The Kettleers have had many families involved with the club-- the Mycocks, the Sadowskis, and the Slotniks. Now a new family is carving a legacy in Cotuit-- the Bucklers.
Ryan Buckler (Florida Atlantic) pitched his first game in a Kettleers uniform on Saturday in a 7-3 victory over Falmouth at Guv Fuller Field, 60 years after his great uncle, Frank Buckler played. Buckler was part of Cotuit when they won four Cape League championships in a row from 1961 to 1965, being a reserve infielder playing either second base, shortstop, or third base.
“He was actually in high school at the time,” said Ed Buckler, Frank’s brother and Ryan’s grandfather. “It was before the Cape League became exclusively college-oriented. Cotuit was very good during those years. He was from the local high school of course, and it was a great experience.”
Ryan Buckler is a fourth-generation Cape Codder, growing up in Marstons Mills like the rest of his family. He said his family would attend many Kettleers games when he was a kid.
“My family always loved coming to games,” said Ryan. “I’d be a little kid, loved coming, loved watching. I was always a Kettleers fan. I remember running around, getting the foul balls, just enjoying it all. I live five minutes down the road, so we’d come all the time. It was a good summer thing to do.”
Ed also played at Lowell Park for the Cotuit Teeners in the late 1960s. The Cape Teener League had six to eight teams for kids too old for the Babe Ruth League. Ed said the team had fun, but weren’t as good as their Cape League counterpart. He remembers watching his brother play and playing himself on the field, though it looked quite different.
“It was in the same location, obviously, but not quite as well kept,” said Ed. “It was good. It served its purpose. There weren't as many stands or fans back then, but the community supported it well even way back then.”
Ed has been to most Kettleers games since Ryan was added to the roster.
“Getting back into it and watching him develop is just incredible,” said Ed. “And the fact that his success had the notice, and the league he was playing in, and he has the opportunity here.”
“My family loves baseball,” said Ryan. “They love coming out, even if it’s me, not me, pitching up there. They love coming to games either way. They have a good time.”
Ryan played his freshman year at Virginia Tech and spent the beginning of this summer playing for the North Shore Navigators of the New England Collegiate Baseball League. He had an ERA of 1.89 over 38 innings, pitching five innings or more in five of his 12 appearances. Ryan enjoyed his first outing on Saturday in his home team's uniform.
“It’s great getting up there on the mound and competing and being a Kettleer,” said Ryan. “It feels great, trying to lead out there and do stuff for [Frank].”
In the Falmouth game, Ryan started the game, pitching three innings with two earned runs and one strikeout. Cotuit would win the game 7-3 with a four-run seventh inning, securing home-field advantage for the playoffs.
As for Frank, similar to Ryan, he went on to play college baseball, at the University of Massachusetts Amherst. It might be possible that baseball talent can be genetic and the Bucklers are proof of that.
Photo by Holden McBerty (Memphis).
