By LEAH GARRITT

The year 2023 represented a special year for the Falmouth Commodores. It was in 1923 that the Cape Cod Baseball League was originally founded. When it was formed, the League consisted of only four teams – Falmouth, Chatham, Hyannis, and Osterville. Now, 100 years later with 10 teams, the Cape League is consistently recognized as one of the nation’s premier collegiate summer leagues.

The Commodores celebrated this milestone season with a centennial celebration held before the July 15th, 2023 home game against Chatham. The event included player autographs, Homer (the Commodores’ mascot), a dunk tank, a pie-eating contest, giant games, and more. Puffy Elvis, a local band made up of teachers and guest performers, kept things lively all afternoon. The local food trucks and 25-cent hot dogs – 1923 prices – proved to be a hit as evidenced by the long lines. Special guests in the crowd included Barnstable County Sheriff Donna Buckley, Troy Clarkson, and newly appointed Police Chief of Falmouth Jeff Lourie, as well as some Major League Baseball players.

These included Commodores alumni Ace Adams (Pittsburgh Pirates) and Cliff Pennington (Oakland Athletics, Arizona Diamondbacks, Toronto Blue Jays, Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim, and Cincinnati Reds).

A Special Edition Commodores Program Guide was also created to commemorate the centennial year. This 74-page guide included articles, Commodores photos from the past century, and interviews with MLB alumni players and people who contributed to the organization over the years.

To culminate the centennial season, the Commodores received several awards before their home playoff game on August 5th, 2023. Bob Curtis, president of the Commodores, accepted citations from the Massachusetts State Senate, the Massachusetts House of Representatives, and the Barnstable County Sheriff’s office. They were presented by Massachusetts State Senator Susan Moran, Falmouth Town Manager Mike Renshaw, and Barnstable County Sheriff Donna Buckley, respectively, with their signatures. Each official acknowledged the achievement and extended their best wishes for continued success before throwing out a threefold first pitch and declaring “play ball”.

“It’s absolutely iconic,” Senator Moran said of the centennial year. “As chair of the Board of Selectman in Falmouth, I was very invested in helping out the volunteers to uplift the space and the field, because we wanted the home field to really measure up to the incredible athletes that play here.” Moran went on to explain that she was a big baseball fan both rooting for the Boston Red Sox and attending many Commodores games during her lifetime.

Awards were also presented from the Cape Cod Baseball League to two of the Commodores players before the game: Tyler MacGregor (Northeastern) received the Outstanding New England Player Award; and Travis Bazzana (Oregon State) received both the Thurman Munson Batting Title and the Pat Sorenti Most Valuable Player Award.

“It’s nice to be recognized,” said Falmouth Commodores president Bob Curtis in reference to the citations. “It’s appreciated that we have local support at the political level.” When asked about the players who received awards, Curtis answered with one word that said it all: “Outstanding.”