West Coast League commissioner Rob Neyer announced the league’s all-star selections for its 2018 All-Star Game this afternoon. This year’s mid-summer classic is being held Tuesday, July 17 in Port Angeles at Civic Field. First pitch is scheduled for 6:35 pm.

“In my professional life as a columnist and blogger, I second-guessed dozens of All-Star teams over the years, while never imagining that someday I would actually be involved in putting together All-Star teams,” said commissioner Neyer.

“It’s not easy! But with great help from every West Coast League head coach and a big assist from Baseball America, I’m confident that our 2018 All-Stars represent a tremendous mix of performance and potential, and that the scouts will love what they see on the field in Port Angeles.”

The night before the All-Star Game, on Monday, July 16, going deep will be going splash in the very first Saltwater Splashdown hosted by the Lefties. Rather than blasting baseballs over the fence, in a ballpark, home run derby participants will blast away from a raised platform at Hollywood Beach over a rope connected to anchors more than 300 feet offshore in the Port Angeles Harbor. The derby starts at 6:35 pm.

The North all-stars will be coached by Lefties skipper Darren Westergard and his staff, while the South will be coached by the defending champion coaching staff of the Corvallis Knights, led by five-time WCL Coach of the Year Brooke Knight.

The North Division is made up of the Bellingham Bells, Kelowna Falcons, Port Angeles Lefties, Wenatchee AppleSox, Victoria HarbourCats and Yakima Valley Pippins. The South Division is comprised of the Bend Elks, Corvallis Knights, Cowlitz Black Bears, Portland Pickles and Walla Walla Sweets.

This year’s North and South rosters feature thirteen West Coast Conference players.

Later this week, WCL All-Star Game Saltwater Splashdown representatives will be announced for each team.

NORTH

C – Cory Meyer of Boise State (Wenatchee AppleSox)
C – Matt James of Notre Dame (Bellingham Bells)
1B – Kyle Schimpf of Southeastern Louisiana (Port Angeles Lefties)
2B – Jason Dicochea of Santa Clara (Port Angeles Lefties)
SS – Ernie Yake of Gonzaga (Bellingham Bells)
INF – Mason Marenco of Gonzaga (Wenatchee AppleSox)
3B – Jake Moberg of UCLA (Yakima Valley Pippins)
OF – Dalton Harum of Virginia Tech (Port Angeles Lefties)
OF – Trent Tinglestad of Louisiana at Monroe (Kelowna Falcons)
OF – Cole Pofek of UC Riverside (Yakima Valley Pippins)
OF – Jeddediah Fagg of Georgia Southern (Victoria HarbourCats)
OF – Dan Pruitt of Seminole State (Kelowna Falcons)
P – Justin Armbruester of Pacific Lutheran (Bellingham Bells)
P – Taylor Davis of Gonzaga (Bellingham Bells)
P – Cal Hehnke of Nebraska-Omaha (Kelowna Falcons)
P – Tristan Busse of Western Texas (Port Angeles Lefties)
P – Garrett Goodall of Embry-Riddle (Victoria HarbourCats)
P – Tyler Yoshihara of Pomona-Pitzer (Victoria HarbourCats)
P – Curtis Bafus of VCU (Wenatchee AppleSox)
P – Jeremy Yelland of Hawaii (Wenatchee AppleSox)
P – Chase Farrell of UCLA (Yakima Valley Pippins)

SOUTH

C – Dutton Elske of Portland (Cowlitz Black Bears)
C – Cole Hamilton of Linn-Benton CC (Corvallis Knights)
INF – Nick Nyquist of Gonzaga (Walla Walla Sweets)
INF – Chad Stevens of Portland (Corvallis Knights)
INF – Gio Diaz of St. Mary’s (Portland Pickles)
INF – Collin Runge of Portland (Bend Elks)
INF – Tristen Alvarez of Fresno Pacific (Bend Elks)
OF – Joey Cooper of Cal State Northridge (Portland Pickles)
OF – Zander Clarke of UC San Diego (Portland Pickles)
OF – Chandler Anderson of Utah (Corvallis Knights)
OF – Cesar Loper of Cal Poly Pomona (Walla Walla Sweets)
OF – Ryan Kim of Portland (Cowlitz Black Bears)
P – Landen Bourassa of San Francisco (Corvallis Knights)
P – Daniel Slominski of San Francisco (Corvallis Knights)
P – Zach Heaton of Dallas Baptist (Cowlitz Black Bears)
P – Darius Vines of Arizona State (Walla Walla Sweets)
P – Zack Penrod of Northwest Nazarene (Walla Walla Sweets)
P – Brad McVay of Portland (Portland Pickles)
P – Connor Pellerin of Tulane (Portland Pickles)
P – Michael Newstrom of Washington State (Portland Pickles)
P – Bradley Gonzales of Dallas Baptist (Bend Elks)

Note: Universities and colleges noted are where players will be enrolled this upcoming school year.

ABOUT THE WEST COAST LEAGUE

The West Coast League (WCL) is the premier summer collegiate baseball league west of the Mississippi. The 14-year-old, 11-team, professionally operated wood-bat league located in the beautiful Pacific Northwest showcases pro prospects from major national conferences from June through the middle of August. The WCL features an unparalleled history of memorable fan and player experiences, and the best summer weather in North America. In 2018, 72 players with WCL experience were selected in Major League Baseball’s June amateur draft. 271 WCL alums appeared or were active in affiliated professional baseball in 2017, including 31 in the major leagues, such as 2015 home-run leader Chris Davis (Baltimore); record-breaking rookie slugger Rhys Hoskins (Philadelphia); rising star pitchers James Paxton (Seattle) and Matt Boyd (Detroit); and 2018 AL All-Star outfielder Mitch Haniger (Seattle). Overall member attendance was 412,392 last summer, an increase of nearly nine percent year to year.