Category Archives: News

The 2023 World Baseball Classic will feature 20 former West Coast League players, representing eight of the 20 teams participating in the tournament that begins on March 7. “As an international league from our very beginning,” said WCL Commissioner Rob Neyer, “we’re particularly passionate about baseball’s ability to transcend borders, and we’re thrilled to see …

Continue reading “20 WCL Alumni Named to WBC Rosters”

Last weekend in Portland, the West Coast League’s board of directors and general managers gathered, both in person and via teleconference, for the League’s annual winter meetings. The event kicked off Friday night, when Commissioner Rob Neyer presented Nova Newcomer with the West Coast League’s annual Grass Roots Award, just before Seattle Mariners pitching coach …

Continue reading “Executives Gather for Annual Winter Meetings”

Last week in Southern California, the West Coast League’s board of directors met to review a tremendously successful 2022 season, approve the League’s 2023 schedule, and reach consensus on a number of other matters. “No doubt, these last few seasons have been challenging,” said WCL Commissioner Rob Neyer, “with the pandemic wiping out our 2020 …

Continue reading “WCL Unveils 2023 Schedule”

In 2022, 298 alumni of West Coast League teams were active in affiliated professional baseball. A number of WCL alumni had impressive MLB seasons, such as 2022 National League All-Star Tyler Anderson (Corvallis Knights, 2009). Other notable WCL alumni include former Cy Young Award winner Shane Bieber (Cowlitz, 2014), along with rookie stars Adley Rutschman …

Continue reading “298 WCL Alumni Active in Affiliated Baseball”

Thursday, West Coast League Commissioner Rob Neyer announced the inaugural winners of two league awards: Umpiring Prospect of the Year, and Official Scorer of the Year. The WCL’s 2022 Umpiring Prospect of the Year is Nick Hudlow. A Portland native, Hudlow graduated from the famous Wendelstedt Umpire School last winter, then opened the West Coast …

Continue reading “Umpiring Prospect of the Year and Official Scorer of the Year Honored”

This week the West Coast League and Major League Baseball announced an agreement to jointly pursue initiatives of mutual interest, including player and coach development, technology innovation related to scouting and fan experience, and community engagement. “We continue to be impressed by Major League Baseball’s enthusiastic support of amateur baseball,” said West Coast League Commissioner …

Continue reading “WCL and MLB Announce Partnership”

Friday morning, the winners of the West Coast League’s Top Prospect, Coach of the Year, Executive of the Year, and Team Sportsmanship Award were announced by West Coast League Commissioner Rob Neyer. The Bend Elks’ (and incoming Oklahoma State freshman) Beau Sylvester earned the league’s Top Prospect Award. This summer the catcher and Hawaii native …

Continue reading “WCL Unveils Additional Postseason Award Honorees”

Thursday morning, the 2022 All-West Coast League teams were announced by West Coast League Commissioner Rob Neyer. “It’s a true pleasure to watch the West Coast League’s tremendous players all summer,” Neyer said, “and I certainly don’t envy our coaches who somehow winnowed down all that talent to just the players on these all-league teams.” …

Continue reading “All-WCL Teams Announced”

Wednesday, West Coast League Commissioner Rob Neyer announced the winners of the League’s top two individual awards: Most Valuable Player and Pitcher of the Year. This year Wenatchee AppleSox second baseman Joichiro Oyama (UC Irvine) and Ridgefield Raptors outfielder/catcher Jacob Sharp (UNLV) were selected by WCL coaches and executives as co-MVPs. Oyama played in all …

Continue reading “WCL Co-MVPs and Pitcher of the Year Unveiled”

The Corvallis Knights’ historic run – already among the most impressive in modern amateur sports – became even more impressive Monday night when the Knights, with more than 2,000 fans on hand, captured their sixth straight West Coast League championship with a 5-0 victory over the visiting Bellingham Bells. The Knights’ championship is also their …

Continue reading “Corvallis Captures Sixth Straight WCL Title”

Monday night, the Corvallis Knights will host the Bellingham Bells in the West Coast League’s first-ever Championship Game. The Knights, winners of the last five WCL championships, reached the title game by taking two of three games from Yakima Valley in their divisional series, then topping the Ridgefield Raptors in the South Division championship game. …

Continue reading “Bells and Knights to Meet Monday in WCL Championship Game”

The pairings are now set for the Divisional Championship matchups, with the two showdowns set to take place on Saturday. Now that the best-of-three divisional playoffs are wrapped up, both the division and league championships will consist of just one game. In the South, the Ridgefield Raptors are on a collision course with the Corvallis …

Continue reading “Four Teams Advance to Saturday’s Divisional Championship Clashes”

Tuesday night in four locations ranging from British Columbia’s Vancouver Island to Central Washington to the Greater Portland area, the West Coast League’s playoffs are set to kick off in unprecedented fashion. For the first time in League history, eight teams qualified for the postseason, following a regular season in which the last two playoff …

Continue reading “Playoff Pairings Set, Postseason Begins Tuesday”

The West Coast League’s Moss Adams Player of the Week and Pitcher of the Week, as announced by Commissioner Rob Neyer, are Victoria HarbourCats standouts Josh Walker (Sacramento State) and Nick Taylor (Edmonds CC). Both Walker and Taylor played crucial roles in the HarbourCats’ playoffs push, which culminated with a victory in a winner-take-all showdown …

Continue reading “Walker and Taylor Receive WCL’s Moss Adams Weekly Honors”

With each day this week, we gained another shred of clarity in the West Coast League postseason picture. But with only three days left, there’s still a great deal in question. For the first time in West Coast League history, this summer eight teams will qualify for the postseason. By virtue of their first-half titles, …

Continue reading “Playoff Chase Enters Final Weekend”

*Note the playoff bracket included with the story is if the season ended before the games on 8/2 are played. Monday night, the West Coast League’s playoff picture became a bit more clear when the visiting Kamloops NorthPaws topped the Kelowna Falcons in a makeup game. For the first time in West Coast League history, …

Continue reading “Postseason Race Sprints Towards Final Stretch”

Last winter, the West Coast League’s board of directors approved a new postseason format designed to do two things: (1) increase the number of postseason teams, in part to reflect the jump in league members from 12 to 16, and (2) inject even more excitement into the second half of the season, not to mention …

Continue reading “WCL Playoff Picture Comes Into Focus”

Earlier this week, 30 current and former West Coast League players were selected in Major League Baseball’s annual amateur Draft. With both Brooks Lee (Corvallis Knights, No. 8) and Gabriel Hughes (Bellingham Bells, No. 10) among the first 10 overall picks, 2022 marks the sixth straight year with at least one former WCL standout drafted …

Continue reading “30 WCL Alumni Selected in 2022 MLB Draft”

With the selection of 11 players on Monday, 14 WCL alumni have now been taken in the first 10 rounds of this year’s MLB Draft. Three former WCL players were picked on the Draft’s first day, with both Brooks Lee (Corvallis Knights, No. 8) and Gabriel Hughes (Bellingham Bells, No. 10) among the first 10 …

Continue reading “11 Former WCL Players Selected on Day Two of MLB Draft”

Sunday, former West Coast League standouts Brooks Lee (Cal Poly) and Gabriel Hughes (Gonzaga) both were among the first 10 picks in the 2022 MLB Draft. The Minnesota Twins selected Lee eighth overall, and just moments later the Colorado Rockies chose Hughes 10th. This marks the sixth straight year featuring at least one former WCL …

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By Rob Neyer How often do we reduce, in our minds, a baseball life to a line or two in Baseball-Reference.com or one of those old doorstop encyclopedias? In 1983, Gorman Heimueller started 14 games for the Oakland Athletics, all in the second half of the season. He won three of those, and lost five. …

Continue reading “Heimueller Brings Lifetime of Baseball Experience to Nanaimo”

Golden Tate hit the ground running Tuesday night in his first game playing in the West Coast League for the Port Angeles Lefties, as the former Pro Bowl wide receiver went 2-for-4 in his debut. Tate had a double, single, stolen base, drove in a run, and scored a run in the Lefties’ 5-2 win …

Continue reading “Golden Tate Impresses in WCL Debut”

Today the West Coast League’s Port Angeles Lefties announced that ex-NFL wide receiver Golden Tate has signed as a Lefties player for the remainder of the 2022 season. While Jake Locker and Jordan Poyer both played for WCL teams before their NFL careers, Tate will become the first former NFL player in the league. “I …

Continue reading “WCL’s Lefties Sign Ex-NFL Wide Receiver Golden Tate”

Official League, a new lifestyle apparel brand exclusively for passionate fans, yesterday announced a new limited-edition hat collection celebrating Opening Day for the West Coast League, the West’s premier summer collegiate baseball league. Official League has created brand-new, exclusive hat designs for the Bend Elks, Corvallis Knights, Portland Pickles, and Wenatchee AppleSox, with all four …

Continue reading “Official League Offering Limited Edition WCL Hat Collection”

It’s Opening Night in the West Coast League, with four games slated for this evening in Washington, Oregon, and British Columbia. And in just three days, 16 WCL teams are set for an action-packed weekend. “I’ve got exactly zero doubt,” said Commissioner Rob Neyer, “that this season will be our League’s best yet. We’ll have …

Continue reading “2022 WCL Season Opens Tonight”

In recent seasons, the West Coast League has become the tech-friendliest and -savviest summer collegiate league, establishing partnerships with high-profile, industry-leading companies like TrackMan, Synergy Sports, and Driveline Baseball. As notable and productive as those partnerships have been, though, in 2022 the WCL’s technology partnerships have shifted into hyperdrive, with unprecedented coverage that will include …

Continue reading “West Coast League Goes Even Bigger With Tech”

The West Coast League’s highest-ranked prospect has been called up to the big leagues. Adley Rutschman, the sport’s top prospect according to MLB.com, has been promoted by the Baltimore Orioles and is set to make his MLB debut (Friday night, the Orioles posted video of Rutschman getting the good news). In 2019, Rutschman became the …

Continue reading “#1 MLB Prospect Adley Rutschman Joins Orioles”

According to MLB.com’s Jim Callis, former Corvallis Knights infielder Brooks Lee is one of four former West Coast League players ranked among the Top 150 MLB Draft Prospects for 2022. Lee, the star shortstop for Cal Poly, is listed as the Draft’s No. 5 overall prospect. In each of the last five years, at least …

Continue reading “For 2022 Draft, Lee Ranked as No. 5 Prospect”

This year, a record 33 players with West Coast League experience have earned spots on Major League Baseball Opening Day rosters. It is the second consecutive season the WCL has set a new record for alumni on MLB Opening Day rosters after there were 31 in 2021. Former WCL players gearing up to start the …

Continue reading “MLB Opening Day Rosters Include 33 WCL Alumni”

The West Coast League mourns the loss of the former league commissioner Jim Dietz. As the League’s first commissioner, Dietz oversaw the WCL’s launch and laid a strong foundation for the WCL’s continuing growth and success. He served as the WCL commissioner from 2005 through 2007, when he transitioned to a key role on the …

Continue reading “WCL Remembers Former Commissioner Jim Dietz”

Today, the West Coast League unveiled a striking rebrand, beginning a transition from the league’s traditional WC logo to a new WCL mark that evokes the league’s sprawling geography, ranging from central Oregon north through Washington state, British Columbia and, beginning this year, well into Alberta, Canada. “The West Coast League’s geography is simply unparalleled,” …

Continue reading “West Coast League Launches New Visual Identity”

Last weekend in Portland, the West Coast League’s board of directors gathered, both in person and via teleconference, for the League’s annual winter meetings. Most notably, the League’s board of directors approved a new postseason format that includes eight of the WCL’s 16 teams, with all eight postseason teams hosting at least one playoff game. …

Continue reading “Board of Directors Hold Annual Winter Meetings”

Saturday night in Portland, the West Coast League tabbed Jerry Smoot as the inaugural winner of the WCL’s first Grass Roots Award. “Our Grass Roots Award celebrates coaches from our communities,” said WCL Commissioner Rob Neyer, “who have spent much of their lives working to promote amateur baseball and help young players achieve their full …

Continue reading “Jerry Smoot Named Inaugural WCL Grass Roots Award Winner”

This morning the West Coast League released its official 2022 schedule, as announced by Commissioner Rob Neyer. “Now it feels real,” said Neyer. “After a 2020 without games and a 2021 without our Canadian members, a 2022 with everyone — including three new teams in Canada, plus our fourth Oregon member — certainly figures to …

Continue reading “WCL Announces 2022 Schedule”

Earlier this week in Indio, California, the West Coast League’s board of directors met in person for the first time in nearly two years, and reached consensus on a number of matters while renewing the deep, international ties between League members in Oregon, Washington, British Columbia, and Alberta. “Our league’s No. 1 asset is our …

Continue reading “Board of Directors Gather for Fall League Meetings”

In 2021, 305 alumni of West Coast League teams were active in affiliated professional baseball. A number of WCL alumni had impressive MLB seasons, such as former Cy Young Award winner and 2021 American League All-Star Shane Bieber (Cowlitz, 2014). Other notable WCL alumni include pitchers Nick Pivetta (Victoria, 2013), Matt Boyd (Corvallis, 2010) and …

Continue reading “305 Alumni of WCL Teams Appear in Affiliated Baseball”

Friday, the West Coast League received a bit of tremendous news: for the second straight season, Perfect Game has announced the Corvallis Knights as their Summer Collegiate Team of the Year. “I can’t say I’m completely surprised,” said Rob Neyer, West Coast League Commissioner, “since in their last two seasons, the Knights have won 77 …

Continue reading “Knights Named Perfect Game Summer Collegiate Team of the Year”

Tuesday morning, the winners of the West Coast League’s Top Prospect, Coach of the Year, Executive of the Year and the Team Sportsmanship Award were announced by West Coast League Commissioner Rob Neyer. Incoming Oregon State freshman Travis Bazzana of the Corvallis Knights, who was also named the WCL’s MVP, earned the league’s Top Prospect …

Continue reading “WCL Announces Additional Postseason Award Honorees”

Wednesday morning, the 2021 All-West Coast League teams were announced by West Coast League Commissioner Rob Neyer. “It’s my tremendous pleasure every year,” said Neyer, “to announce the WCL’s All-League teams. Considering the WCL’s position as the premier summer collegiate baseball league in the entire western half of the continent, saying our teams represent ‘the best …

Continue reading “All-WCL Teams Unveiled”

Monday, West Coast League Commissioner Rob Neyer announced the winners of the League’s top two individual awards: Most Valuable Player and Pitcher of the Year. “As the West’s top summer collegiate baseball league,” Neyer said, “we obviously featured a great wealth of exciting talent in 2021. Sifting through all that talent and arriving at these two …

Continue reading “WCL MVP and Pitcher of the Year Winners Announced”

The historic run is now a five-peat for the Corvallis Knights. On Friday night at Goss Stadium, the Knights topped the Yakima Valley Pippins 13-2 to capture their fifth consecutive West Coast League title. “When I became Commissioner four years ago,” Rob Neyer said after Friday night’s game in Corvallis, “I was well-aware of the …

Continue reading “Knights Win Fifth Consecutive WCL Title”

With their backs against the wall, the Corvallis Knights were able to respond on Thursday night at Goss Stadium. The Knights beat the Yakima Valley Pippins 2-1 to even the West Coast League Championship Series 1-1 and set up a deciding Game 3. First pitch tonight from Goss Stadium in Corvallis is at 6:35 pm. …

Continue reading “Pippins and Knights Ready for WCLCS Winner-Take-All Game”

The Yakima Valley Pippins and Corvallis Knights are set to square off in the 2021 West Coast League Championship Series. The Pippins punched their ticket to the WCLCS after defeating the Bellingham Bells 11-5 on Monday night in the deciding game of the North’s Divisional Series. For Yakima Valley it is their first trip to …

Continue reading “Yakima Valley and Corvallis Advance to WCLCS”

With the West Coast League’s final postseason berth secured by the Ridgefield Raptors, both first-round matchups are finally set. Thursday night, the Raptors finished the regular season in a three-way tie with the Portland Pickles and Bend Elks, but Ridgefield owned the tiebreaker by virtue of their combined 9-3 record against Portland and Bend. Ridgefield will …

Continue reading “WCL Playoff Pairings Set”

Oregon & Washington, Aug. 12—As the final week of the West Coast League’s regular season dawned, four teams were still squarely in the hunt for the South Division’s second playoff spot, which this season goes to the team with the division’s second-best overall record (as the Corvallis Knights have locked up the best record in …

Continue reading “Final Postseason Bid Still Up for Grabs”

The West Coast League enters the final days of an already unprecedented regular season with not two, or even three, but four teams with highly viable paths to the league’s fourth and final postseason berth. The bracket is set in the WCL’s North Division, as the Yakima Valley Pippins finished atop the first-half standings, and …

Continue reading “Hotly Contested Race for Final Playoff Bid”

Saturday night, the West Coast League reached a huge milestone when Jarren Duran batted sixth and started in center field for the first-place Boston Red Sox, becoming the 100th alumnus of a current or past West Coast League team to make his MLB debut. Chronologically, the list of 100 begins with Mike Thurman, who pitched …

Continue reading “Duran Becomes 100th WCL Alumni to Reach the Major Leagues”

Earlier this week, 42 current and former West Coast League players were selected in Major League Baseball’s annual Rule 4 amateur draft. With the Cincinnati Reds’ selection of Matt McLain with the 17th overall pick, 2021 marks the fifth straight year with a WCL standout drafted in the first round. There were 19 WCL alumni …

Continue reading “42 WCL Alumni Selected in 2021 MLB Draft”

A total of 19 WCL alumni have been taken in the first 10 rounds of this year’s MLB Draft after 18 additional players were selected on Monday, including four among the top 63 picks. Matt McLain, who earned the WCL’s Top Prospect Award in 2018 as a member of the Bellingham Bells, was selected by the …

Continue reading “18 Former WCL Players Selected on Day Two of MLB Draft”

West Coast League alumni Matt McLain of UCLA was selected in the first round of the MLB Draft, as the Cincinnati Reds picked McLain 17th overall. It is the fifth consecutive season that a former WCL player has been taken in the first round of the MLB Draft. McLain, a UCLA infielder, earned the WCL’s …

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Seven West Coast League alumni were named to All-America teams by Baseball America and the National Collegiate Baseball Writers Association, highlighted by first-team selection Aaron Zavala of the University of Oregon. Zavala, who played for the Ridgefield Raptors in 2019, had a .392 batting average with nine home runs, 38 RBIs and 64 runs scored …

Continue reading “Seven Former WCL Players Named All-Americans”

It’s Opening Night in the West Coast League, with five games slated for the circuit this evening in Washington and Oregon. All ten U.S.-based teams will be in action for Opening Night, with the Bellingham Bells hosting the Port Angeles Lefties, the Ridgefield Raptors hosting the Bend Elks, the Yakima Valley Pippins hosting the Corvallis …

Continue reading “WCL Opens 2021 Campaign”

Entering the 2021 season, the West Coast League continues to enhance technology and data Initiatives with the help of new and expanded partnerships. Among our growing partnerships is with TrackMan, which serves as an additional tool to aid player development and performance evaluation. TrackMan Baseball is used by all 30 Major League Baseball teams and …

Continue reading “WCL Increases Tech and Data Initiatives for 2021”

Today the West Coast League, one of North America’s premier summer collegiate baseball leagues, announced the formation of a COVID-19 Health & Safety Group, effective immediately. Meeting weekly from this week through the end of the postseason in August, the Health & Safety Group consists of representatives from five teams based in both Washington and …

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Thursday, the West Coast League announced the addition of the expansion Springfield Drifters as the league’s 16th member team. The Drifters will join the Bend Elks, Corvallis Knights, and Portland Pickles as the league’s fourth Oregon-based team. “When you look at a map,” said WCL Commissioner Rob Neyer, “adding another team in the Willamette Valley …

Continue reading “WCL Adds Springfield Drifters as Newest Member Team”

Wednesday, the West Coast League announced that all five of the league’s Canadian members have withdrawn from the 2021 season, due to continuing, pandemic-related border and gathering limitations. In addition to the Kelowna Falcons, who previously canceled their season, the Victoria HarbourCats, Edmonton Riverhawks, Kamloops NorthPaws, and Nanaimo NightOwls have also made the difficult decision …

Continue reading “WCL’s Canadian Members Withdraw From 2021 Season”

This year, a record 31 players with West Coast League experience have earned spots on Major League Baseball Opening Day rosters. What’s more, three of those players—reigning American League Cy Young Award winner Shane Bieber, of the Cleveland Indians; the Seattle Mariners’ Marco Gonzales; and the Detroit Tigers’ Matt Boyd—will serve as their teams’ Opening …

Continue reading “MLB Opening Day Rosters Feature WCL-Record 31 Alumni”

Wednesday, the West Coast League announced that Driveline Baseball is now an Official Development Partner, with a wide range of elements that will provide unprecedented opportunities for WCL teams and Driveline athletes. “I’ve been admiring Driveline for years,” said Commissioner Rob Neyer, “and I’m thrilled that now we’ll be working so closely with them. Our …

Continue reading “WCL Announces Driveline Partnership”

Tuesday, West Coast League Commissioner Rob Neyer released a revised 2021 schedule for the League’s 10 U.S.-based teams. The League and four Canadian teams—the Victoria HarbourCats, along with the expansion Edmonton Riverhawks, Kamloops NorthPaws, and Nanaimo NightOwls—continue to work toward a Canadian-only schedule, while closely monitoring the pandemic responses by border officials and provincial health …

Continue reading “WCL Unveils Adjusted 2021 Schedule for U.S. Teams”

Today the West Coast League announced the adoption of a revised 2021 schedule that eliminates all regular-season international travel. The new schedule will consist of the league’s U.S.-based members playing each other, and the league’s Canada-based members doing the same. This revised structure leaves open the possibility of a full league playoff format. “After the …

Continue reading “WCL Announces 2021 Schedule Changes”

The Kelowna Falcons have featured a long list of big leaguers over the years, including slugger Chris Davis of the Baltimore Orioles and the newest Seattle Mariner – The Big Maple, James Paxton. Paxton is back in the Pacific Northwest and joins former WCLers Mitch Haniger of the Knights and Marco Gonzales of Wenatchee to …

Continue reading “Kelowna Alumni James Paxton Returns to the Pacific Northwest”

It’s often been said by those inside the game that the baseball world is very small. As widespread as the game is across the country on Little League fields, high school and college fields, and in professional stadiums, baseball has maintained a decidedly intimate feel with myriad small-town connections. The sport reaches deep into communities, …

Continue reading “A Team Reborn, a Birthday Anniversary, and Ties Between Two Baseball Cities”

The Corvallis Knights and Wenatchee AppleSox are a tradition celebrated each summer, one inning at a time. The two baseball clubs partnered from the very beginning as founding West Coast League members in 2005. From that inaugural summer collegiate season forward they have enjoyed extraordinary success on the field and in their respective communities.  In …

Continue reading “WCL Alumni Mitch Haniger & Marco Gonzales Embody Winning Ways”

By Rob Neyer Tenacious. When asked for a scouting report on Tommy Richards—on Tommy Richards as a player; as a coach; as a person, just living in the world—Scott Anderson kept coming back to the same word: tenacious. If anyone knows, Anderson would. In 2009 and ’10, Anderson was Richards’s head coach with the West …

Continue reading “Richards Ready to Lead Revived Bushnell Program”

There are MLB team coaching staffs that don’t have this much big-league playing experience. Count ’em up, 31 years. Greg Swindell, a 17-year MLB pitcher, has been added by Head Coach Todd Haney for the 2021 Victoria HarbourCats season, as Bench Coach. Add that to Haney’s five seasons and the nine seasons of Pitching Coach …

Continue reading “MLB Vet Greg Swindell Added to HarbourCats Coaching Staff”

Former Bellingham Bells infielder Matt McLain is one of four West Coast League alumni ranked among the Top 100 MLB Draft Prospects for 2021, according to MLB.com. McLain, a UCLA standout, is listed as the Draft’s No. 3 overall prospect. Other WCL alumni featured on the list include catcher Noah Cardenas (No. 62), right-handed pitcher …

Continue reading “For 2021 Draft, McLain Ranked as No. 3 Prospect”

Today the West Coast League released its official 2021 schedule, as announced by Commissioner Rob Neyer. “Every year,” said Neyer, “getting the new West Coast League schedule is like getting an early Christmas present. The best early Christmas present.” Opening Day 2021 is set for Tuesday, June 1. All fifteen WCL teams will have started …

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Wednesday, former Cowlitz Black Bears pitcher Shane Bieber was named the winner of the 2020 American League Cy Young Award after a dominating season for the Cleveland Indians. Bieber is the first WCL alumni to win a Cy Young Award. “We couldn’t be more thrilled for Shane Bieber, the Cowlitz Black Bears, and the entire …

Continue reading “WCL Alumni Shane Bieber Wins AL Cy Young Award”

Former Wenatchee AppleSox pitcher Griffin Canning (2014) became the team’s first alum to win a Gold Glove Award by claiming the top defensive honor for a player. Canning earned the American League Gold Glove honor at pitcher after his second MLB season. The right-hander led all American League pitchers with 3 Defensive Runs Saved and …

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During the pandemic-shortened 2020 Major League Baseball season, 42 alumni of West Coast League teams played in the major leagues. A number of alumni posted outstanding seasons, such as Cleveland’s Cy Young Award candidate Shane Bieber (Cowlitz, 2014) and Seattle Mariners ace Marco Gonzales (Wenatchee, 2010). Other notable WCL alumni include pitchers Detroit’s Matt Boyd …

Continue reading “42 WCL Alumni Appeared in MLB During 2020 Season”

The Kamloops NorthPaws have hired Cole Armstrong as the first head coach in franchise history. The 37-year-old from Surrey, B.C. becomes the only current Canadian serving as head coach in the West Coast League. “It’s a dream come true to return to British Columbia to do what I love,”says Armstrong. “I’d like to thank the …

Continue reading “NorthPaws Name Armstrong Head Coach”

Western North America’s premier summer collegiate baseball league continues to grow with Tuesday’s announcement from Baseball Edmonton introducing the Edmonton Riverhawks as the West Coast League’s 15th member team. The Riverhawks now join the Nanaimo NightOwls and Kamloops NorthPaws among three WCL expansion teams, all in Canada, set to begin play next June. The newest …

Continue reading “West Coast League Expands to Edmonton”

Wednesday, the West Coast League welcomed the Kamloops NorthPaws to western North America’s premier summer collegiate baseball league. “As Canada’s ‘Tournament Capital,’ Kamloops is obviously a hotbed for amateur sports in British Columbia, so collegiate summer ball is a perfect fit,” said WCL commissioner Rob Neyer. “As a new team, the NorthPaws face a stiff …

Continue reading “Kamloops NorthPaws Newest WCL Expansion Team”

The first Head Coach of the Nanaimo NightOwls brings a wealth of experience, networking, and community service to the role, to lead the team in its West Coast League debut in 2021. The ownership group of the NightOwls is proud to introduce Greg Frady in the top baseball role — which means the completion of …

Continue reading “Veteran Coach to Lead NightOwls in 2021”

A pair of West Coast League alumni got their first taste of the big leagues during the opening weekend of the 2020 Major League Baseball season. Brandon Bailey and Taylor Jones each made their MLB debut for the Astros in Houston’s series against the Seattle Mariners. Bailey tossed a scoreless inning in relief on Sunday …

Continue reading “Former WCL Players Make MLB Debut”

Opening Day 2020 has finally arrived for Major League Baseball and four former West Coast League hurlers will toe the rubber in their teams’ first game of the season, as Marco Gonzales, Shane Bieber, Matt Boyd and Tommy Milone have all been tabbed as Opening Day starters. It will be the second season Gonzales has …

Continue reading “Four WCL Alums Named MLB Opening Day Starters”

The lights, the history, the proud First Nations lore. And the world-famous dessert that helped make the City of Nanaimo a household name, all combined. The ownership group of the expansion team for the 2021 season, set to call historic Serauxmen Stadium home in the West Coast League, along with the team’s Founding Sponsor, Island …

Continue reading “Nanaimo NightOwls to Take Flight in 2021”

Today the West Coast League, one of North America’s premier summer collegiate baseball leagues, announced a new partnership with Teambrown Apparel to produce WCL-branded merchandise for the league’s fans around the Pacific Northwest and the rest of the baseball world, with items available immediately. “We initially became aware of the WCL because of their unique …

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Updated July 27, 2020 To date, 50 players with West Coast League experience have been named to Major League Baseball 60-man rosters for the 2020 season. These unprecedented 60-man rosters provide an expanded player pool from which each MLB team may draw, during the shortened season. In 2019, 45 West Coast League alumni appeared in …

Continue reading “MLB 60-Man Rosters Feature 50 WCL Alums”

All 83 former West Coast League that have gone on to play in the Major Leagues are featured on the WCL’s brand new alumni page. WCL alums reaching “The Show” include 2019 MLB All-Star Game MVP Shane Bieber (pictured) and emerging slugger Rhys Hoskins, along with standout hurlers such as James Paxton, Marco Gonzales, and …

Continue reading “Updated MLB Alumni Page Unveiled”

*Updated as of August 16, 2020 More West Coast League alums are gearing up to start their professional careers, signing as free agents with Major League organizations since the conclusion of MLB’s 2020 amateur draft. In addition to the five WCLers selected in this year’s five-round draft, 16 more players have now agreed to terms …

Continue reading “Former WCL Players Sign as Non-Drafted Free Agents”

Five alums of West Coast League teams were taken in MLB’s 2020 amateur draft, conducted June 10 and 11. With the Milwaukee Brewers’ selection of Garrett Mitchell with the 20th overall pick, 2020 marks the fourth straight year with a WCL standout drafted in the first round. Mitchell, a UCLA outfielder, played for the WCL’s …

Continue reading “Five WCL Alums Selected in 2020 MLB Draft”

West Coast League alum Garrett Mitchell of UCLA was selected in the first round of the MLB Draft today, as the Milwaukee Brewers picked Mitchell 20th overall. It is the fourth straight season that a former WCL player has been taken in the first round of the MLB Draft. Mitchell, a UCLA outfielder, played for …

Continue reading “Mitchell Taken in First Round of MLB Draft”

With MLB’s annual Rule 4 amateur draft set for this Wednesday and Thursday, West Coast League alumni Garrett Mitchell, Jeremy Wu-Yelland, and Holden Powell all have their sights set on being tabbed in the draft’s five rounds. Mitchell, a UCLA outfielder, played for the West Coast League’s Walla Walla Sweets in 2017. In his first …

Continue reading “2020 MLB Draft WCL Names to Know”

This week the West Coast League’s board of directors voted to cancel its 2020 summer collegiate season, due to pandemic-related safety guidelines and travel restrictions across Washington and Oregon. Concurrently, league members Cowlitz, Port Angeles, Ridgefield, Walla Walla, and Yakima Valley are cancelling their respective seasons. Also this week, the League set June 4 as …

Continue reading “WCL Cancels 2020 Season”

Seven West Coast League alums were named to Collegiate Baseball’s All-America teams released yesterday including first-team All-Americans Zach Pettway of UCLA, A.J. Lewis of Eastern Kentucky and Kenyon Yovan of Oregon. The teams were selected based on games played prior to the stoppage of the college baseball season due to Covid-19. Pettway shined during his summer …

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On Friday, May 8, the West Coast League and its member teams released the following statement regarding their 2020 season… The West Coast League is closely monitoring the Covid-19 policies and announcements issued by federal, state, provincial, and local authorities in Oregon, Washington, and British Columbia. Considering the latest information at hand, the WCL has …

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By Rob Neyer It definitely felt like the end of the road. This January, Perth Heat manager Brooke Knight and his Australian Baseball League team were many thousands of feet in the air, nearly home after a tough series in Adelaide: three one-run losses in four games to the first-place Bite. But now, with Virgin …

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Wednesday morning, all twelve West Coast League teams launched the #StayHome4Baseball campaign, encouraging fans to stay home and flatten the coronavirus curve. The #StayHome4Baseball campaign challenges not only fans, but also baseball teams everywhere, at all levels, to help limit and ultimately stop the spread of COVID-19. “It’s not often,” WCL Commissioner Rob Neyer said, …

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About the West Coast League: The West Coast League (WCL) is the premier summer collegiate baseball league west of the Mississippi. Situated in the beautiful Pacific Northwest, the fifteen-year-old, twelve-team, professionally operated wood-bat league showcases pro prospects from major conferences around the nation. Every summer, the league features unparalleled fan and player experiences, with the best …

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West Coast League baseball is landing in Nanaimo. The WCL, which is currently made up of 12 teams including Canadian entries in Victoria and Kelowna, is expanding to 13 teams with the addition of Nanaimo. The to-be-named club’s inaugural season is set for 2021. Nanaimo will play its home games at Serauxmen Stadium. The team …

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By Rob Neyer Sure, you already know Jeff Cirillo as an outstanding Major League Baseball player: fourteen seasons in the majors, twice an All-Star, .296 career batting average, Gold Glove-quality defense (even if the voters somehow never quite noticed). You might not know what Cirillo’s been doing since 2007, because he’s kept a relatively low …

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A new pact further solidifies the West Coast League’s commitment to safe pitching practices. The WCL has been approved at full compliance level by Pitch Smart for the 2020 season. The Pitch Smart program is a joint initiative between Major League Baseball and USA Baseball that provides guidelines and best pitching practices to help reduce …

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By Rob Neyer Todd Haney, the ex-major leaguer who just signed a multi-year extension as the Victoria HabourCats’ Head Coach, wasn’t really supposed to play on baseball’s biggest stage. Coming out of high school in Waco, Texas, he was barely recruited and wound up at tiny Panola College. While Haney did finish his college career …

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By Rob Neyer In part one of this two-part series, we looked at the rich baseball history of the West Coast League’s six North Division cities. Here in part two, we’ll look at the South’s similarly fascinating baseball legacy… Obviously, the history of summer baseball in Portland, Oregon—now home to the internationally famous Pickles—is far …

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By Rob Neyer Baseball abhors a vacuum. Or perhaps it’s baseball fans who abhor a vacuum. Because I’ve noticed over the years that even when “baseball” leaves a town or city, for whatever reasons, “baseball” usually returns before long. And there is perhaps no better example than today’s West Coast League, now playing in a …

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Two-time Major League All-Star Jeff Cirillo has been announced as the new manager for the Walla Walla Sweets. Cirillo, currently a scout for the Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim, had a 14-year playing career in the Major Leagues that included the Milwaukee Brewers, Colorado Rockies, San Diego Padres, Minnesota Twins, Arizona Diamondbacks and Seattle Mariners. …

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For the second time in franchise history, the Wenatchee AppleSox will host the West Coast League All-Star Game. The AppleSox hosted the inaugural WCL All-Star Game in 2006 and will become the league’s second team to host multiple All-Star Games when they welcome the 13th mid-summer classic in WCL history to Wenatchee. “I am very …

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The West Coast League released its official 2020 schedule today, as announced by Commissioner Rob Neyer. “Because of the tremendous geographical scope of our league,” Neyer said, “putting together a schedule is more art than science, and there will always be travel challenges. But we’re confident that our 2020 schedule will showcase our league’s great …

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