Kline makes Tino Martinez Award Watch List

Happy Tuesday, everyone.

We hit double-digits today. It's just 99 days until our June 4 nonleague opener against the independent Portland Sea Dogs, a team of former college players from the Portland metropolitan area. Former Oregon State star Kevin Gunderson, who played for the old Aloha Knights in 2004, is their projected starting pitcher.

We also should have our promotional schedule ready very shortly, now that some league procedural items have been resolved. We're expecting another great summer, with 32 home games on the docket.

Here's some more Knights news, and a few items from elsewhere in the West Coast League.

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Knights' standout Kevin Kline (2013, 2014) of Dixie State is one of 125 NCAA Division II players on the watch list for the 2014 Jaeger Sports Tino Martinez Award, given to the most outstanding player in DII college baseball.

The annual honor is named after the former University of Tampa Spartan, Olympian and MLB All-Star, Tino Martinez. Kline has moved from first base to third base this season. Congrats to Kevin!

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Future Knight Logan Ice (2014) of Oregon State, a freshman catcher, was 1-for-4 with a run, a double and two RBIs on Monday in a 3-2 win over Washington in Surprise, Ariz. Alum Kavin Keyes (2013) was 4-for-4 with a run; alum Kevin Flemer (2013) gave up one run and had one strikeout in two innings of relief; alum Caylen Clardy (2012) was a pinch-runner for the Beavers. No alums played for the Huskies.

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Here are the updated stats of our 2014 NCAA Division II, Division III, NAIA and JC Knights:

JIMMIE CLEARY (Linfield): The 10-day signee from Corvallis has not yet appeared in a game.

JOE DUFFIN (Cypress CC): A transfer from UC Santa Barbara who also played for us in 2013, Joe is hitting .342 (13-38) in 11 games, with a homer and nine RBIs.

KEVIN KLINE (Dixie State): Another returnee from 2013, Kevin is hitting .205 (8-39) in 11 games, with no homers and six RBIs.

PHIL LEOPOLD (Bellarmine): Bellarmine opens its season this weekend.

TIM RAUSCH (Western Oregon): Tim is hitting .226 (7-31) in 11 games, with a homer and five RBIs.

JACKSON RUCKERT (Linfield): A 10-day signee from Albany, Jackson is hitting .500 (1-2) in five games, with no homers or RBIs.

CHRIS SHAW (Midland CC): Chris is hitting .273 (6-22) in six games, with four doubles, a homer and seven RBIs.

CHRIS BISHOP (PLU): A two-time returnee, Chris is 0-2, 1.10 in 16 innings over three games, with 17 strikeouts.

SEAN EBERHARDT (George Fox): Another returning vet, Sean is 1-0, 3.68 in 7.1 innings over six games, with two saves and seven strikeouts.

CHRIS HADDELAND (Linfield): Chris is 2-0, 0.43 in three games, with 18 strikeouts in 21 innings.

ZACH KAYSER (WOU): Zach is 1-0, 1.80 in five appearances, with one strikeout in five innings.

MICHAEL KELLY (Clackamas CC): Clackamas opens its season this weekend.

DERRICK MAHLUM (PLU): Derrick is 2-1, 1.53 in three starts, with 20 strikeouts in 17.2 innings.

MIKE NOWAK (Dixie State): Mike is 0-0, 109.90 in 1/3 of an inning in one appearance.

STEPHEN WHITE (Tacoma CC): TCC starts its season this weekend.

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Some news from around the West Coast League:

BELLINGHAM: The Bells have signed Arizona State University freshmen right-handers Hever Bueno and Eder Erives for the upcoming season. Click here for full details, from the Bellingham website.

YAKIMA VALLEY: The Pippins have signed middle infielder Ryan Rosa and left-handed pitcher Nick Suniga for the upcoming season. Both are freshmen at Cal Poly. Here's more, from the Our Sports Central website.

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That's it for today. See you on Wednesday!

Slater Lee earns BWC Pitcher of the Week honors

Happy Monday, everyone.

Ran into former Knights' skipper Matt Dorey (2007) in Surprise, Ariz., this past weekend while watching Oregon State's tournament at Surprise Stadium. The director of amateur scouting for the Chicago Cubs was checking out the tournament for two days before heading off to Texas.

Also saw former Knight/Beaver Danny Hayes (2010), who was watching his former teammates prior to reporting to spring training with the Chicago White Sox in nearby Camelback Ranch in Phoenix. He had a nice rookie season at Great Falls in the short-season Pioneer League in 2013 after a good senior season with the Beavers.

Alum Scott Schultz (2011) of OSU had an outstanding, complete-game 6-hit performance in an 8-1 win over Indiana on Sunday. Alum Kavin Kayes (2013) and future Knight Logan Ice also had some key hits.

We're now down to 100 days until our June 4 nonleague opener against the independent Portland Sea Dogs, a team of former college players from the Portland metropolitan area. Former Oregon State star Kevin Gunderson, who played for the old Aloha Knights in 2004, is their projected starting pitcher.

Here's some more Knights news, and a few items from elsewhere in the West Coast League.

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Cal Poly freshman right-hander Slater Lee, a 2014 Knights' signee, was named the Big West Conference Pitcher of the Week on Monday following his two-hit shutout of defending national-champion and 12th-ranked UCLA in Los Angeles on Saturday.

The native of Carlsbad, Calif., threw Cal Poly's first complete-game shutout in two years and the first complete-game two-hitter since 1996. Lee walked one and struck out seven.

Lee is 2-0, 0.59 and has allowed one earned run in 15.1 innings this season. Click here for more details, from the Big West Conference website. Alum Jimmy Allen (2011) of Cal Poly was the BWC's Field Player of the Week last week.

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Third baseman Brent Morel (2006-07), a former star at Cal Poly, has been claimed by the Pittsburgh Pirates after being designated for assignment by Toronto on Friday. The Blue Jays had claimed him on waivers from the Chicago White Sox earlier in the offseason.

Morel, 26, has appeared in 194 Major League games over four seasons, with 13 home runs and 54 RBIs. Here's more from MLB.com:

"Morel was the White Sox's starting third baseman as a 24-year-old rookie in 2011, but hit just .245 with a .653 OPS in 126 games and has played sparingly in the majors since then. Chicago waived him in December after he hit .266 with six homers and a .751 OPS at Triple-A last season.

He'll compete for a spot on the Pirates' bench, but seems destined to wind up back in the minors or on the waiver wire again."

He joins alum Chris Stewart (2001) on Pittsburgh's 40-man roster.

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We've got a new story on redshirting catcher Dane Lund (2011-14) of Oregon State up on our website. Please click here to check it out.

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Some games remain to be played today, but here are the updated stats (through Sunday's games) of our 2014 NCAA Division I Knights:

LOGAN ICE, Oregon State: The freshman catcher is hitting .238 (5-21) with five RBIs in seven games.

DAN JAMES, Oregon State: The freshman infielder was 0-for-1 in one game.

MIKE LUCARELLI, Portland: The junior shortstop, a returnee from 2013, is hitting .160 (4-25) in seven games.

GRANT MELKER, San Diego: The junior outfielder, another returnee, is hitting .300 (3-10) with two doubles in seven games.

TED HAMMOND, Seattle: The sophomore righty is 0-0, 9.82 in two games, with two strikeouts in 3.2 innings.

ALEX HARDY, Washington: The freshman righty is 0-0, 10.80 in two games, with one strikeout in 3.1 innings.

ANGEL LANDAZURI, UC Riverside: The freshman righty is 1-0, 3.52 in two games, with five strikeouts in 7.2 innings.

SLATER LEE, Cal Poly: The freshman righty is 2-0, 0.59 in two games, with 14 strikeouts in 15.1 innings.

JACKSON LOCKWOOD, Portland: The sophomore righty is 2-0, 0.00 in three games, with six strikeouts in 9.2 innings.

MICHAEL MARTIN, UC Irvine: The freshman righty is 0-1, 6.75 in two games, with no strikeouts in 1.1 innings.

ALEX NESBITT, Washington: The sophomore righty, a returnee from 2013, is 0-0, 13.50 in one appearance, with a strikeout in .2 innings.

STEPHEN NOGOSEK, Oregon: The freshman righty is 0-0, 9.00 in two games, with two strikeouts in two innings.

JORDAN SPENCER, Oregon: The junior lefty is 0-0, 5.72 in two games, with four strikeouts in 7.2 innings.

JOEY WISE, Grand Canyon: The freshman lefty is 0-0, 4.50 in two games, with two strikeouts in two innings.

We'll update our NCAA Division II, Division III, NAIA and JC players on Tuesday.

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Some news from around the West Coast League:

COWLITZ: The Black Bears have added sophomore RHP Cody Ponce, junior catcher/outfielder Brandon Salgado, and redshirt freshman LHP Jake Menzhuber, all from Cal Poly Pomona, for the upcoming season. Here's more on that story from the Cowlitz website.

KLAMATH FALLS: The Gems have signed Oregon signee Slade Heggen, a senior catcher/outfielder at Sacred Heart High School in Missoula, Mont., and Austin Hagy, a senior utility at Rider High School in Wichita Falls, Texas, who is a Murray State College (Okla.) signee. Here's more, from the Klamath Falls Herald and News newspaper.

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That's it for today. See you on Tuesday.

Knights sign Midland College star Chris Shaw

Happy Thursday, everyone.

Down to 104 days until our June 4 nonleague opener against the independent Portland Sea Dogs, a team of former college players from the Portland metropolitan area. Former Oregon State star Kevin Gunderson, who played for the old Aloha Knights in 2004, is their projected starting pitcher.

Here's some more Knights news, and a few items from elsewhere in the West Coast League.

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The Knights have signed catcher/first baseman Chris Shaw, a sophomore at Midland (Jr.) College in Midland, Texas. He's a native of Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada, and attended Okotoks Academy before enrolling at Midland.

Shaw (6-1, 195), R/R) hit .380 (68-179) as a freshman, with 22 doubles, three triples, 11 homers and 64 RBIs in 55 games, with a .721 slugging percentage and a .484 on-base percentage. He's hitting .273, with a homer and seven RBIs, in seven games this season.

Shaw played for the Okotoks Dawgs, an Okotoks, Alberta-based franchise in the Western Major Baseball League last summer and hit .309 (25-81) in 24 games, with a homer and 14 RBIs. He was selected by Milwaukee in the 38th round of the 2012 MLB draft, but did not sign.

Welcome to the club, Chris!

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UC Irvine freshman pitcher Michael Martin (2014) pitched 1/3 of an inning of scoreless relief in a 3-2 win over CSU-Bakersfield on Wednesday. Irvine's Chris Rabago (2012-13) was 1-for-3.

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Some news from around the West Coast League:

KELOWNA: The Falcons have signed outfielder Conner McMullin of LSU Shreveport for the upcoming season. Here's more, from the Kelowna website.

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That's it for today.

Great outing for Cal Poly's Justin Calomeni

Happy Wednesday, everyone.

It's now only 105 more days until our June 4 nonleague opener against the independent Portland Sea Dogs, a team of former college players from the Portland metropolitan area. Former Oregon State star Kevin Gunderson, who played for the old Aloha Knights in 2004, is their projected starting pitcher.

Here's some more Knights news, and a few items from elsewhere in the West Coast League.

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Great college debut on Tuesday for 2014 Knight Justin Calomeni, a freshman pitcher at Cal Poly. He gave up one hit and had nine strikeouts in five innings of an 8-0 win over Santa Clara. Lots of Knights played for the Mustangs; Nick Torres (2012) was 2-for-3 with three RBIs and a double; Peter Van Gansen (2013) was 1-for-4; Jimmy Allen (2011) was 0-for-3; Alex Michaels (2012) was 0-for-1 and Alec Smith (2014) played but did not bat.

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Several other 2014 Knights were in action on Tuesday; here's a rundown.

* UC Santa Barbara outfielder Scott Quinlan (2014) was 0-for-4 in a 5-1 win over CSU-Bakersfield. Starter Dylan Hecht (2013) allowed one run and had six strikeouts in four innings and got the win; reliever Greg Mahle (2012) pitched a scoreless inning.

* Grand Canyon reliever Joe Wise (2014) allowed one run and had one strikeout in a 10-1 loss at Fresno State.

* DH Joe Duffin (2013-14) of Cypress College had a single, double and two RBIs in a 4-1 win over El Camino CC.

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Some news from around the West Coast League:

BELLINGHAM: The Bells have signed University of Maine outfielder Brian Doran and Georgetown catcher Eric Webber , for the 2014 season. Here's more, from the Bellingham website.

WALLA WALLA: The Sweets will host Thursday Theme Nights at Borleske Stadium again this season. Here's more information, from the Walla Walla website.

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That's it for today. See you on Thursday.

Alums Drake, Zarosinski earn POW honors

Happy Tuesday, everyone.

Yes, it's starting to sound redundant, but it's another wet, soggy, blustery day in Corvallis. I guess that's just February, and yet another reason why the Beavers will head to Arizona again this weekend for another tournament, this one in Surprise, and why we play in the summer.

If the Beavers can duplicate the four wins they just earned in Tempe, great. Knights alums/future Knights played a big role in those games; 2011 alums Jace Fry (Saturday) and Scott Schultz (Sunday) earned victories; Kevin Flemer (2013) finished Monday's win; Kavin Keyes (2013) hit .429 with three RBIs, and Logan Ice (2014) hit .273 with two RBIs.

And don't let the weather outside fool you. It's now only 106 more days until our June 4 nonleague opener against the independent Portland Sea Dogs, a team of former college players from the Portland metropolitan area. Ex-Oregon State star Kevin Gunderson, who played for the old Aloha Knights in 2004, is their projected starting pitcher.

Here's some more Knights news, and a few items from elsewhere in the West Coast League.

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Alum Blake Drake (2013) of Concordia was named the Cascade Conference Player of the Week for Feb. 10-16 on Monday. Blake hit .500 (6-12) in three games at the Cavalier Classic and had three RBIs, three steals and six runs scored. Congrats to Blake, an all-WCL center fielder for our 2013 WCL champions!

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Alum Tom Zarosinski (2011, 2013) of George Fox was named the Northwest Conference Pitcher of the Week for Feb. 10-16. Linfield's Chris Haddeland (2014) was also nominated. Here's more, from the NWC website.

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Portland sophomore Jackson Lockwood (2014) was nominated for West Coast Conference Pitcher of the Week honors for Feb. 10-16, but was not selected. He was 1-0, 0.00 in four innings over two games against defending national-champion UCLA, with three strikeouts.

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Here are the updated stats of our 2014 NCAA Division II, Division III, NAIA and JC Knights:

JIMMIE CLEARY (Linfield): The 10-day signee from Corvallis has not yet appeared in a game.

JOE DUFFIN (Cypress CC): A transfer from UC Santa Barbara who also played for us in 2013, Joe is hitting .333 (9-27) in eight games, with a homer and six RBIs.

KEVIN KLINE (Dixie State): Another returnee from 2013, Kevin is hitting .125 (3-24) in seven games, with no homers and two RBIs.

TIM RAUSCH (Western Oregon): Tim is hitting .300 (6-20) in eight games, with a homer and five RBIs.

JACKSON RUCKERT (Linfield): A 10-day signee from Albany, Jackson is hitting .500 (1-2) in three games, with no homers or RBIs.

CHRIS BISHOP (PLU): A two-time returnee, Chris is 0-1, 0.00 in 10.1 innings over two games, with eight strikeouts.

SEAN EBERHARDT (George Fox): Another returning vet, Sean is 0-0, 5.79 in 4.2 innings over five games, with two saves and three strikeouts.

CHRIS HADDELAND (Linfield): Chris is 1-0, 0.69 in two games, with 13 strikeouts in 13 innings.

ZACH KAYSER (WOU): Zach is 1-0, 3.00 in three appearances, with one strikeout in three innings.

DERRICK MAHLUM (PLU): Derrick is 2-0, 0.00 in two starts, with 16 strikeouts in 12.2 innings.

MIKE NOWAK (Dixie State): Mike is 0-0, 109.90 in 1/3 of an inning in one appearance.

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Some news from around the West Coast League:

COWLITZ: The Black Bears have signed returnee Henry Omana, a right-handed pitcher from Cal State-Fullerton, and two incoming University of Oregon freshmen for the 2014 season. Here's more, from the Cowlitz website.

KLAMATH FALLS: The Gems have season-ticket packages available, starting with their June 5 home opener against Medford. Being sold are 2014 bonus books, a set of 10 tickets for $50. Purchased separately, the tickets would cost $70. To order or purchase tickets, call 541-883-4367.

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That's it for today. See you on Wednesday.

Big West Conference honors alum Jimmy Allen

Happy Monday, everyone.

Another wet, soggy day in Corvallis. This is why the Beavers generally head to Arizona to open their season. What an opening weekend it was, with wins by 2011 Knights' alums Jace Fry over Nebraska on Saturday and by Scott Schultz over Pacific on Sunday. Alum Kevin Flemer (2013) finished Monday's win over Pacific.

And we're down to 107 more days until our June 4 nonleague opener against the independent Portland Sea Dogs, a collection of former college players from the Portland metropolitan area. Former Oregon State star Kevin Gunderson, who played for the old Aloha Knights in 2004, is the projected starting pitcher for the Sea Dogs.

Here's some more Knights news, and a few items from elsewhere in the West Coast League.

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Alum Jimmy Allen (2011) of Cal Poly knocked in six of the Mustangs' 18 runs in a season-opening sweep of No. 22 Kansas State to earn Big West Baseball Field Player of the Week accolades.

Jimmy hit .417 with six RBI to spark the Mustangs to 3-0, 5-2 and 10-1 victories at Baggett Stadium. Allen smacked a two-run single to break a 0-0 tie in the sixth inning on Friday; went 2-for-4 with an RBI single Saturday, and then drove in three more runs on Sunday with two RBI singles and a sacrifice fly.

He had two multi-hit games in the series. Here's more on Jimmy's award, from the Big West Conference website.

Alum Evan Brock (2010) of UC Irvine was nominated for Pitcher of the Week honors but did not win.

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It was a pretty productive opening weekend for our 2014 Division I pitchers.

Cal Poly's Slater Lee, Portland's Jackson Lockwood and UC Riverside's Angel Landazuri all earned wins for their respective teams.

Also yesterday, Linfield ace Chris Haddeland (2014) shut out Western Oregon on two hits over seven innings of a 6-0 win at Linfield. He had six strikeouts. And George Fox junior reliever Sean Eberhardt (2013-14) earned a save in a 4-0 victory over the College of Idaho.

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Some games remain to be played today, but here are the updated stats of our 2014 NCAA Division I Knights:

LOGAN ICE, Oregon State: The freshman catcher is hitting .125 (1-8) with two runs in three games.

DAN JAMES, Oregon State: The freshman infielder was 0-for-1 in one game.

MIKE LUCARELLI, Portland: The junior shortstop, a returnee from 2013, is hitting .167 (2-12) in three games.

GRANT MELKER, San Diego: The junior outfielder, another returnee, is hitting .400 (2-5) with two doubles in three games.

TED HAMMOND, Seattle: The sophomore righty is 0-0, 0.00 in one game, with a strikeout in 2.1 innings.

ALEX HARDY, Washington: The freshman righty is 0-0, 6.75 in one game, with one strikeout in 2.2 innings.

ANGEL LANDAZURI, UC Riverside: The freshman righty is 1-0, 4.91 in one game, with four strikeouts in 3.2 innings.

SLATER LEE, Cal Poly: The freshman righty is 1-0, 1.42 in one appearance, with seven strikeouts in 6.1 innings.

JACKSON LOCKWOOD, Portland: The sophomore righty is 1-0, 0.00 in two games, with three strikeouts in four innings.

MICHAEL MARTIN, UC Irvine: The freshman righty is 0-1, 9.00 in one game, with no strikeouts in one inning.

ALEX NESBITT, Washington: The sophomore righty, a returnee from 2013, is 0-0, 13.50 in one appearance, with a strikeout in .2 innings.

STEPHEN NOGOSEK, Oregon: The freshman righty is 0-0, 18.00 in one appearance, with one strikeout in one inning.

JORDAN SPENCER, Oregon: The junior lefty is 0-0, 5.41 in one game, with three strikeouts in 3.1 innings.

We'll update our NCAA Division II, Division III, NAIA and JC players on Tuesday.

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Some news from around the West Coast League:

VICTORIA: The HarbourCats announced their major logistics partnerships are set for the 2014 season. The premium was on stability and continuity for the team as it heads into its second year in the league.

"It is important to our ownership and to our overall operation to build long-term relationships that are win-win for everyone involved," general manager Jim Swanson said. Here's more, for more info, from the Victoria website.

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That's it for today. See you on Tuesday.

Wetzler, Haddeland on Golden Spikes watch list

Happy Friday, everyone.

It's opening day for Division I college baseball. The Beavers open the season against Gonzaga at the Husker Classic in Tempe today; their home opener is just two weeks away, against Wright State on Feb. 28.

That's just another sign the Knights' season is drawing closer as well. We're down to 110 more days until our June 4 nonleague opener against the independent Portland Sea Dogs, a team of former college players from the Portland metropolitan area. Former Oregon State star Kevin Gunderson, who played for the old Aloha Knights in 2004, will be starting pitcher for the Sea Dogs.

Here's some more Knights news, and a few items from elsewhere in the West Coast League.

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Alum Ben Wetzler (2011), a senior left-handed pitcher at Oregon State, and future 2014 Knight Chris Haddeland, a junior at Linfield, have been named to the 60-man watch list for the Golden Spikes Award, presented annually to the top player in college baseball. Here's more on that story, from the College Baseball Daily website.

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Alum Tommy Hanson, our 2005 Knights Outstanding Pitcher and the 2005 WCL Pitcher of the Year, has agreed to a minor-league deal with the Texas Rangers, pending a physical. He played for the Los Angeles Angels in 2013 and is 49-35 lifetime, with a 3.80 ERA, in five major-league seasons.

Here's more on that story, from The Dallas Morning News, and here's even more from NBCsports.com. Best of luck to Tommy, who played at Riverside City College before signing with Atlanta in 2006.

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Some news from around the West Coast League:

WALLA WALLA: The Sweets have added two more players to their 2014 roster, freshman Conner O'Neil of Central Arizona JC and Russell Crippen of Abilene Christian. You can click here for more info, from the Walla Walla website.

YAKIMA VALLEY: The Pippins are seeking host families for the upcoming season. If you live in the region and are interested, here are more details, from the Yakima Herald newspaper.

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That's it for today. Have a great weekend and we'll see you on Monday.

Naderer named preseason second-team all-WAC

Happy Thursday, everyone.

A warm, clear day in Corvallis, reminding us that spring, and baseball weather, is on the way. The Beavers open the season against Gonzaga at the Husker Classic in Tempe on Friday, and their home opener is just two weeks away.

It's a little bit longer until our home opener, but it's drawing nearer every morning. It's only 111 more days until the June 4 nonleague lid-lifter against the independent Portland Sea Dogs, a team of former college players from the Portland metropolitan area. Former Oregon State star Kevin Gunderson, who played for the old Aloha Knights in 2004, will be starting pitcher for the Sea Dogs.

Here's some more Knights news, and a few items from elsewhere in the West Coast League.

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Alum Andrew Naderer (2013), a sophomore left-handed pitcher at Grand Canyon University, was named a second-team preseason Western Athletic Conference all-star by College Sports Madness. Here's a link to the entire team, from the CSM website.

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Alum David Armendariz (2011) of Cal Poly Pomona was named the California Collegiate Athletic Association Player of the Week for Feb. 3-9. He went 7-for-17 (.412) at the plate with five runs and six RBIs as the Broncos swept three games from Dixie State. Click here for more details, from the CPP website.

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We've got a new story on 2011 alums Jace Fry, Ben Wetzler and Scott Schultz of Oregon State up on our website. Please click here to read the story, if you haven't already.

Wetzler will be the Beavers' starter on Friday in their season opener against Gonzaga in Arizona. Fry will start against Pacific on Sunday. Good luck, men!

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Alum Tom Zarosinski (2011, 2013) of George Fox and future Knight Chris Haddeland (2014) of Linfield were each nominated for Northwest Conference Pitcher of the Week honors for Feb. 3-9, but were not selected.

Zarosinski allowed no runs on four hits and had eight strikeouts in a 12-1 win over Redlands on Feb. 8. Haddeland allowed two hits and one run and had seven strikeouts in six innings against La Verne on Feb. 7. He left with a 6-1 lead but ultimately got a no-decision.

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Tough break for our partner school UC Santa Barbara. The Gauchos' season-opening series with North Carolina State was cancelled; the Wolfpack couldn't fly out of Raleigh because of the huge storm that smacked the Southeast this week. Head coach Andrew Checketts, a Knights' alum, said they'll try to find an alternative opponent to make up the games sometime this season.

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Some news from around the West Coast League:

KELOWNA: The Falcons have signed Southeastern Louisiana juniors Kevin Carr and Andrew Godbold for the upcoming season. Click here for more details, from the team's website.

YAKIMA VALLEY: The Pippins announced that fan Laura Nunez of Moxee is the winner of their "Name the Team" contest. More than 400 unique entries were submitted into the contest and one person's entry was chosen at random. You can click here for more info, from the Our Sports Central website.

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That's it for today. See you on Friday.

Ex-Knights headline Oregon State's starting rotation this weekend

Happy Wednesday, everyone.

It's a rainy day in Corvallis and that should just about remove the final reminders of last week's blizzard. Now it's just a memory.

Our upcoming season isn't, however; it's a memory waiting to be created. We're down to a mere 112 more days until our June 4 nonleague opener against the independent Portland Sea Dogs, a team of former college players from the Portland metropolitan area. One-time Oregon State star Kevin Gunderson, who played for the old Aloha Knights in 2004, will be starting pitcher for the Sea Dogs.

Now, on with the rest of the news, even though there's not much of it today to report.

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Alums Ben Wetzler (2011) and Jace Fry (2011) will be the bread in Oregon State's pitching rotation sandwich this weekend when the Beavers begin the 2014 season at the Tempe Tournament at Tempe Diablo Stadium in Arizona. Wetzler will pitch against Gonzaga on Friday; Fry goes against Pacific on Sunday.

Other Knights' alums on this year's Beavers are catcher Nate Esposito (2012); pitchers Brandon Jackson (2012) and Kevin Flemer (2013), and infielders Kavin Keyes (2013) and Gabe Clark (2013). Catcher Logan Ice and infielder Dan James will play for the Knights this summer.

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Alums Jorge Perez (2012-13) and Andrew Naderer (2013) of Grand Canyon University get some serious props from head coach Andy Stankiewicz in this season preview story, from the GCU website. The Antelopes open their season on Friday against Louisiana-Monroe and Perez or Naderer could be the opening-day starter.

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Some news from elsewhere in the West Coast League:

BEND: The Elks have scheduled Cap Night, one of their most popular promotions, for June 27. Click here for more details, from the team's website.

COWLITZ: The Black Bears have signed four players for the upcoming season, including two freshman at national-champion UCLA. You can click here for more info, from the Cowlitz website.

WALLA WALLA: The Sweets have scheduled five $2 Tuesdays for the upcoming season, another popular promotion. Click here for more details, from the team's website.

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That's it for today. See you on Thursday.

Dylan Hecht on preseason watch list for top closers

Happy Tuesday, everyone.

Our snow is finally going away as the weather heats up, and school is back in session today as Corvallis returns to normal. Or, as it returns to whatever passes for normal in Corvallis.

We're now down to 113 more days until our June 4 nonleague opener against the independent Portland Sea Dogs, a team of former college players from the Portland metropolitan area. Former Oregon State star Kevin Gunderson, who played for the old Aloha Knights in 2004, will be their starting pitcher.

It's getting closer. Now, on with the rest of the news.

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Alum Dylan Hecht (2013), a sophomore closer at UC Santa Barbara, has been named to the preseason watch list for the 10th annual National Collegiate Baseball Writers Association Stopper of the Year Award, given to the top relief pitcher in NCAA Division I baseball. Here's more, from the College Baseball Daily website.

Congrats to Dylan. And, quite frankly, we're surprised at the omission of Oregon State senior Scott Schultz (2011), who had 10 saves for the Beavers in 2013. Maybe it's because his role for 2014 hasn't been 100 percent identified yet. BTW, we'll have more on Schultz and OSU teammates/2011 Knights Ben Wetzler and Jace Fry on our website later this week.

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Alum Cody Lenahan (2013) of the University of Portland is a second-team preseason West Coast League all-star at utility, as selected by the College Sports Madness website. Here's the complete WCC team, from the College Sports Madness website.

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It's on the homepage of our website, but just in case you missed it, we've got a question-and-answer feature with alum Chris Stewart of the Pittsburgh Pirates ready for your enjoyment. Chris was a special guest at Hot Stove Night II in 2013, when he was with the New York Yankees.

Please click here for the whole story. Stewie is a great guy, we're very proud to have him as an alum and we thank him for all he does for the Knights and for baseball.

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Some of our NCAA Division II, Division III, NAIA and junior-college players have already started their seasons. We'll have an update on their stats every Tuesday; here's the first installment, where possible (some teams have started their seasons but not yet updated their stats):

JIMMIE CLEARY (Linfield): The 10-day signee from Corvallis has not yet appeared in a game.

JOE DUFFIN (Cypress CC): A transfer from UC Santa Barbara who also played for us in 2013, Joe is hitting .417 (5-12) in four games, with no homers and two RBIs.

KEVIN KLINE (Dixie State): Another returnee from 2013, Kevin is hitting .091 (1-11) in three games, with no homers or RBIs.

TIM RAUSCH (Western Oregon): Tim is hitting .333 (5-15) in six games, with no homers and three RBIs.

JACKSON RUCKERT (Linfield): A 10-day signee from Albany, Jackson is hitting .500 (1-2) in three games, with no homers or RBIs.

CHRIS BISHOP (PLU): A two-time returnee, Chris is 0-1, 0.00 in 10.1 innings over two games, with eight strikeouts.

SEAN EBERHARDT (George Fox): Another returning vet, Sean is 0-0, 4.50 in two innings over two games, with one save and one strikeout.

CHRIS HADDELAND (Linfield): Chris is 0-0, 1.50 in one game, with seven strikeouts in six innings.

ZACH KAYSER (WOU): Zach is 1-0, 3.00 in three appearances, with one strikeout in three innings.

DERRICK MAHLUM (PLU): Derrick is 2-0, 0.00 in two starts, with 16 strikeouts in 12.2 innings.

MIKE NOWAK (Dixie State): Mike is 0-0, 109.90 in 1/3 of an inning in one appearance.

We'll update our Division I Knights next Monday, and on Monday's thereafter. The Division I season starts on Friday.

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Some news from elsewhere in the West Coast League:

BELLINGHAM: The Bells have signed University of Maine pitchers Burk FitzPatrick and Scott Heath for the 2014 season. Click here for more info, from the Bellingham website.

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That's it for today. See you on Wednesday.