
Knights Sign RCC's Austin Sodders
April 22, 2014 - West Coast League (WCL)
Corvallis Knights News Release
The Corvallis Knights have signed pitcher Austin Sodders of Riverside City College for the 2014 season, general manager Bre Kerkvliet announced Tuesday.
Sodders is a 6-foot-4, 180-pound freshman lefthander from Canyon Creek High School in Moreno Valley, Calif. He is 3-1 with a 3.50 ERA in 11 appearances this spring, with 167 strikeouts in 16 innings.
Sodders replaces pitcher Chris Vargas on the roster. A freshman at UC Riverside, Vargas will miss the summer season because of injury.
Another 2014 pitcher, Linfield junior pitcher Chris Haddeland, was nominated for Northwest Conference Pitcher of the Week honors but was not selected. He allowed three earned runs and had nine strikeouts in eight innings of a 4-1 loss against George Fox this past Friday. It was his first loss of the season after eight straight wins.
In alumni news, two former Knights released by major-league teams have signed to play independent baseball.
Former Knights' pitcher/outfielder Michael Blake (2010) will play for the Sioux Falls (SD) Canaries in the American Association. He played at Mt. Hood CC and at Hawaii and spent three seasons in the Arizona organization before being released in the offseason.
First baseman Taylor Ard (2009) will play for the River City Rascals in the Frontier League. The ex-Washington State/Mt. Hood CC standout was released by Seattle in March after two seasons in their farm system.
Also, 2012 play-by-play broadcaster Kevin Burke will be the voice of the Traverse City (Mich.) Beach Bums in the Frontier League. He was the No. 2 broadcaster for Pensacola in the Southern League in 2013 and was the play-by-play voice of the High Point University women's basketball team this past winter.
The Knights open their eighth season in Corvallis on June 4 with a nonconference home game against the Portland SeaDogs. They begin the defense of their West Coast League title on June 6 at Bend.
West Coast League Stories from April 22, 2014
- Knights Sign RCC's Austin Sodders - Corvallis Knights
- Pippins Add Three More Former Yaks - Yakima Valley Pippins
- HarbourCats Sign Four, Including Victoria Pitcher Hull - Victoria HabourCats
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