Vandy Boys of Summer, Week 5 CCBL Recap: The Home Stretch, Schulz Rolling, Waite Bounces Back
We are finally in the home stretch of the 2025 Cape Code Baseball League season. Saturday July 19th marks the 34th annual Cape Cod League East-West All-Star Game at Red Wilson Field in Yarmouth, Massachusetts with first pitch at 4:05 p.m. EST. More info on the game is below for those interested.
Vandy produces another summer with multiple All-Stars
This summer continues the Vandy Boys proud tradition of fielding Cape League All-Stars. Shortstop Ryker Waite (Bourne) and LHP Jakob Schulz (Falmouth) were selected to the West’s roster.
One notable snub was Matthew Shorey (Bourne). Shorey has been dominant this summer with a 2-1 record, 3 starts, and 21 strikeouts (tied for 13th among eligible Cape league players) to just 8 walks over 19.2 innings pitched and a 2.29 ERA, which is currently ranked 8th among eligible Cape league players. Despite not being selected, Shorey has established himself as one of the best pitchers on the Cape this summer.
The Cape League All-Star game is the only ticketed event of the entire season and is heavily attended by MLB scouts and it is among the most streamed games on the Cape all summer. Both Waite and Schulz will have the opportunity to make their presences felt and continue what have been extremely productive summers.
Schulz on a roll
The Schulminator continues to mow down Cape League hitters as the season goes on. Over 10.2 innings, Schulz has an impressive 2.53 ERA with 15 walks to 8 strikeouts and WHIP of 1.41. Schulz has 1 save and 2 holds on the summer. On Tuesday night, Schulz thrived in one of his best outings of the summer, going 2.1 scoreless innings with 3 strikeouts and 1 walk in a 6-3 loss to Bourne. Last night, Schulz went 1 inning and gave up 1 run on 1 hit and struck out two batters in 3-1 victory against Orleans, where he earned his second hold of the summer. Often used in short stints this summer, Schulz demonstrating that he can go more than one inning makes him yet another valuable chess piece Tim Corbin can work with out of the bullpen next season.
Waite bounces back
After a couple of hitless games, Ryker Waite came roaring back on Wednesday night, going 2 for 3 with a triple and a home run. Waite has also thrived defensively and has been one of the better defensive shortstops on the Cape all summer.
Overall, Waite is batting .293 with an .878 OPS (which is currently ranked 6th among all eligible Cape league players), 11 stolen bases, 2 home runs, 2 triples, 3 doubles, and 11 RBI. Waite’s summer has set him up nicely to compete for a spot in the lineup in fall ball.
Holcomb stringing together some extra bases
While still no home runs, Braden Holcomb is batting .232 with 10 stolen bases, 4 doubles, and 8 RBI this summer.
This summer has been a struggle for Holcomb at the plate, who has not homered in a live game since the regular season. That said, Holcomb has begun to hit for more extra bases and has steadily improved his average and been able to manufacture runs when needed for Bourne. The 6’4’ slugger appears due for a mammoth home run or two before his summer season is finished.
Big pitching addition flashed in Chatham
Over the weekend as reported by our very own Alex Kurbegov, the Commodores made another splash in the transfer portal with hard throwing right-hander Nate Taylor from Georgia making his way to West End. In Chatham, Taylor was lights out with a 2.93 ERA over 15.1 innings, and 22 strikeouts to just 4 walks on 236 pitches. In his debut outing against Wareham, Taylor went a stellar 4.0 perfect innings with 10 strikeouts on June 16th. Taylor projects as a multi-inning super reliever and could also have starter potential. As of this week, Taylor has officially left the Cape and finished his summer to join the Dores in Nashville. For those interested, Chatham’s media team did an excellent feature piece on Taylor where the interviewed Taylor and his father.
Playoff Picture
Currently Bourne and Falmouth are projected to make the playoff as Falmouth sits at third in the West with an 12-14-1 record and Bourne has pulled into second with a 12-13-1 record in the midst of a three-game winning streak. With Wareham leading the West with a 14-13-0 record, Bourne could theoretically win the division if it keeps on its current hot streak.
Stay tuned for Part 6 coming next week!
