Catcher hopes to make splash in Cape Cod Summer League

One out of every seven Major League Baseball players has played in the Cape Cod League. IU sophomore catcher Josh Phegley hopes to follow in the footsteps of those players.\nThis summer, Phegley will become the first IU player ever to play for the Wareham Gatemen, a team from the Cape Cod Summer League based in Wareham, Mass. Last season, the Gatemen were one run away from winning the Cape Cod League championship. The league is sponsored by the MLB and attracts some of the best college players in the country.\n“It is a honor and a chance to bring the (IU baseball) program up,” Phegley said about the opportunity to play in such a high-profile summer league.\nIU coach Tracy Smith hopes the experiences from this summer can help Phegley in the future\n“This is a premiere summer league and a prospect league that can skyrocket a player’s stock,” Smith said.\nIn 2006, there were 198 former Cape Cod League players on Major League rosters. Some of the Cape Cod alumni include Frank Thomas, Craig Biggio, Mark Mulder, Barry Zito and Nomar Garciaparra. \nJohn Wylde, general manager of the Gatemen, said he is excited to have Phegley on the roster. Wylde said in an e-mail that Phegley originally came to him as an unsigned player hoping for a spot on the Wareham roster. When one of the signed catchers withdrew to recover from shoulder surgery, Phegley grabbed the open roster spot.\nPhegley first found out he might have a chance to play in the CCBL at the beginning of the IU baseball season when Smith mentioned it to him.\n“I knew how prestigious this league is,” he said. “It definitely came as a surprise.”\nPhegley agrees with Smith that, coming into the summer with the Gatemen, he needs to improve his hitting the most.\n“I need to find the swing I came into the (IU) season with,” Phegley said. \nIn his senior yeay at Terre Haute North Vigo High School, Phegley hit .592 with 13 home runs, 16 doubles and 50 RBIs, winning the state of Indiana’s Mr. Baseball Award.\nLast season, he finished with a .232 average, no home runs, eight doubles and 16 RBIs.\n“Josh definitely is strong and has power,” Smith said. “He just needs to mature as a hitter.”\nWylde is confident that, with the instruction of Gateman Manager Cooper Farris, Phegley’s hitting will improve. \n“I feel that our Cooper Farris is one of the best hitting coaches in the country,” Wylde said.\nPhegley is likely to get a lot of playing time. He is one of two catchers on the roster who are expected to split time at the position. \nPhegley and the Gatemen have their first preseason game Sunday against the Lowell, Mass., All-Americans. Their regular season will begin June 15, when they travel down Cape Cod to take on the Falmouth, Mass., Commodores.