When Baltimore rookie Adley Rutschman hit his first home run at Camden Yards on Thursday night, the former Corvallis Knights catcher struck a blow not only for the Orioles but also the West Coast League. You can get there from here.
Some 4,700 kilometres west of Baltimore, the current generation of WCL players were plying their craft all over sa国际传媒, Washington state and Oregon, including in the Island derby at Wilson’s Group Stadium at Royal Athletic Park as the Nanaimo NightOwls scored three runs in the top of the ninth inning to defeat the Victoria HarbourCats 8-6 despite a four-hit night by Colton Moore. Marcus Steen of Ladysmith had three hits, two RBIs and two runs scored for the NightOwls.
The gruelling scheduling may have caught up with the HarbourCats. They came into the game after playing Wednesday evening in Springfield, Oregon, in a 3-2 victory over the Drifters and then ate a lot asphalt overnight on I-5 enroute to a morning ferry to be back home on Caledonia for the Thursday game against the Owls.
The college players in the WCL go from weekend games in the NCAA, to playing every day in summer leagues such as the WCL, to mimic the kind of bus travel they will face in the minor pros.
“Having to compete daily is the biggest adjustment for these players in summer ball,” Cats head coach Todd Haney has said.
“They are seeing and living the grind on a daily basis,” added the long-time former pro, whose career included five seasons in MLB with the Expos, Cubs and Mets.
The HarbourCats (12-18) open a three-game set against the surprising expansion Kamloops NorthPaws (15-11) tonight at RAP. The NightOwls are 12-14 and begin a three-game series tonight against the Wenatchee AppleSox (13-16) at Serauxmen Stadium.
