THIS WEEK IN THE CAPE LEAGUE
(26 June – 1 July 2006)
Sorting Out the Pecking Order

COCA COLA PITCHER OF THE WEEK
     A Cotuit player was named Pitcher or Player of the Week for the fourth time this season with the announcement of Jay Brown (Young Harris) as the Coca-Cola Pitcher of the week. Brown started in one game and pitched as a reliever in another for a total of 8 1/3 innings pitched this week. In the eight-plus innings, Brown gave up only two hits while striking out five and walking only three batters. He had an ERA of 0.00, giving up no earned runs on way to a record of 2-0 for the week.

COCA COLA PLAYER OF THE WEEK
     Justin Smoak (South Carolina) helped Cotuit stay in first place this week with an excellent performance at the plate. In five games, Smoak went 7-for-19 with two home runs and five RBIs for a .368 batting average. He now has eight RBIs on the season to go along with a .406 average. Cotuit improved its record to 9-3 overall this week and is currently ahead of Wareham (8-5) for the No. 1 spot in the Western Division. Smoak also scored four times and had on OBP of .478.

By Kevin Wolfe, CCBL Intern  wolfe@capecodbaseball.org

Brewster Starting to Take Shape
     BREWSTER, Mass. – Following a scary incident days ago, RHP Erik Davis (Stanford) was back with the Whitecaps on Tuesday. Davis was hit by a line drive and sustained an eye injury but is on the road to recovery.
     There was a lot of applause for Davis when he returned to the team at the Y-D game; however, those cheers didn’t carry on when the Whitecaps went to extra innings to eventually take the game from the Red Sox.
      The Whitecaps played a great offensive game. Michael Fisher (Georgia Tech) had two singles, and Andrew Romine (Arizona State) had a single and stole home on the front end of a double steal. But it was Justin Snyder (San Diego) who hit his first home run of the season in the 10th inning to give Brewster the 6-5 win.
      Great offense was not the case in the Whitecaps’ make-up game against Falmouth. Maybe it was due to the weather, but there was no power in the bats on Wednesday.
      The story changed again, this time for Matt Laporta (Florida), who also hit his first home run of the season in the game against the Wareham Gatemen. This is Laporta's second summer with the Cape League – he played for the 2004 Y-D Red Sox and placed second in the Home Run Hitting Contest at the All-Star Game that year. This year he was chosen by the Boston Red Sox in the 14th round of the MLB draft.
      Two other promising players on the Whitecaps' roster are Jemile Weeks (Miami-FL) and Pedro Alvarez (Vanderbilt). Both are with the USA Baseball National Team at this time but could be joining the Whitecaps soon.
      Weeks was drafted by the Milwaukee Brewers in the eighth round but decided to attend the University of Miami. He is the brother of Rickie Weeks, who is currently an infielder for the Milwaukee Brewers.
      Alvarez, meanwhile, had an outstanding year with Vanderbilt and was just named an All-American by Baseball America.
      Friday night's game against Chatham gave the Whitecaps another win, putting them at .500. The team is steadily improving, and with the addition of players such as Weeks and Alvarez, they will only get better.
By Johnna DeChristoforo, CCBL Intern  dechristoforo@capecodbaseball.org

Rivals Face Off for the First Time in 2006
     CHATHAM, Mass. – When you think rivalry in baseball, what teams come to mind? Most people might think Yankees-Red Sox or Dodgers-Giants. The A’s-Cardinals rivalry doesn’t appear in the minds of most baseball fans, but in the Cape League, the Chatham A’s and Orleans Cardinals form a great rivalry. A’s general manager Charlie Thoms calls the two teams “definite rivals.”
     In the 2005 season, Chatham put together an impressive 27-15 record. However, they struggled against the Orleans Cardinals and lost six of nine games to their rivals from the north. Two of these six losses were in of the Eastern Division playoffs. In the best-of-three series, Chatham won the first game but lost the next two to the eventual CCBL champs. The taste of defeat was tough to swallow for Coach John Schiffner’s Chatham A’s, who had a chance for redemption on Monday night.
      The game was played at Eldredge Park in Orleans, where fans reserved spots hours before game time. Chatham had numerous opportunities throughout the game, but left 13 players on base and failed to deliver the necessary clutch hit. The score was tied going into the bottom of the 11th, where the game would end in controversy, as Chatham’s Justin Segal (UC Santa Barbara) balked in the winning run. Schiffner vehemently argued the call, but to no avail as Orleans continued to have Chatham’s number.
      The game sent Chatham into a frustrating week of play. During the week they went on to loss two of their next three, their lone win of the week coming against the Yarmouth-Dennis Red Sox on Wednesday night. Chatham’s Ricky Hargrove (Houston) pitched effectively against Yarmouth-Dennis with eight innings of two-run baseball. Centerville’s Rich Tri (Central Connecticut) went 3-for-4 and had the game-winning RBI in the bottom of the 10th. Adrian Ortiz (Pepperdine) scored on Tri’s hit and showed off his great speed by scoring from second base.
      The problem throughout the week was the lack of timely hitting. The A’s continued to put batters on base but had trouble coming up with a clutch hit to drive in runners. For the week, they averaged 11 men left on base per game. They also ran into a number of hot pitchers, including Brewster’s Scott Maine (Miami) and Harwich’s Tony Watson (Nebraska).
     The rough week left the A’s in second place of the Eastern Division behind the Orleans Cardinals. They hope to make up ground against the Cardinals on July 3, when they travel to Eldredge Park once again. If you watched them play last Monday night, Cardinals-A’s starts to sound more like a rivalry.
     By Jonathan French, CCBL Intern  french@capecodbaseball.org

Day Off Ruin the Mariners' Momentum
     HARWICH, Mass. – Weather has not made things easy for the Harwich Mariners. After their two days off due to rain, the Mariners’ winning streak came to an end with a loss to Cotuit. The Mariners were back on track Tuesday with a win against Chatham, but with an off day on Wednesday came two more losses to the Hyannis Mets and the Cotuit Kettleers.
      The rain, fog and utterly miserable weather did not stop the fans from coming out to watch some baseball, though. A couple of special fans were in the stands cheering on their summertime sons. Jeanne Keefe is in her fourth year of housing Cape League players and is currently housing Johnny Dorn (Nebraska) and Antone DeJesus (Kentucky). She previously housed Mariner alum and current Boston Red Sox pitcher Craig Hansen. Keefe revealed a fun fact about Hansen some Red Sox fans might not like to hear: he's a big New York Yankees fan.
     Jan and Bill Wilson were also at the game to support their players, Eric Fryer (Ohio State) and Brian Oats (Trinity). Both the Keefe and Wilson families said they try never to miss a game, and that having the players stay with them is a lot of fun.
      When the rest of the permanent players join the team, other Mariners fans will have more reasons not to want to miss a game either. This Monday was the end of the College World Series, and making it to the final game was North Carolina, a team that holds three of the Mariners’ key players: Chad Flack, Josh Horton and Matt Spencer.
      The Mariners also have a good amount of players with the USA Baseball National Team, but within a few days the finalization of the Team USA roster will be announced. Therefore, the Mariners are looking forward to getting some of those guys to the Cape soon and get the team situated for what should be an exciting remainder of the season.
     By Johnna DeChristoforo, CCBL Intern  dechristoforo@capecodbaseball.org

Orleans Welcomes Two Big Bats to the Lineup
     ORLEANS, Mass. – Going into the second full week of regular season baseball, the Orleans Cardinals’ offense was struggling. They were hitting under .200 as a team and had only produced a total of three extra-base hits. Luckily for Orleans, they had an ace up their sleeve – actually, two of them.
      The Oregon State Beavers weren’t the only team celebrating at the end of the College World Series. The Cardinals were patiently awaiting the arrival of Matt Wieters (Georgia Tech) and Danny Valencia (Miami-FL), who were busy representing their universities in the College World Series. Matt Wieters had a monster sophomore campaign as the catcher for the Yellow Jackets, hitting .355 and leading the team with 15 home runs and 75 RBIs. Wieters arrived in Cape Cod on Saturday and made his debut for the Cardinals in Monday night’s game against the rival Chatham A’s.
      The fans at Eldredge Park were delighted to see the six-foot, six-inch Wieters positioned behind the plate and situated in the three-hole of the Orleans lineup. Wieters hit a number of deep fly balls, but they were caught by the Chatham outfielders as the game would become a pitcher’s duel between Orleans’s Ryan Pond (NC State) and Chatham’s Chris Wiman (Abilene Christian). After 10 and a half innings, the game was tied at 1-1. In the bottom half of the 11th, Wieters had a chance to be a hero in his first CCBL game. With runners on second and third and two outs, Wieters stepped to the plate, but he never even had a chance to swing the bat because Chatham’s Derrik Lutz (George Washington) ended up balking in Ryan Sontag (Arizona State) as the winning run. Trey Martin (Tulane) received the win for Orleans with a scoreless top of the 11th.
      On Tuesday night, Orleans faced one of the league’s hottest pitchers in Cotuit’s James Simmons (UC Riverside). Simmons, who has not yielded a run all season, pitched eight innings of scoreless baseball to get the win in a 4-0 victory for Orleans. The next night would be a coming-out party for Matt Wieters. In Orleans’ 11-2 win over Hyannis, he went 3-for-4 with a home run and 3 RBIs. A setback occurred on Thursday night with a 6-3 loss to Yarmouth-Dennis, but Friday night’s game would see the debut of Valencia against the Bourne Braves.
      Coach Kelly Nicholson placed Valencia in the cleanup spot behind Matt Wieters, a move that would pay off for the Cardinals. After a RBI single by Wieters in the bottom of the third, Valencia crushed a triple for two RBIs and a 3-0 lead. The lead didn’t last long, and Bourne came back to take a 4-3 lead heading into the top of the fifth. With Kody Kaiser (Oklahoma) on third and first base open, the Braves decided to pitch to Valencia, a move they would soon regret. Valencia hit a home run to left field and Orleans took a 5-4 lead that they would not relinquish. Elih Villanueva (Florida International) and Brett Cecil (Kentucky) pitched four innings of scoreless relief, while Eric Surkamp got the win for Orleans.
      The win bolted Orleans into first place of the Eastern Division in front of their rivals, the Chatham A’s. Orleans hosts Chatham on Monday night as they hope Matt Wieters and Danny Valencia form a David Ortiz/Manny Ramirez-like combo in the heart of the Orleans order.
     By Jonathan French, CCBL Intern  french@capecodbaseball.org

Finish to Start
      SOUTH YARMOUTH, Mass. – After seven scoreless innings, Y-D reconnected with fans as Buster Posey (Florida State) scored on a Brad Emaus (Tulane) double, which led to a 1-0 Red Sox win over the Hyannis Mets on Monday. Emaus' double to left center came with two outs, after Posey stole second on a strikeout. Posey, who finished 2-for-3 on the night, reached on a base hit slashed off Mets pitcher Alex Hale's (Richmond) glove and towards the left side of the infield. One run was all Y-D needed to beat the Mets and end their three-game winning streak.
      The win is no doubt attributed to outstanding pitching, particularly by Auburn University’s Luke Greinke, who took the win after striking out seven in 4 2/3 innings. Greinke, normally a closer for the Auburn Tigers, was pleased with his performance.
      “I was excited to go five innings. At school, I’m used to throwing one to two innings at the most. I’m hoping to be a starter next year and I’ll need to be able to throw a lot of pitches.”
      Although he has only been on the Cape for a short time, Greinke has noticed a personal improvement in his game. “I’ve definitely improved because I’ve already thrown more innings than I have at school.”
      When comparing the competition to what he and his Auburn Tigers face in the SEC, Luke acknowledges the extraordinary talent of both his teammates and opponents in the CCBL. He is already working on techniques to outsmart such gifted hitters, practicing a new pitch, the cut fastball. Before this summer he had never thrown the pitch, but with Monday’s win, it’s clear that it’s working for him.
     By Courtney Reilly, CCBL Intern  reilly@capecodbaseball.org

Braves Watch Week Drip Away
     BOURNE, Mass. – Once again the Braves witness Mother Nature take her course, as she has for the entire summer. The Braves were unable to complete two of their games this week due to the immense amount of rain that has hit the Cape.
      The Braves began the week at an unfamiliar site when they took on the Falmouth Commodores at Sandwich High School. The varsity high school and American Legion teams usually occupy the field; however, each year the Cape League uses Sandwich as a promotional site. Featured as the home team, Bourne was able to attract the interests of over 1,800 fans in the loss. Bourne starter Tom Farmer (Akron) was impressive for the fans in his second star, striking out 10 in 6 2/3 innings of work and allowing one earned run on five hits. The lone run came on a mistake pitch given to Falmouth’s Warren Macfadden (Tulane), who struck his third homer of the summer to relatively short center field. Brian Leclerc (Florida) was able to generate two of the five hits allowed by Falmouth in Bourne’s losing effort.
      Bourne saw great pitching once again on Tuesday night when Eammon Portice (Highpoint College) set forth to face Falmouth. Facing Falmouth for the second time in as many games, the Braves looked to redeem themselves and generate some much-needed offense. Portice struck out 12 in six innings of work, allowing two hits and two walks. Braves GM Mike Carrier added, “You hate to see a great performance like this one be written as a loss; he certainly didn’t deserve to lose.” All of the runs scored by Falmouth were unearned and came in the bottom of the eighth, erasing a 4-1 deficit. Brett Bartles (Duke) and Mitch Mooreland (Mississippi State) combined for three of the four runs, including two home runs, in the Braves loss.
      After an off day and a rain out, the Braves headed back home after the two days’ rest to host the first-place team in the East, the Orleans Cardinals. After trailing 3-0 in the third, the Braves quickly responded with some runs of their own in the fourth. With the first five batters reaching, including an RBI single off the bat of Mooreland and a two-run double by Andy Goff (Wake Forest), the Braves were able to generate four runs to take their first lead of the game. The lead didn’t last long, with the Cardinals posting two runs of their own in the top half of the fifth. Neither team was able to generate any offense in the last four innings with their impressive bullpens. The Braves saw the last appearance by Luke Tucker (FSU), who will be headed back to school for the remainder of the summer to complete an internship. Carrier was sure to add how much he enjoyed having Tucker for the short time he was a part of Bourne.
      With a multitude of rainouts, Carrier and the Braves are anticipating a grueling few weeks ahead of them in an attempt to complete the 44-game season. The Braves are looking to complete their roster with future newcomers Andrew Carignan (UNC), Bobby Bell (Rice) and Mike Stutes (Oregon State). Carignan and Bell are expected to arrive by Monday, while final arrangements are being made for Stutes. The Braves are anxiously awaiting the grand opening of the field on the Fourth of July when they face the Wareham Gatemen. The field will hold a mass amount of festivities and games for all the fans that attend.
Daniel Scalia, CCBL Intern  scalia@capecodbaseball.org

Cotuit's Chiefs of Staff
     COTUIT, Mass. – The Cotuit Kettleers have flexed their muscles early this season by putting up incredible amounts of runs in what is supposed to be a pitcher’s league. Lost in the mix has been a great pitching staff bolstered by three studs who are among the league’s best. James Simmons is the leader of the three, posting a 2-0 record and allowing no runs in 15 innings, while striking out 14 opposing batters thus far. At UC-Riverside, Simmons was one of the team’s best pitchers, recording a 9-5 record with a 2.96 ERA and 94 strikeouts.
      Along with Simmons, Dan Delucia has carried his spring success as an Ohio State Buckeye into the summer season. He has already been named Coca Cola Pitcher of the Week, and rightfully so. His numbers go like this: two victories, a 0.56 ERA, 16 innings pitched and 11 strikeouts. As a sophomore with the Buckeyes, Delucia went 10-2 with a 3.25 ERA and 69 strikeouts.
      As a staff the Kettleers, are 7-2 as of Thursday and they are bolstering a nearly flawless 1.48 ERA. With this combination of steady pitching and powerful bats, there’s no telling where the Kettleers can go from here.
      Don’t forget about the recent complete game performance of Jay Brown (Young Harris) earlier in the week. Brown pitched a gem, striking out seven in nine impressive innings of work. This past season for Young Harris, the sophomore was named a member of the all-conference team.
      With a staff that is headlined by these three, general manager Bruce Murphy is pleased with his club’s consistency. “We’ve got a great staff across the board; I’m very pleased with our depth.”
      Murphy and head coach Mike Roberts are very happy with the position their team is in and can’t complain about their mix of great pitching and offense that they possess. Don’t forget that the Kettleers have claims on one of the best college baseball players in America in Kellen Kulbacki, who has yet to begin hitting the ball very well.
      Opposing teams are hoping the home run king doesn’t get going, in fear of what this already dangerous Kettleers team could do.
By Nicholas Mucci, CCBL Intern  mucci@capecodbaseball.org

Falmouth Living by the Long Ball
     FALMOUTH, Mass. – In Falmouth, balls are leaving the park as much as game-winning hits are coming off the bat of the world’s greatest player, the lovable “Big Papi.” The team is leading the league in home runs with 12 through Thursday; the next team in the standings only has six.
      How are they doing this, you may ask? The Commodores’ long ball assault has been led by two sluggers, outfielder Warren McFadden (Tulane) and first basemen Brett Wallace (Arizona State). Both players have hit three home runs each. This would put these two alone tied atop the league for most home runs by an entire team.
      Thus far in their college careers, neither of these two would have been classified as sluggers. Neither player has had a season with double-digit home runs, despite each of them having the size and frame to do so.
      McFadden, who hails from Plantation, Florida, has returned for his second season at Falmouth after hitting .232 and driving in 12 in 17 starts in 2005. His 2005 season at Tulane was injury-plagued and he wound up using a medical redshirt for the season. This spring proved to be a more successful season for Warren, who earned Freshman All-American honors and was deemed Freshman of the Year by the Louisiana Sports Writers. Warren led the Green Wave with a .383 batting average, 91 hits and 24 doubles. Highly touted out of high school, Warren was a first team All-American and the Tulane coaching staff feels as though he has lived up to the billing.
      Wallace has also been putting up some good numbers, hitting .370 with four RBIs. Out of high school in his home town of Sonoma, California, Wallace was a member of the 2002 Junior Olympic team and was a Collegiate Baseball/Louisville Slugger All-American after his senior season. Wallace was also selected in the 2005 MLB Amateur Draft in the 42nd round by the Blue Jays. The freshman has lived up to the billing by hitting .371, driving in 32 runs with seven homers.
      Wallace and the rest of the Commodores are happy to have the four highly touted players from Clemson as part of the mix. Hopefully shortstop Stan Widmann, center fielder Brad Chalk and second baseman Taylor Harbin, who hit back-to-back-to-back in the lineup, can help the team with its league-leading strikeout total.
      How they contribute is still a mystery, but one thing is for sure. If the Commodores continue hitting the ball out of the park at this pace, they could be on track for all sorts of records.
      By Nicholas Mucci, CCBL Intern  mucci@capecodbaseball.org

From the Bottom to the Top
     HYANNIS, Mass. – A lot has changed in a year for 6’5” flamethrower Charlie Furbush (St. Joseph’s-Maine). Last year, Furbush entered the Cape League as a temp for Hyannis, only to find himself signing an official contract with the injury-plagued 2005 Mets. Furbush, whose personal goal for this season is to pitch in the All-Star Game, impressed both fans and scouts alike last year ending with 55 strikeouts in 12 appearances.
      Furbush, now being scouted by some of the nation’s top Division 1 programs, including ASU, UNC, and Oklahoma State University, credits the league for the amount of exposure he has had, as well as the improvement of his game in the past year.
      He notes, “The competition here is a lot better than at St. Joe’s. Playing these games all summer makes me a better player. Having a year under my belt playing with these guys at the level they play, I’ve learned a lot about myself as a pitcher.”
      However, fans at Wednesday night’s game against Orleans may have been disappointed not only by the inclement weather, but also by the pitching. Furbush struggled at the start of the game, allowing the Cardinals’ five runs in only four innings, leading to his early exit at the top of the fifth. In the first inning, the Cardinals hit on their first four at-bats, scoring on two.
      But the loss was not entirely caused by poor pitching. The Mets offense remained stagnant until the bottom of the eighth (also the end of the game due to inclement weather). In that inning, Cardinals closer John Goodman (Georgia Tech) let up the only runs by the Mets.
      Goodman walked Ryan Flaherty (Vanderbilt) and allowed two singles by Matt Mangini (NC State) and Brian Juhl to load the bases. A James Darnell (South Carolina) single allowed Flaherty to score. The standout hitter for the Mets was Jared McGuire (Boston College), who singled in the third and doubled in the fifth while walking to drive home the second run in Juhl in the eighth.
      The prime benefactor of the Mets loss was Orleans Cardinal Josh Satin (California), who went four for five with two doubles, three runs scored and four RBIs in the 11-2 Orleans victory.
     By Courtney Reilly, CCBL Intern  reilly@capecodbaseball.org

Gatemen Thrive on Tight Games
      WAREHAM, Mass. – Starting off the week with yet another rainout, the Wareham Gatemen were looking forward to returning to the diamond after two days’ rest. The close games have been a familiar foe to the Gatemen, leaving them to rely on the dominant bullpen.
     The Gatemen set out to Brewster on Monday night for the first matchup of the season between the two teams. Coach Cooper Farris sent veteran righty John Lalor (Mississippi State) to the mound in hopes of finding his second win. Despite the valiant effort, giving up only one run over six innings pitched, there was a no-decision awarded to Lalor and the game was handed over to the seemingly “automatic” bullpen. After surrendering two runs in the eighth and moving the game into extra innings, the Gatemen looked to dominant right-hander Connor Graham (Miami-OH). Beemer Weems (Baylor) led off the 10th with a single, then advanced to second on a fielder’s choice and took third on a passed ball. Weems was able to score on another fielder’s choice that came off the bat of OF Ryan Gotcher (Arkansas-Little Rock). Graham pitched the last two innings of one-hit baseball, giving the Gatemen their sixth win.
      Coming back home for a two game skid, the Gatemen were looking to offset the evened series over two games with the Hyannis Mets. John Ely (Miami-OH) took the mound in search of his first win in his second start and looked to the bats of the Gatemen for the support he needed. Ely pitched strong over 5 2/3 scoreless innings, only allowing four hits while striking out five. The Gatemen struck first and were able to hold the lead with a three-run eighth. Once again Weems proved his ability both offensively and defensively, going 3-for-4 and making an incredible defensive play with the bases loaded to end the game. John Wylde, GM of the Gatemen, believes that “Weems, quite possibly, could be the best defensive shortstop we have ever had.”
      Facing the Brewster Whitecaps for the second time in three days, the Gatemen sent strong and highly scouted Travis Banwart (Wichita St.) to the hill in an effort to continue his recent success and find his second win in as many starts. Banwart lasted five strong innings giving up no runs on six hits and striking out six in the no-decision. Tim Mathews (Baylor) came in for 3 1/3 innings of relief giving up two runs (one earned) and striking out four. It wasn’t until the eighth inning that the Gatemen were able to score any runs. After a leadoff single and two passed balls, Seth Henry (Tulane) crossed the plate to give the Gatemen their first run of the game. A rare and unfortunate defensive error allowed the Whitecaps to score in the ninth, giving the Gatemen their first loss of the week.
      The Gatemen traveled to South Yarmouth on Friday to face the Red Sox in an attempt to rekindle the success they achieved in their 2005 season series. Wareham’s starter for the night was LHP Riley Boening (Texas), who allowed five hits and one earned run over five innings to earn the win for Wareham. The team scored three runs in the fifth and brought in relievers Martin Beno (Mississippi Gulf Coast) and Graham, who combined for four innings of two-hit relief. The two have been the leaders in the bullpen this year for Coach Farris and his team. The bats began to come around for the Gatemen when they saw Bradley Suttle (Texas) hit his second homer of the summer in the second. After trailing 2-1 in the fifth, Gotcher and Steffan Wilson (Harvard) complemented each other’s RBI singles, giving the Gatemen their first lead of the game. In addition to the two-hit game, Gotcher stole two bases in the Gatemen win, moving him to first amongst the league leaders.
      Wylde sees the 2006 Gatemen team as “a nice group of young men,” adding that “the general overview of the guys is they seem to want to work to become better players and listen to Coach Farris for improvement.” Through Friday, the Gatemen are tied with Cotuit for first place in the Western Division with a record of 8-4.
      Daniel Scalia, CCBL Intern  scalia@capecodbaseball.org

Passing of a Umpiring Legend: Robert “Curly” Clement, a Cape Cod Baseball League Hall of Famer and umpiring legend, passed away early Thursday morning in Hampton, N.H. The charismatic Clement was an umpire for four decades and was inducted into the CCBL Hall of Fame in 2002 and also the Amateur Baseball Umpires Hall of Fame. Curly began his umpiring career in the 1950’s and realized a dream in 1979 when he umpired a major league game at Fenway Park during the umpires strike, even ringing up Hall of Famer Carl Yastrzemski on an attempted steal. Clement was affectionately known as the Candy Man for settling arguments on the field with a handful of sugar-coated licorice.

Sullivan Tire & Red Sox Are Drawn Together: Sullivan Tire has again printed Red Sox magnet schedules and they will be available at all CCBL games.

Home Field Celebrations at Bourne and Brewster: Playing at their new digs at Upper Cape Tech High School in Bourne and Stony Brook Field in Brewster, the Bourne Braves and Brewster Whitecaps will have a special reason to celebrate Fourth of July weekend on Cape Cod. The Whitecaps host an afternoon-long celebration on Sunday, July 2 that will involve a sing-along for kids and Wally the Green Monster of the Boston Red Sox before their game vs. the Y-D Red Sox. The Braves take on Wareham on Tuesday, July 4 with pre-game festivities at 1 p.m. and the first pitch at 2 p.m.

Rain, Rain Go Away…Please Don’t Come Back Another Day: For two consecutive days on June 24 and 25, all CCBL scheduled games were postponed by rain. Here is a listing of all CCBL make-up games. The date in parentheses reflects the date that the game was originally scheduled.

Wednesday, June 28: Cotuit at Bourne (6-15) at 5 p.m.; Brewster at Falmouth (6-24) at 7 p.m.; Orleans at Hyannis (6-24) at 5 p.m.; Yarmouth-Dennis at Chatham (6-25) at 7 p.m.

Wednesday, July 5: Harwich at Bourne (6-24) at 5 p.m.; Cotuit at Yarmouth-Dennis (6-24) at 5 p.m.; Wareham at Chatham (6-24) at 7 p.m.; Orleans at Brewster (6-25) at 5 p.m.

Sunday, July 9: Falmouth at Chatham – two nine-inning games, at 3 p.m. (6-15) and 7 p.m. (regularly scheduled)

Tuesday, July 11: Bourne at Cotuit (6-25) at 5 p.m.; Falmouth at Wareham (6-25) at 7 p.m.; Hyannis at Harwich (6-25) at 7 p.m.

Some Like It Hot: Enjoying a wide margin in the CCBL batting race so far is Chris Carrara (Winthrop) of Chatham, who was hitting at a torrid .476 clip after Wednesday’s action. Tony Delmonico (Tennessee) of Cotuit was next at .400 … Delmonico’s Kettleers’ teammate James Simmons was 2-0 with a 0.00 ERA in 15 innings pitched, while Y-D’s Chance Corgan was 1-0 with a 0.00 ERA in 14 IP … Early home run leaders were Justin Smoak (South Carolina) of Cotuit, Warren McFadden (Tulane) of Falmouth and Commodores teammate Brett Wallace (Arizona St.) with three round-trippers apiece … Cotuit leads the league with an impressive .322 team batting average and is also the pitching leader with a 1.48 team ERA.

Mid-Summer Meeting: The next CCBL Executive Committee meeting is scheduled for Saturday, July 8 at the Comfort Inn in Hyannis at 8:30 a.m.