24 March, 2004

FIELDS OF DREAMS SPUR CAPE ECONOMY

     Dick Sullivan and his wife were in Aruba last year and people from all parts of the country approached him because of the cap he was wearing. “It was my Cape League hat, and you wouldn’t believe how many people said they had been to see games up here over the years,” said the former Cape Cod Baseball League president, commissioner and a member of its Hall of Fame.
     Sullivan has been with the league for more than 30 years and has unbridled pride in it. “We were awarded the first Pride in Cape Cod Award a few years ago by seven banks and the Cape Cod Chamber of Commerce,” he proudly proclaims.

     League president Judy Scarafile shares the feeling. “That award really put the league on the map with the business community, who started saying, ‘Yeah, they do bring a lot of people here. People plan their vacations around the league; it’s certainly not the only attraction, but it is a major one,’” she says. 
     In the last 13 years, Scarafile says, “the league has become much more involved in the community. Each franchise has joined its local chamber of commerce and we’ve been a major volunteer contributor to the March of Dimes telethon. We’re trying to be a responsible member of the community and take every opportunity to contribute.

Top league huge draw

     With a fan base of more than 250,000 per year between visitors and residents, the league is proud of its status as the top summer college baseball league in the country. Last year, more than 190 of its graduates played in the major leagues; this year, 19 of its players have been named pre-season All-Americans by Baseball America, the bible of the sport.
     “People call all year-round to get our schedules,” Sullivan says. “Last summer we had more than 3 million hits on our Web site.”
     The league, which is run entirely by volunteers, has an operating budget of more than $400,000 per year. In addition, each of the 10 individual franchises must raise anywhere from $70,000 to $100,000 per year.
     The league counts among its sponsors Major League Baseball, The Yawkey Foundation, Fleet Boston, Coca Cola Bottling of Cape Cod, Ocean Spray Cranberries, Eye Health Services, Keyspan, Shields MRI, U.S. Army, Cape Cod Potato Chips, HP Hood, Blockbuster, Baseball Factory, Hy-Line Cruises, SportsTicker, Barnstable Bat and Chatham Bars Inn. 
     Each week during the season, which runs from mid-June through mid-August, the game of the week is broadcast on radio. The All-Star game and playoffs are televised and the impact is broad. People come to watch the games from all over the country, sleeping, eating and shopping in the individual towns that have franchises. While the direct impact is impossible to measure, franchise towns have noticeable increases in restaurant, retail, food and other purchases, according to the chambers of commerce and league officials.
     “It’s Americana. There’s no admission charge to games, you spread a blanket and watch pure baseball before the players become millionaires,” Sullivan says. “People are attracted to that kind of entertainment. Where else can you find that? And it’s free.”
     The league is a nonprofit organization that has been the topic of books such as “Baseball by the Beach” by Jack Piatt and “Slider” by Patrick Robinson and the movie “Summer Catch” with Freddie Prinze Jr. and Jessica Biel. Sullivan says the baseball clips of the movie were reality, “but the story of the off-the-field antics with the girls and bars wasn’t the best.”
     He adds: “We have to be careful to watch those people who want to ride the Cape League coattails for profit, whether it’s books or movies. We want to realize some gain too.”
     The largest crowd ever to watch an event on the Cape was in 2000 when Team USA played before 10,000 people in Chatham. “We were shuttling people from all over, says Sullivan. “It was just amazing.” The league All-star games annually draw 5,000 to 7,000 fans.
     “In the village of Cotuit, we have the smallest business base of any of the Cape League teams, says Kettleers’ general manager Bruce Murphy in an e-mail response. “Our players may need to drive to jobs in the surrounding villages or towns. The Osterville Package Store has employed a Kettleer for more than 20 years. The player becomes part of the community by working at the store, becoming very friendly with the customers and their families, who will come to games and cheer.”
     Murphy says that being the smallest village, many Cotuit residents help by having players work landscaping, painting and other odd jobs within the village. “This is their way of helping the player and team.” The players like this small town atmosphere, and especially if they have lunch with an employer.
     “We have had players work in retail, grocery stores, hardware stores, offices, where friendships are made with the workers and players. Many businesses employ players as their way of helping the team because it can be hard in locating part-time morning summer jobs,” Murphy says.
     “We have a board member who co-ordinates jobs with the business community and people within neighborhoods. The person works very hard in obtaining jobs, and works year-round talking to businesses. Our website has information for people or employers interesting in providing jobs. As most jobs are 8 a.m. to noon, coordination with owners and managers is constantly ongoing. Rides need to be arranged for players who come from the West Coast without cars. For many players this is their first job, as they have only played baseball in the summers. So the job coordinator also acts as a training agent. At Cotuit we have been very fortunate to have great job coordinators over the years, who have put in hundreds of volunteer hours to make the job process a smooth transition for players and businesses.”

Tourist asset

     Wendy Northcross, chief executive officer of the Cape Cod Chamber of Commerce, says she can’t put a number on the economic impact the league has on the Cape. “But tourism is a $1.3 billion industry here, and the league is undoubtedly a great asset.” People come to participate and view the games as a spectator sport, or to recruit players.
     “The league has been part of the fabric of the Cape for so long and has been a really important part of the Cape landscape,” says Northcross.
     The chamber awarded the league its first Pride in Cape Cod Award for being the volunteer organization with the greatest economic impact on Cape in 2000 and has supported it with grants such as the license plate program. 
     Last summer, Heritage Museums & Gardens became home to the Cape League’s Hall of Fame, which has been a major hit, according to Melinda Gallant, Heritage’s deputy director of external affairs. “It’s had a tremendous impact because it’s broadened the scope of attraction as a museum,” she says. “It’s not just a place for kids. Now we have cars and baseball, two things certainly guys like to see. While we didn’t have a survey specifically aimed at the Hall of Fame, visitors’ comments have been overwhelmingly supportive of its popularity. And our [3,000] members also let us know they enjoy it and can now see faces they see on Red Sox right here.
     “We had more than 100,000 visitors last year, while attendance at many museums is declining and that says a lot about baseball’s impact,” she says.