2022 Cape Cod League All-Star Game Preview

Image credit: Stanford's Tommy Troy (Photo courtesy of Stanford)

WAREHAM, Mass.—The Cape Cod League All-Star Game is back after a three-year hiatus.

Last held in 2019 at Orleans Eldredge Park, the game featured several well-renowned prospects including Joey Wiemer, Nick Gonzales, Joe Boyle , Austin Wells, Jared Shuster, Matt McLain and several others. Much has changed since the game was last held, primarily the draft date. With MLB’s annual entry draft now held in July, the all-star teams were obviously impacted by the draft, as there were a handful of players named all-stars prior to the first day of this year’s draft. Several players elected to both the East and West rosters were subsequently selected in the 2022 draft.

In the big picture this is of little concern as there’s plenty of talent in the league. Players with all-star-caliber resumes were ready to fill in as replacements, with those being named this week. The rosters feature a loaded group of 2023 and 2024 draft-eligible players, as well as some 2022 eligible players headed back to campus. Historically this game features at least 2-3 day one draft picks and dozens of future top-five round talents.

The itinerary for the day’s festivities including the All-Star Game and batting practice are listed at the bottom of the article.

Below we have listed the most up to date rosters.

WEST DIVISION STARTERS

C: Caleb Lomavita , Cotuit, California

1B: Tyler Johnson, Cotuit, Coastal Carolina

2B: Matt Shaw, Bourne, Maryland

SS: Tommy Troy, Cotuit, Stanford

3B: Colby Halter, Falmouth, Florida

OF: Evan Sleight, Bourne, Rutgers

OF: Andrew Pinckney, Falmouth, Alabama

OF: Cole McConnell, Hyannis, Louisiana Tech

DH: CJ Kayfus, Cotuit, Miami

SP: Magdiel Cotto, Hyannis, Kentucky

The standouts from this positional group are in the middle infield with Bourne’s Matt Shaw and Cotuit’s Tommy Troy. The two slugging infielders have been among the league’s best players this summer. The infield corners are manned by the the league’s home run leaders in Tyler Johnson of Cotuit and Falmouth’s Colby Halter. The outfield is headlined by Evan Sleight of Bourne, who’s in the midst of a 21-game on-base streak. The streak dates back to June 22, and Sleight has gotten on base in 24 of his 26 games this summer. Cole McConnell is a tooled-up outfielder who’s flashed loud contact off the barrel and lots of easy athleticism. Andrew Pinckney of Falmouth is another player with athleticism and loud tools. He’s flashed power and speed with strong center field defense this summer for the Commodores.

West starter, Hyannis’ Magdiel Cotto, has been excellent this summer for the Harbor Hawks and was discussed in detail in yesterday’s Cape Cod League Notes.

WEST DIVISION RESERVES

C: Ryan Campos, Wareham, Florida Gulf Coast

INF: Mitch Jebb, Hyannis, Michigan State

INF: Max Anderson, Wareham, Nebraska

INF: Rikuu Nishida, Hyannis, Oregon

OF: Eddie Park, Cotuit, Stanford

OF: Tito Flores, Hyannis, Michigan

UTIL: Chris Brito, Bourne, Rutgers

UTIL: Dominic Pitelli, Hyannis, Miami

UTIL: Alex Mooney, Falmouth, Duke

The West reserves are loaded with talent, with two of the fastest players in the league in Mitch Jebb and Rikuu Nishida of Hyannis. Max Anderson is one of the best power bats on the Cape and gets to hit in his home park. Alex Mooney has been a standout as Falmouth’s leadoff hitter and brings a fearless brand of play.

WEST DIVISION PITCHERS

P: Harrison Cohen, Cotuit, George Washington

P: Joey Ryan, Falmouth, Boston College

P: Bryce Cunningham, Bourne, Vanderbilt

P: Seth Keener, Bourne, Wake Forest

P: Ty Cummings, Bourne, Campbell

P: Zachary Voelker, Hyannis, Long Beach State

P: Ben Johnson, Cotuit, Georgia Southern

P: Levi Wells, Falmouth, Texas State

P: Philip Abner, Falmouth, Florida

This group is highlighted by a talented crop each likely to see an inning of work. Seth Keener, Ty Cummings and Bryce Cunningham give Bourne three pitchers on the staff while Joey Ryan, Levi Wells and Philip Abner represent Cotuit.

EAST DIVISION STARTERS

C: Luke Shliger, Yarmouth-Dennis, Maryland

1B: Joe Vetrano, Harwich, Boston College

2B: TBD

SS: Nick Goodwin, Harwich, Kansas State

3B: Brock Wilken, Harwich, Wake Forest

OF: Jake DeLeo, Chatham, Georgia Tech

OF: Cole Carrigg, Yarmouth-Dennis, San Diego State

OF: Homer Bush Jr., Yarmouth-Dennis, Grand Canyon

DH: Luke Keaschall, Orleans, Arizona State

SP: Bryce Warrecker, Orleans, Cal Poly

The East lineup features a handful of the league’s top prospects including 2021 Cape MVP Brock Wilken, as well as his powerful Harwich teammates Nick Goodwin and Joe Ventrano. The Yarmouth-Dennis trio of Luke Shliger, Cole Carrigg and Homer Bush Jr. can impact the game in a variety of ways. Luke Keaschall was a standout for Orleans in the second half last summer and has continued to produce at a high level for the Firebirds this summer. With the departure of Guardians fourth-rounder Nate Furman there’s currently a vacancy in the East starting lineup at second base. With plenty of infield options among the East reserves there should be little trouble filling the spot.

EAST DIVISION RESERVES

C: Kurtis Byrne, Brewster, TCU

IF: David Mendham, Brewster, Oklahoma State

IF: Hunter Haas, Yarmouth-Dennis, Arizona State

IF: Marcus Brown, Chatham, Oklahoma State

IF: Michael Boeve, Yarmouth-Dennis, Nebraska

IF: Davis Diaz , Brewster, Vanderbilt

OF: Grayson Tatrow, Brewster, Abilene Christian

UTIL: Carson DeMartini, Brewster, Virginia Tech

UTIL: Tommy Seidl, Harwich, Alabama

UTIL: Caden Grice, Chatham, Clemson

It’s a powerful reserve group led by Chatham slugger Caden Grice and Tommy Seidl, both players that have shown a ton of in-game pop so far this year. Yarmouth-Dennis’ Michael Boeve has shown bat-to-ball skills and on-base ability this summer, making loads of line-drive contact. The Brewster quartet of Kurtis Byrne, David Mendham, Grayson Tatrow and Carson DeMartini provide good positional depth for the East lineup.

EAST DIVISION PITCHERS

P: Jonathan Santucci , Harwich, Duke

P: Bryce Robison, Yarmouth-Dennis, BYU

P: Ben Hampton, Chatham, West Virginia

P: Luke Jewett, Yarmouth-Dennis, UCLA

P: Brennen Oxford, Brewster, Wake Forest

P: Hunter Hodges, Harwich, TCU

P: Ivran Romero, Yarmouth-Dennis, San Diego

P: Zane Probst, Harwich, Seton Hall

P: Drew Conover, Harwich, Rutgers

The pitching group for the East is highlighted by Harwich’s Jonathan Santucci, who can touch mid 90s from the left side. He’s a two-way player as well, and could potentially see an at-bat. Ben Hampton of Chatham has been one of the best pitchers on the Cape this summer as he enters the game with a 1.96 ERA and 38 strikeouts to four walks over 32.1 innings. Ivran Romero was highlighted in our week one Cape Cod League Notes, and has a high level of pitchability. Hunter Hodges is a TCU incoming transfer with an innate feel for spin, getting his breaking ball north of 3,000 rpm of raw spin.

All-Star Game Schedule

2:00 p.m.: Gates Open

2:30-3:15 p.m.: East BP

2:30-3:15 p.m.: West Player Autographs

3:20-4:05 p.m.: East Player Autographs

3:20-4:05 p.m.: West BP

4:20-4:30 p.m.: East Infield/Outfield

4:30-4:40 p.m.: West Infield/Outfield

5:00 p.m.: HR Derby

5:40–5:45 p.m.: Pregame Ceremony Starts

5:45-5:52 p.m.: Player Intros

5:52-5:55 p.m.: National Anthem