page 4 | |