Imagine getting to be in New England doing what you love to do most all summer long. For baseball head coach Bob Meyers, this is exactly the case.

For the past two years, Meyers has traveled to New England to coach the Chatham A’s of the Cape Cod baseball league.

The Cape Cod league, which was started in 1885, is comprised of 12 teams that bring the best young players from all over America. To be eligible for the league, all players must have at least one year of NCAA eligibility left.

Over the years, the CCL has been a showcase for 183 players that have played in the big leagues. Names such as Nomar Garciaparra, Jeff Kent, Jeff Bagwell and Tino Martinez have graced the CCL fields.

Meyers who is a pitching coach for Chatham, was a manager in the Alaska summer league before he was offered his current post.

“I love coaching in this league because it brings the best talent from all over the country,” he said. “This is the cream of the crop of young baseball talent in America. The boys that come here to play get to experience what it is like to play for a major league team.”

The players play six games a week, equal to the major league schedule. The pinnacle of the season is when they get to play at historic Fenway Park in Boston on July 22.

“I love to get the opportunity to work with the amount of talent that I get during the summer,” said Meyers. “You never know who may be the next big start coming out of this league.”

Meyers will also be taking assistant coach Chris Cicuto on the trip this year. “Chris usually doesn’t do anything during the summer,” he said, “I thought this would be a good opportunity for him to get his feet wet.”
The Cape Cod league opens up play on June 13 and plays through early August.

Meyers also mentioned how former Vaquero Freddy Sanchez was called up to the major leagues by the Boston Red Sox. Sanchez is a second baseman in the Red Sox organization.

Also, Fernando Valenzuela was named to player of the year in the Mountain West Conference at the University of Las Vegas,. Valenzuela earned the honors by hitting .383 and not making a defensive error in 437 chances.
He is the son of former Dodger pitching great, Fernando Valenzuela. For more information on the Cape Cod League visit the league’s Web site at www.capecodbaseball.org.