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2009
Cotuit Kettleers Game Recaps
... full
season stories
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Former
Kettleer and 2009 Cape League Hall of Fame inductee
Greg Vaughn visits Cotuit
Story by Steve McCarthy
June 25, 2009
The last time a player named Vaughn roved the
outfield for the Cotuit Kettleers, the result was
two Cape Cod Baseball League titles.
Greg Vaughn received a boisterous ovation in his
return to Cotuit’s Lowell Park Thursday, this time
in the bleachers, while his son Cory is looking to
continue the successful history of the Vaughn name
on the Cape, which includes the elder Vaughn’s
cousin Mo Vaughn, a former Boston Red Sox first
baseman who played for the Wareham Gatemen
(1987-1988).
The elder Vaughn called Cotuit home for two summers
(1984-1985), and was the league’s MVP in his
second season with the team. He recorded double
digit steals in both seasons, and hit 10 home runs
to go with a .343 batting average in 1985 to build a
resume worthy of induction into the Cape League Hall
of Fame, by which he was honored prior to the 2009
season.
“This is where it all started for me,” Vaughn
said. “I was fortunate enough to play on some
pretty good teams, and have some pretty good seasons
here, so without a doubt it brings back fond
memories.”
Vaughn enjoyed a 15 year MLB career (1989-2003),
which included four All-Star Game appearances. He
hit a career high 50 home runs in 1998 as a member
of the San Diego Padres.
Though the comparison between father and son is to
be expected, the younger Vaughn does not dwell on
becoming the same player his father was.
“I feel like I’m my own player,” Vaughn said.
“My dad’s completely different, and I just play
how Cory Vaughn knows how to play.”
Due to three consecutive rainouts during Greg’s
first visit to Cape Cod in 25 years, the family had
to travel to Falmouth Wednesday to finally catch a
game. Cory struck out in all four plate appearances
and currently carries a .156 batting average, but a
grand slam early in the season against Harwich gave
fans a taste of the power swing that earned Vaughn
the rating of top prospect in the Northwoods League
last summer by Baseball America.
“When he struggles, I struggle,” the elder
Vaughn said. “What I’m trying to instill in Cory
is that everybody struggles. Everyone that plays
this game goes through ups and downs, but mentally
you have to be tough enough to endure that, and to
battle through that on a daily basis.”
Cory was drafted in the 43rd round of the 2007 MLB
draft by the Philadelphia Phillies, but declined to
sign a contract, instead enrolling at San Diego
State University, where he is a rising junior and
two year-starter in right field and at designated
hitter. Vaughn was overshadowed during his sophomore
season by the first overall pick in the 2009 draft,
pitcher Stephen Strasburg, but batted .328 with 10
home runs and led the team with 15 stolen bases.
Vaughn was a three sport star at Jesuit H.S. in
Carmichael, CA, also playing football and
basketball. He considered playing football in
college for the Aztecs as well as baseball, but
decided the training regimen of two sports along
with academics would be too great of a demand.
The elder Vaughn retired from professional baseball
when Cory was a freshman in high school, but even
while constantly on the road, Cory said his father
took time to deliver encouragement and advice over
the phone.
“He’s just always giving me quick tips and hints
on what to do, and how to be successful,” Vaughn
said.
Greg said he has been approached with numerous
coaching opportunities in professional baseball, but
watching the game in Falmouth from behind the
backstop said he “Wouldn’t give this up for
anything in the world.”
Cory is not the only younger Vaughn with athletic
aspirations to follow. According to Greg, the
daughter of he and his wife Michele recently
competed in the National Equestrian Games in
Kentucky.
Greg Vaughn will be officially inducted into the
Cape League Hall of Fame during the annual Hall of
Fame Weekend in November.
“Any time your peers feel that you’re worthy of
that type of accolade, it’s special,” Vaughn
said. “If you think about the history of this
league, all the players that have come through here,
to be able to be chosen for that Hall of Fame is
pretty good.” |
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