One week into the 2025 Cape League Baseball season, here are some takeaways and early returns for the Vandy Boys as they summer near the elbow of Massachusetts.

Simply put, the Commodores can pitch. It doesn’t matter if it’s a weekend starter, a midweek hurler, or a player out of the pen, if the dude has a black and gold jersey on, they are getting outs.

For the Bourne Braves, Matthew Shorey is 1-0 with a 0.00 ERA and 3 strikeouts to just 1 walk over 2.1 innings pitched.

Over in Falmouth, Jakob Shulz has 1 hold and has a 0.00 ERA with 2 strikeouts to just 1 walk in 1 inning pitched.

In Hyannis, Tommy O’Rourke is 1-0 with a 0.00 ERA and 2 strikeouts to just 1 walk in 2.1 innings pitched.

Much like this season, especially early on, the early results at the plate leave power and extra bases to be desired. Granted, it is incredibly early and it takes some time for hitters to adjust to the wooden bats and the high level pitching.

Braden Holcomb is batting .188 with 1 double, 2 RBI, and a .485 OPS so far. Holcomb is capable of much more at the plate. The one bright spot though is the early double. Last season on the Cape, a majority of Holcomb’s hits early one were singles.

Ryker Waite has benefitted from some playing time this summer and is hitting .333 with 1 double and 1 RBI along with a 1.045 OPS. With shortstop a big need for the Commodores, a productive summer for Waite would go a long way especially if he can demonstrate some power.

Mac Rose has struggled so far and is batting .000 to begin the season. With Barczi’s ascension this season, Rose is in a fight for playing time and will need to flash this summer to see the field next season.

League wide so far, Texas A&M’s Bear Harrison leads the Cape league with 2 home runs for Falmouth. Harrison also leads the league in OPS with a 1.364 clip. With nearly a week of games in, there is plenty of time for Holcomb and company to catch up.

On Wednesday June 17, the Cape League did its annual Fenway Day. On Fenway Day, the entire Cape League comes to Fenway Park on a designated off day. At Fenway, the players get to tour the historic ballpark and take part in MLB Draft combine style workouts. In the workouts, there are five sessions of two teams taking the field and performing in front of Major League scouts. For any Cape League player, it’s one of the highlights of the summer.

A key question to watch out for as the summer progresses is whereabouts of Vanderbilt’s core players who are eligible to return next season.

Riley Nelson was slated to come to Wareham but was never activated to the main roster. It appears Nelson may be weighing his 2025 MLB Draft stock. In addition, after a strong finish to the year, I think Nelson’s camp may have viewed coming to the Cape as a risk given the high quality pitching. So much of the Commodores plans for next season hinge on whether Nelson returns. It remains to be seen whether he comes to the Cape and back to West End.

Colin Barczi was supposed to join Holcomb and Waite in Bourne, but was released. Given Barczi’s offensive potential and steady defense, a summer on the Cape would benefit his game. It remains to be seen if Barczi plays summer ball at all.

Rustan Rigdon was supposed to come to Harwich this summer and was unexpectedly released. Given his four tool potential and the chance to beef up his power, Rigdon should be a strong consideration for any Cape League teams looking to add talent.

Mike Mancini spent last summer in Orleans. It remains curious why Mancini did not return to Orleans this summer especially given all the time he missed early in the season due to injury. Mancini finished the season on a high note and some additional reps this summer could help him return to form for the fall.

There’s lots of baseball to be played this summer and time for additional players to come to the Cape. And as fellow writer Alex Kurbegov has pointed out, Tim Corbin has started cooking up some transactions in the transfer portal, which could mean additional players to watch. Subscribe to The Dore Report message board for more scoops from Alex.

Stay tuned for Part 3 next week as we break down Week 2!