The year was 1984 and Joe Cassidy, a resident of Rhode Island, had just retired from the transportation industry. In an effort to make sure that retirement did not interfere with his active life-style, Joe answered a newspaper ad looking for seniors to join a softball league. Joe, of course, was assigned to a team that used him either as a catcher or an outfielder. But that was before Joe's real talent as a pitcher became clearly visible to even an untrained eye.

In 1986 Joe moved to Cape Cod and announced to his wife: "I'm going to start a softball league on the Cape like we had in Rhode Island". Even though Joe's wife had always been interested in and supportive of Joe's softball endeavors, Joe admitted that her response was a very unenthusiastic "great". Nevertheless, Joe began by placing notices in drugstores, Post Offices and Council on Aging offices up and down the Cape. Initially the focus was on anyone over the age of 35. One time Joe went to the Cape Cod Community College looking for prospects and signed up one woman who got hurt in her first game and never returned.

The first meeting that Joe called resulted in one other person showing up, Bill Lawless. Permission, however, was obtained to use Potter Field for practice sessions and, over time, more and more players would arrive to the extent that three teams were formed. Sponsors were found and they provided jerseys and hats for the players.

Ralph Maynard, the owner of Mid-Cape Door, contacted fire departments in Brewster, Eastham and Orleans recruiting enough individuals to staff three more teams. The Cape teams played the fire department teams which all culminated in a championship game.

Joe would arrange for a Rhode Island team to travel to the Cape for a game with the host team buying food for the visitors. Not to be outdone, the Rhode Island team would invite a Cape team to Rhode Island for a game and reciprocity prevailed.

In 1990 a Cape Cod travel team was assembled and entered a tournament in Penn Hills, Pennsylvania playing in the over 60-age bracket. The Cape team consisted of players all over 65 with the exception of one and were resoundingly defeated in all six games that were played.

These early years of senior softball on Cape Cod resulted in the use of a "safe" home plate and a third-base commit line, two innovations that are still in use today in softball leagues across the country.

The Cape Old Timer's Softball League today consists of 20 teams in 4 Divisions playing a 28-game schedule from May to September on fields in Harwich, Chatham, and Dennis. Sponsors pay $250 annually to sponsor a team and players now pay dues of $60 per year. The season culminates with each Division playing a double-elimination tournament ending on Labor Day weekend. The following weekend the league sponsors a tournament called the Senior Softball Classic when more than 60 teams visit the Cape to play in a six-day tournament.

Because of the vision of Joe Cassidy the Cape Old Timer's Softball League will celebrate it's 20th anniversary in 2006 and every one of the nearly 300 men and 2 women who play today are deeply indebted to Joe for this opportunity to extend their playing days.

Some 1989/1990 Team Photos Click any photo for an enlargement.