Historically Fast, etc.

Notes written while wondering how on Earth it rained again today . . .

I wrote the other day about Chatham’s start and where it ranked in recent history. Right then, I didn’t have time to go back and really look, but I did I have time tonight.

Good thing I had a lot of time.

The Anglers’ 9-1 start is the best since 2002, when the Cotuit Kettleers started 13-0, breaking the all-time league record for most wins to start a season. Led by batting champ and league MVP Pete Stonard, that Cotuit team ended up tying two games before it lost its first game, which didn’t happen until July 1. Pretty remarkable.

Maybe more remarkable? The Kettleers won 10 games the rest of the regular season. They still won the division title, but lost in the Western Division playoffs.

So Chatham, your cushion is nice, but it’s not everything.

The league has announced some policy changes in response to all the postponements. Greg posted the full release on Codball . It looks like the big one is the allowance for seven-inning games in doubleheaders. Previously, league bylaws prevented that, but with a lot of doubleheaders on the horizon, this looks like the right move.

Some interesting names have popped up over the last few days, adding to the already large number of players drafted in 2009 who are on the Cape. Two were big names last summer on the Cape — Baylor’s Raynor Campbell and Mississippi State’s Connor Powers. Campbell was a 31st-round pick while Powers went in the 11th round. Also of note is Tennessee’s Bryan Morgado, who got the start for Bourne last night. Morgado was a third-round pick of the Dodgers. He missed his freshman year at Tennessee because of Tommy John surgery, but he’s got a power arm that can light up radar guns. I believe he’s the highest pick to play on the Cape in a few years. Last year, I think the highest pick was fifth-rounder Greg Miclat, who left pretty early in the summer.

Cotuit pitcher Drew Gagnier is the first Cape League player to come from the University of Oregon since the program was re-established. Oregon hadn’t played baseball since 1981, but the program was set on course in 2007 for a return and was officially brought back to life this spring. Gagnier, a redshirt sophomore who previously played at Fresno State, is a pretty good first representative. He had a 2.70 ERA out of the bullpen for the Ducks and was a 14th-round pick of the A’s earlier this month. In three appearances for Cotuit, he hasn’t allowed a run and has struck out six in four innings.

Some of the Virginia contingent has arrived from the College World Series, and they’re making sure everyone knows it. Dan Grovatt has gone 4-for-7 in his first two games for Harwich. John Barr went 3-for-4 last night in his first game with Brewster.

As LSU tries to defend its national championship next year, Brett Bruening may play a big role. A juco star who has committed to the Tigers, Bruening has a 0.75 ERA in two starts for Harwich. He has struck out 12 in 12 innings of work.

Speaking of LSU, it’ll be very interesting to see what Anthony Ranaudo does this summer. He’s on the Y-D roster, but as Dave touched on over at Codball, Ranaudo pitched a lot of innings this year — 124.1 after just 12 last year. I too wouldn’t be surprised if Ranaudo is either shut down for the summer or kept on a very tight leash. To some extent, he’s done everything he needed to do this year, helping lead LSU to a title and, in the process, establishing himself as perhaps the top college prospect for the 2010 draft. On the surface, Ranaudo’s situation is similar to Alex White’s last year. A top prospect who carried his team deep into the tourney, White was scheduled to pitch in Chatham but was shut down for the summer. We’ll find out soon enough what’s going to happen with Ranaudo.

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