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Victoria HarbourCats – Four former HarbourCats highlight World Baseball Classic rosters

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Three former ‘Cats on Team Canada, one on Great Britain

For Immediate Release

February, 10, 2023

Victoria, BC – When the World Baseball Classic begins on March 8th, four former HarbourCats, all pitchers, will be wearing their respective country’s team colors and hoping to do their part to lead their teams to success in the tournament.

Nick Pivetta, Cade Smith and Indigo Diaz were three of the 17 pitchers named to the 30-Man Team Canada roster on Thursday, while Chavez Fernander joins the pitching staff of Great Britain.

Pivetta of course is known for being the HarbourCats first ever signee and the first HarbourCats starter in the team’s inaugural season in 2013. He is now with the Boston Red Sox where he has been a key member of their starting rotation.

Diaz was with the HarbourCats in 2017 where he was an WCL All-Star selection and is now with the Yankees Triple A Scranton, while Smith was with the HarbourCats in the summer of 2019 and is now in the Cleveland system and has recently been invited to 2023 big-league spring training with the Guardians.

Fernander, from the Bahamas, played for the HarbourCats in 2017, was drafted by the Detroit Tigers in 2018 and played last season with the Tigers High A affiliate West Michigan Whitecaps.

Other notable pros on the Team Canada roster include Freddie Freeman (Dodgers), Bo Naylor (Guardians), and former Langley Blaze superstar Tyler O’Neil (Cardinals), as well as four others with HarbourCats connections – Blue Jays prospect Damiano Palmegiani who played for Port Angeles in 2019 and was slated to play for the HarbourCats in 2020, veteran minor-leaguer Evan Rutckyj, whose cousin Nick, played for the ‘Cats in 2013-2014 and pitchers Curtis Taylor – who was with the Kelowna Falcons in 2015 and pitched at RAP early in that year – and Trevor Brigden, who was with Kelowna in 2018. Great Britain’s Alex Webb is also another former Kelowna Falcon (2015).

The HarbourCats players noted above, as well as Palmegiani Taylor, Brigden and Webb, are part of 20 former West Coast League players who will be playing in this year’s Classic (full list follows below).

Team Canada and Great Britain are seated in Pool C of the tournament, which actually begins play on March 11th and they will face some tough competition, notably from Team USA, who feature the likes of Mike Trout, Mookie Betts, Pete Alonso, Clayton Kershaw and Adam Wainwright to name a few. Other teams in the pool include Columbia and Mexico.

The 2023 World Baseball Classic, being played for the first time since 2017, has been expanded from 16 to 20 teams, split into four pools of five teams each. Every team will play the other teams in its pool once, with the top two teams from each pool at the end of this round advancing to an eight-team, single-elimination stage. This will culminate with the championship game on March 21.

Full list of former West Coast League Players in the 2023 World Baseball Classic

Canada

  • Trevor Brigden, Kelowna Falcons (2018), RHP
  • Indigo Diaz, Victoria HarbourCats (2016-2017), RHP
  • Damiano Palmegiani, Port Angeles Lefties (2019), INF
  • Nick Pivetta, Victoria HarbourCats (2013), RHP
  • Cade Smith, Victoria HarbourCats (2016), RHP
  • Curtis Taylor, Kelowna Falcons (2015), RHP

Columbia

  • Rio Gomez, Bend Elks (2015), LHP

Czech Republic

  • Eric Sogard, Bend Elks (2006), INF

Great Britain

  • Chavez Fernander, Victoria HarbourCats (2017), RHP
  • Ryan Long, Wenatchee AppleSox (2019), RHP
  • Alex Webb, Kelowna Falcons (2015), RHP

Israel

  • Jake Bird, Yakima Valley Pippins (2015), RHP
  • Kyle Molnar, Walla Walla Sweets (2015), RHP
  • Joey Wagman, Walla Walla Sweets (2010), RHP
  • Zack Weiss, Wenatchee AppleSox (2010), RHP

Italy

  • Sam Gaviglio, Corvallis Knights (2009), RHP
  • Nicky Lopez, Bend Elks (2014), INF
  • Dominic Miroglio, Walla Walla Sweets (2013), C

Mexico

  • Jarren Duran, Walla Walla Sweets (2016), OF

Nicaragua

  • Isaac Benard, Cowlitz Black Bears (2015), OF

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Summer Collegiate

Hayes goes deep again, Owls win final home game

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NANAIMO, B.C. — Jacob Hayes, and Owen Wessel, but the punctuation on it.

The Nanaimo NightOwls ended the home portion of their fourth season in the West Coast League with a convincing 6-1 triumph over the visiting Kamloops NorthPaws in an entertaining game played Sunday afternoon at Serauxmen Stadium.

Hayes, with a team-record 10th home run, and Wessel, with his first of the season, went deep for Nanaimo, while Dawson Schultz and Vinny Bruno kept the Kamloops bats silent.

Wessel hit a two-run shot in the second, and Hayes had a solo shot in the third. Both were to left field.

The NightOwls (22-29, 10-14 in second half) close out the season with three road games in Bellingham, on Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday.

Season tickets will start renewal shortly after another exciting season of WCL baseball in Nanaimo, with local product and head coach Cody Andreychuk returning in 2026, and the expectation that veteran pitching coach Gorman Heimueller, one of the best in all of baseball, will be with Nanaimo next season for what will be his 50th year in the game — leading to a season-long celebration.

Dawson Schultz started and was masterful, going six innings with four hits allowed while striking out five. Vinny Bruno, the Italian right-hander, closed it with a save and three innings with two strikeouts.

Hayes, named team MVP before the game, was 2-3 with two RBIs, a walk, and a run scored. Andrew Ivy, Easton Mould and Spencer Sullivan also had two hits each. Andew Nykoluk had two runs and Wessel had two RBIs.

Sullivan was given the team’s Development Award, right-hander Aidan Boice was given the top pitcher award, Ryder Florence earned the citizenship award, and concession stalwart Jo-Ann Hammond was named the volunteer of the year.

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Victoria HarbourCats – HarbourCats roll to 8-2 win

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The HarbourCats have won eight of their last ten games (Photo: Justin P. Morash)

August 5, 2025

For immediate release

VICTORIA, B.C. – The Victoria HarbourCats celebrated Jersey off our Backs night with a convincing 8-2 win over the Edmonton Riverhawks Tuesday night.

After Dillon Lopez (St. Mary’s) led off the second inning with a double, Jake Butler (George Mason) drove him home with a sacrifice fly to give the Cats an early 1-0 lead.

The Hawks answered back with a sacrifice fly of their own in the top of the third inning to level it up 1-1.

BOX SCORE

Tanner Beltowski (Westmont College) doubled in the bottom of the third and came home on the next play after an error allowed him to score. The Cats caused havoc on the basepaths all game stealing five bags, and Jack Johnson (Tulane) was at the centre of that, stealing second and third to set up a situation with men on the corners. Kamana Nahaku (Hawaii) stole second and drew the throw which allowed Johnson to break for home and he scored, making it 3-1.

Tyler Patrick tied his season-high with five strikeouts (Photo: Justin P. Morash)

Shiryu Sato added a second Edmonton run in the fifth inning driving in Anthony Kodama with a two-out RBI single, cutting the Cats lead to 3-2.

Tyler Patrick struck out five batters over 4-2/3 innings of work starting his sixth game of the campaign.

Tristan Buehring (Whitman College) hit an RBI single for the second straight game to push the Cats lead to 4-2.

WCL STANDINGS

The HarbourCats piled on four more runs in the bottom of the sixth to extend their advantage to 8-2. First it was Beltowski with an RBI single that was then followed by a pair of sacrifice flies from Johnson and Lopez. Butler continued to swing a hot bat, driving in his second run of the ballgame on a single to cap off the big inning. The second baseman has 13 RBIs in his last eight games.

Jacob Thompson was first out of the bullpen for Todd Haney’s team and he did exactly what was asked of him, pitching 2-1/3 shutout innings while striking out three. Garrett Villa (Angelo State) closed out the game recording the final six outs giving up no runs and striking out a pair.

Tristan Buehring has three hits in his first two games as a HarbourCat (Photo: Justin P. Morash)

WATCH GAMES HERE

This 8-2 win means playoff seeding will go down to the final game tomorrow night. It is simple, the winner of tomorrow’s game between Victoria and Edmonton will win the second half and earn home field advantage for the first round of the playoffs, to be played this weekend August 8-10.

BUY TICKETS HERE

VOUCHER REMINDER: Tomorrow is the final game you can redeem your vouchers. They are not eligible to be used for playoff games. You can do so at harbourcats.com/tickets, and if you have any questions or need help exchanging your vouchers, call the HarbourCats office at (778) 265 0327.

Tomorrow is Fan Appreciation Night, presented by Passion Sports. Get tickets at harbourcats.com/tickets.

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Gutsy NightOwls edge Bells in extra innings

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BELLINGHAM, WA — With nothing but pride on the line, the Nanaimo NightOwls are showing they are full of character.

A sacrifice fly by outfielder Spencer Sullivan in the 10th inning at Joe Martin Field on Monday gave the NightOwls, who will miss the playoffs in their fourth season in the West Coast League, a 3-2 victory over the playoff-bound Bellingham Bells — who won the North Division’s first half pennant to lock up their post-season berth.

Andrew Ivy led off the game with a home run, his first of the season, crushing a 2-1 pitch out of one of the WCL’s hardest parks to clear the fence.

Dalton Hanson was strong in a short starting assignment, the Scottsdale CC product going three scoreless innings, giving up two walks and three hits. Venezuelan lefty Richtter Castillo was effective in three innings, allowing two hits and three walks, with one earned run and two strikeouts.

Jayden Gabrillo (Hawaii Pacific) struck out four batters over two innings, giving up two hits and one run. Moosa Nonomiya, fresh off helping Team Pakistan earn international standings points in a series played in Chicago against Palestine, got the win with two innings of scoreless work.

Leadoff man Ivy was 3-4 with the home run, a double, a walk and an RBI and scored two of the team’s runs, while the guy behind him, Ryder Florence, was 2-4 to raise his batting average to .210 — he’s batting .421 over his last seven games. Easton Mould was 2-4 with an RBI.

The NightOwls have two games left in the WCL season, playing in Bellingham on Tuesday and Wednesday nights, before the players head off to their respective collegiate programs. The NightOwls are 23-29 overall, and 11-14 in the second half — the team will finish fifth or sixth overall in the eight-team North Division.

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