Longtime Capahas manager talks about legacy of the team

CAPE GIRARDEAU, Mo. (KBSI) – America’s first amateur baseball team, the Cape Girardeau Capahas, concludes its tenure as a team after 130 years.

“I want people to remember the other years,” said longtime Capahas manager Jess Bolen. “I mean when you win as many games as we did, they saw a lot of good baseball, a lot of good teams. We won over 30 games in a row twice. We won over 20 games in a row 11 times. We never had a no hitter thrown pitched against us, 50 years, our pitchers pitched seven no hitters.”

That’s what Missouri Broadcast Hall of Famer Jess Bolen had to say about his historic Capahas team. The team that he played for prior to coaching and managing the team with his wife Mary Bolen for more than 50 years, coaching the equivalent of 13 full MLB seasons. During Jess Bolen’s tenure with the team he achieved a total of 1,514 wins and only 409 losses. Many say he has had a fantastic Hall of Fame career. He had this to say about the team.

“You know how you go through life, and you’ve got a best friend, that friend is there no matter what happens,” said Bolen. “All the years I’ve had this team and all the young men that played for me, you build such a list of memories. That this team if you associate it with people it’s your best friend and that’s how I took the Caps (Capahas) as my best friend.”

His best friend, that’s how Jess Bolen described his relationship with the Cape Capahas over his 50 plus year stretch with the team.

Bolen then went on to say that people don’t realize just how involved his wife Mary was with the team, along with the lasting impact with the players, fans, coaches and anyone involved with the organization.

“She did so much of the inside work that nobody knew, how much she did,” said Bolen. “And in fact when I got induced in the Hall of Fame, I felt guilty, I felt like we both should go in. Because she did more than half the work.”

Bolen took time to share one of many heartfelt stories surrounding his wife and the team. He says that when his wife passed away, people lined up for hours during and after the visitation service waiting to share there condolences with the family. People came from near and far to pay their respects to the family.

Another story Bolen shared was the time Mary showed support for both Bolen’s team and the opponents during a hot double header.

“I said ‘Mary, we’re trying to beat that team, and you’re up there feeding them.’ She said, “You’ve got enough advantage there in the first base dugout, afternoon double header there sitting in the sun all day and you’re sitting in the shade. You’ve got to win fair and square.'”

As for what Bolen’s thoughts on the legacy of the team, he says he doesn’t think people realize just how iconic his team was to the community and to amateur baseball.

“When you’re recognized everywhere as the oldest amatuer baseball summer team in the nation ever, you’ve got something no other city in the states can claim. It’s iconic and I don’t think they realize that.”

Bolen says he has no hard feelings toward anyone surrounding the end of the team, that time heals everything and wants to thank everyone who played a part in the success of the first amateur baseball team.

He says that because the team was a family it was so hard to let it go, and that if Mary was still here he doesn’t think he could have.

“It was really a family type of team,” he said. “That’s why it was hard to give it up and if Mary was alive today I don’t know if we could have given it up. She wouldn’t let us. ”

Bolen took time to recognize his son, Tom Bolen, who coached the team after he stepped down from his coaching role. He sats Tom did a good job with the team, and does not blame him at all for the end of the Capahas. He says that no matter who was coaching the window was closing due to funding, players and field availability.