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 West Coast League

Post from the Coast: The WCL on OSC

by Bruce Baskin
September 8, 2014 - West Coast League (WCL)


BELLS BEAT KNIGHTS TO COP FIRST WCL TITLE

Ordinarily, when a West Coast League team averages 3.6 runs per game, they're going to have a tough time winning...even the Kelowna Falcons, who finished a league-worst 14-39, brought home 4.5 runs every night. When it's the Bellingham Bells, however, 18 runs over five playoff games were enough to bring the WCL charter franchise their first league pennant.

The Bells swept Yakima Valley in two straight games to win their semifinal series and dispatched defending Corvallis in three contests via pitching, which carried Bellingham all season long. Coach Jeff James' moundsmen combined for a 1.84 ERA in winning four times with one loss. Reliever Dan Ludwig (Belmont) was particularly lights-out, not allowing a run over four appearances and 10.1 innings, striking out 11 while walking none.

Not that the Bells were helpless at the plate. 1B Scott Heath (Maine) and 3B Dallas Carroll (Utah) combined to go 15-of-35 with 8 runs and 6 RBIs in the playoffs to shoulder most of the load as Bellingham copped their first flag since winning the semipro Pacific International League title in 1999, the Bells' first season of operation and six years before five teams broke away from the PIL to form the WCL as a summer college league. This is also the first time that neither Corvallis nor Wenatchee has won the WCL championship since 2007.

FWIW Department: Bellingham did NOT have the lowest ERA in the postseason. Bend pitchers limited Corvallis to 1.04 earned runs per game. That the Elks hit just .197 themselves with two runs while getting swept by the Knights in two first round games underscores one axiom: Good pitching can take you a long way but you still have to outscore your opponents to win.

FERNANDEZ, BELLS TAKE POSTSEASON HONORS

While the champion Bellingham Bells took away the majority of the hardware, Yakima Valley's Vince Fernandez capped his storybook summer with the WCL's top individual honor after being awarded the Most Valuable Player award on a vote among league coaches.

Fernandez, entering his first year at Cal-Riverside, set league marks with 10 homers and 51 RBIs while finishing fifth in the WCL with a .359 batting average in leading the first-year Pippins to the East Division title. The 6'4" 205-pounder from Livermore, California also stole 11 bases in 13 tries.

The rest of the trophies were shipped to Bellingham. Seth Martinez (Arizona St) was named Pitcher of the Year after a 6-0 season with a WCL-leading 2.07 ERA, Bells skipper Jeff James was named Coach of the Year, Bellingham general manager Nick Capels won his third Executive of the Year award in three seasons and the Bells won the Jim Dietz Sportsmanship Award for the second straight year. No playoff MVP was announced, but Bellingham reliever Dan Ludwig (Belmont) gets this corner's nod after a win and save to go with 10.1 scoreless and walk-free innings while appearing in four of five postseason games.

WCL FIRST TEAM ALL-LEAGUE

C-Ryan Matranga (San Francisco), Kitsap

1B-Steven Packard (Oregon), Klamath Falls

2B-Marc Gallegos (Corban), Corvallis

3B-Dennis Morton (Palomar), Klamath Falls

SS-Alex DeGoti (Long Beach St), Victoria

LF-Vince Fernandez (UC Riverside), Yakima Valley

CF-Andrew Mendenhall (Lewis-Clark St), Walla Walla

RF-Hunter Mercado-Hood (San Diego), Victoria

UT-Dalton Kelly (UC Santa Barbara), Corvallis

SP-Shane Bieber (UC Santa Barbara), Cowlitz; Eder Erives (Arizona St), Bellingham; Jackson Lockwood (Portland), Corvallis; Seth Martinez (Arizona St), Bellingham; Eli Morgan (Gonzaga), Yakima Valley.

RP-David Bigelow (Gonzaga), Bellingham; Kevin Sheets (Abilene Christian), Bend.

ENTIRE LIST OF ALL-STAR SELECTIONS CAN BE FOUND ON WCL WEBSITE

AROUND THE HORN (WCL Roundup)

BELLINGHAM BELLS (37-17, 1st West, 0 GB)

The Bells capped off a banner season by winning the WCL pennant behind the best pitching staff in the loop. Bellingham hurlers posted a 2.68 ERA while holding opponents to a .202 batting average as Seth Martinez (Arizona St) led the league with a 2.07 ERA, just ahead of teammate Aaron Sandefur's (Bellevue CC) 2.16. Martinez, who won 6 games, was named the WCL's top pitcher. OF Danny Miller (Chico St) led the team with a .316 average and 5 homers while 1B Scott Heath (Maine) chipped in with .293/4HR/33RBI numbers, but it was all about the pitching in Bellingham for 2014.

BEND ELKS (31-23, 2nd South, 4 GB)

Bend staggered into the postseason by winning just 5 of their last 12 regular season games before losing a pair of 2-1 heartbreakers to Corvallis in the semis. It was a disappointing way for the Elks to end solid seasons from several players, including 1B Billy King (Oregon St) and 3B Brock Carpenter (Seattle). King hit .310 and Carpenter went .292 while each had 3 homers and 29 RBIs. P Jesse Pratt (W Oregon) was the top starter, going 4-0 and 2.47, and Kevin Sheets (Abilene Christian) combined with Louis Cohen (Cal St Northridge) for 17 saves, 4 wins and a 1.36 ERA.

CORVALLIS KNIGHTS (35-19, 1st South, 0 GB)

The Knights struggled at the plate throughout the playoffs, topping 2 runs once while scoring just 11 times over five games after a solid regular season in which Corvallis hit .272 and averaged five runs per contest. OF Dalton Kelly (UC Santa Barbara) excelled while going .336/7/34 with 8 stolen bases in 40 games, 1B Kevin Kline (Dixie St) was .300/8/45, 2B Marc Gallegos (Corban) batted .309 with 17 steals and OF Grant Melker (San Diego) hit .310 with 29 SB. P Jackson Lockwood (Portland) tied a league mark with 8 wins and a 2.83 ERA to head a solid staff that had little support once the postseason began.

COWLITZ BLACK BEARS (24-30, 3rd West, 13 GB)

Cowlitz lost five of their first six games in August, going 3-6 for the month to finish six games below .500. The Black Bears had one of the WCL's top mound corps, finishing third with a 3.48 ERA. Billy Sahlinger (Portland) was 4-0 and 2.68, Shane Bieber (UC Santa Barbara) was 1-0 and 1.44 in 6 starts, reliever Joe Reta (Oregon) was 4-2 with 4 saves and a 1.27 ERA to lead a deep staff. The problem? The Bears were last in the league in batting (.240) and scoring (4.39) averages. OF Kort Peterson (UCLA) hit .344 with 9 swipes in 26 games while OF Daniel Orr (Corban) hit .329, drove in 22 runs and scored 19 more.

KELOWNA FALCONS (14-39, 4th East, 20.5 GB)

The Falcons closed out 2014 with 12 consecutive losses (9 at home) to limp to the finish line with the WCL's worst record. Nothing went right for Kelowna after winning 3 of their first 4 games as the Birds hit .242 with just 9 homers while the pitchers turned in a 5.86 ERA. Latecomer IF Kody Matthews (Mt. Hood CC) hit .327 in 15 games while versatile IF/P Scotland Church (Weatherford) batted .287, starting one game on the mound and saving another. Josh Nuernberg (S Nevada CC) went 2-3 with a 3.43 ERA and 48 K's to lead a besieged Falcons staff.

KITSAP BLUEJACKETS (23-30, 4th West, 13.5 GB)

Kitsap faded in August, going 3-7 while getting swept in Walla Walla and losing 3 of 4 in Bellingham, but the BlueJackets didn't allow a midseason 13-game losing skid kill their season. OF Daniel Woodrow (Creighton) led a middling offense with a .346 average while going 17-of-18 on steals and C Ryan Matranga (San Francisco) went .310/2/21 in 33 games. The Kitsap pitching was spotty with a 5.25 ERA. Lefty Josh Moss (St. Martin's) was 7-2 and 3.65 over 9 starts and late arrival Skyler Genger (Seattle) was 2-2 with a 3.02 ERA. A better team than their record shows but just not enough pitching.

KLAMATH FALLS GEMS (15-39, 4th South, 20 GB)

The Gems' season had one thing in common with the All-Star Game in Klamath Falls: Both were washouts. K-Falls lost their first three games in Bremerton and were 3-11 after two weeks. 1B Steven Packard (Oregon) led WCL batters with a .394 average after a late fling with .400 while 3B Dennis Morton (Palomar) and OF Thomas Walker (UC Riverside) hit .327 and .306, respectively, as the Gems were decent offensively. The pitching was offensive, period, with a team ERA of 7.08. Somehow, middleman Kody Kuhlman (Feather River CC) managed 4 wins and a 3.17 ERA, hopefully without developing a nervous tic.

MEDFORD ROGUES (26-28, 3rd South, 9 GB)

Medford was in a three-way race in the WCL South before a midseason three-game sweep in Corvallis put the Rogues in a hole they couldn't climb out of. 1B Nathan Etheridge (W Oregon) hit .343 with 32 RBIs and 1B Victor Garcia (Texas-Pan American) crashed 7 homers, but the Medford offense, while decent, failed to meet preseason dreams. Rogue pitchers weren't bad either, with a 4.00 ERA. Righty Jackson Bertsch (Lane CC) was stalwart with a 6-2 mark and 2.90 ERA while David Peterson (Oregon) and Nathan Kuchta (Cypress CC) combined for 9 wins. Not a bad team but not as good as hoped for, either.

VICTORIA HARBOUR CATS (25-29, 2nd West, 12 GB)

The Cats found themselves in several high-scoring games as Victoria's pitching wasn't quite a match for their hitting. OF Hunter Mercado-Hood was a legit MVP candidate, going .385/2/46 to finish second in the WCL in hitting and RBIs, 1B Gabe Clark (Oregon St) tied for second with 8 homers while hitting .291 and second-year SS Alex DeGoti (Long Beach St) batted .296 with 34 RBIs. P Mikey Wright's (San Jose St) 2.96 ERA helped him to a team-high 4 wins but Victoria's 4.50 ERA was less than imposing. P/DH Sean Watkins (Loyola) had 2 wins, 2 saves and a 0.81 ERA while batting .339 with 4 homers and 6 steals in 31 games.

WALLA WALLA SWEETS (28-26, 3rd East, 7 GB)

Walla Walla lost 6 of their last 8 outings to finish two games above .500 but the Sweets were never a factor in the WCL East race after starting the season 6-12. OF Andrew Mendenhall (Lewis-Clark St) was a standout, finishing among WCL leaders with a .349 average, 8 homers and 39 ribbies while 2B Michael Duarte (UC Riverside) was sixth among batters at .353 as the Sweets broke the league record with 44 homers. Pitching was a weakness, as shown by a 5.48 team ERA. Closer Jay Flaa (North Dakota St) went 2-1 with 7 saves, a 3.37 ERA and a WCL-leading 58 K's despite starting just once.

WENATCHEE APPLESOX (30-24, 2nd East, 5 GB)

The AppleSox won 9 of 11 games late but fell a game short of a playoff berth while not winning their division for the first time since 2007. Although not blessed with power, Wenatchee had the WCL's highest batting average at .291, including two of the league top hitters in OF/P Tyler Frost and IF Caleb Wood (both Gonzaga), who hit .373 and .360. Sox pitchers led the circuit with 468 strikeouts but were otherwise unspectacular. Frost (3.68 ERA) and Ian Buckles (George Fox) each had 4 wins and Brandon Bailey (Gonzaga) was 2-2 and 1.37 over 39.1 IP in 10 starts.

YAKIMA VALLEY PIPPINS (35-19, 1st East, 0 GB)

Yakima Valley became the first expansion team in WCL history to win a division title, thanks in no small part to OF Vince Fernandez (UC Riverside). The league MVP abused pitchers for a .359 average while breaking league records with 10 homers and 51 RBIs. The 6'4" Fernandez also stole 11 bases in 13 attempts. Four Pippin starters hit .307 or better, including OF Justin Jacobs (Gonzaga) and IF Shawn Wardian (AIB Business). P Eli Morgan (Gonzaga) was 8-1 with a 3.05 ERA while Brandon Williams (C Washington) and Andrew Woods (VMI) combined for 10 wins with ERAs of 2.33 and 2.38, finishing third and fourth in the WCL.

CAUGHT ON THE HOP

The WCL set a new attendance record in 2014 with 438,294 fans clicking the turnstiles for 368 regular season, playoff and nonleague games (an average of 1,191 per night). Bellingham had the highest overall attendance with 47,303 over 32 openings for an average of 1,481. Victoria drew 42,563 for an average of 1,576 at regular season games, both league highs. The HarbourCats brought in 45,571 overall in 30 contests, or 1,519 each...The coaching carousel is already spinning in offseason mode. Wenatchee has replaced Ed Knaggs, who stepped down after 14 seasons, with AppleSox pitching coach A.J. Proszek (a former Giants farmhand), Toronto area scout Graig Merritt is taking the reins in Victoria, where Bob Miller resigned to concentrate on his job at Cuesta College, Lower Columbia CC pitching coach Grady Tweit replaces Tim Matz after three season as head man with Cowlitz, and Walla Walla's J.C. Biagi is calling it good after five seasons and two playoff appearances at the helm...In an interview with the Yakima Herald-Republic newspaper, Yakima Valley executive Zach Fraser said that while he was pleased the team went 35-19 to become the first WCL expansion team to win a division title, the Pippins lost money this year (not shocking for a first-year franchise with attendant start-up costs). Yakima finished fourth in the WCL regular season attendance derby with 37,045 fans at 27 openings, or 1,372 per night. Conversely, the old Class A Bears finished last in Northwest League attendance nine consecutive years before moving to Oregon after the 2012 season.

WCL ROAD TRIP: Bremerton, Washington, USA

After our last Road Trip visit to Bellingham, Washington (home of the 2014 WCL champ Bells), we'll drive south on Interstate 5 for 149 miles to Tacoma, head west on Highway 16 another 27 miles over the famous Narrows Bridge from Tacoma to the Kitsap Peninsula and the Highway 3 intersection, where we'll travel north another three miles to Bremerton, home of the Kitsap BlueJackets.

Bremerton sits on the shores of Puget Sound across the water west of Seattle. Although the city itself is not especially large, with an estimated 2013 population of 39,056, the surrounding area greatly increases Bremerton's metropolitan population to more than a quarter million residents (83 percent of which is Caucasian). The area is home to both a Naval Shipyard in the Bremerton city limits and a Trident nuclear submarine base in nearby Bangor, lending a strong military presence. The U.S.S. Missouri, a battleship on which Japan's surrender from World War II was formally signed, was docked in Bremerton for decades until being moved to Hawaii's Pearl Harbor in 1998, taking Bremerton's prime tourist attraction across the Pacific.

Like most cities in the WCL's West Division, Bremerton has a fairly temperate climate with warm, dry summers and mild, wetter winters. The city receives more than 50 inches of precipitation per year, but fewer than 4 inches falls between June and August and historically, there is little annual snowfall. Average high temperatures range from the mid-70's in the summer to the mid-40's in winter.

Bremerton's history dates back to the 1890's, when a German-born entrepreneur in Seattle, William Bremer, bought 190 acres on Kitsap Peninsula at inflated prices before turning around to sell it at hyper-inflated prices to the U.S. Navy, who wanted to build a shipyard at that location. Bremerton's population topped 80,000 at the height of World War II and both Presidents Roosevelt and Truman visited during the 1940's (it's claimed the phrase "Give 'em Hell, Harry" originated here), but five years after the war ended in 1945, the city had dropped to less than 30,000 residents. While Bremerton was fairly stable from the 1950's through the 1970's (with the Bangor base opening in that time), the downtown area suffered from neglect and became rundown, leading to the closure of many large stores that moved to nearby Silverdale instead. In the early 1990's, efforts were underway to renovate and revitalize Bremerton via a conference center, boardwalk, condos, ferry terminal and downtown park.

The Kitsap BlueJackets, who joined the fledgling West Coast League as a new member in 2005, play their home games at the 1,200-seat Gene Lobe Field in the Kitsap County Fairgrounds. The BlueJackets were among the better-drawing teams in the early WCL but as the rest of the circuit has grown in attendance annually, the numbers stagnated in Bremerton and gatherings of 500 remain the norm. The team has not reached the playoffs since 2007 and local support in the shadow of Seattle and the Mariners has been tepid. The market remains one of the WCL's largest but so far the magic formula of getting people to the ballpark there remains to be arrived at.

NEXT ROAD TRIP STOP: Longview, Washington, USA

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West Coast League Stories from September 8, 2014


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