PORT ANGELES — West Coast League baseball will be in Port Angeles a year earlier than expected.
But only for one night.
The Kitsap BlueJackets, a West Coast League team, will face the West Coast Guns in an exhibition game at Civic Field on Wednesday at 6:30 p.m.
Both teams are owned by Matt Acker, who is trying to bring a West Coast League team to Port Angeles.
Wednesday’s nine-inning game is a fundraiser for Wilder Baseball, the North Olympic Peninsula’s 18U Senior Babe Ruth baseball team.
Tickets are $5 for those older than 16 years old. Those 16 and younger get in free.
The West Coast League is a wood-bat summer baseball league for college players.
Acker said last month that a multiyear contract that would bring a team to Port Angeles starting in 2017 is close to completion.
At least one BlueJacket will be making his return to Civic Field on Wednesday. Pitcher Eli Fultz faced the Port Angeles Roughriders when he played at Bremerton High School.
Fultz graduated from Bremerton in 2013, and most recently finished his sophomore season at Olympic College in Bremerton, where he received Northwest Athletic Conference North Region second-team honors.
Fultz played for the BlueJackets in 2015, and last fall, he signed to continue his college baseball career at West Texas A&M University.
NWAC North Region MVP Bryce Steckler of Everett will be an outfielder for this year’s BlueJackets. Steckler’s fellow Bryce and fellow Everett outfielder, Bryce Peterson also will play for the BlueJackets. Peterson was a North Region first-teamer.
BlueJackets players come from throughout the country.
Michael Smith and Brooks Zimmerman are infielder/outfielders at Kansas State.
Luke Stampfl just finished his sophomore season at Fordham in Bronx, N.Y.
Three players are from Murray State in Kentucky: first baseman Marten Pauwels, third baseman Austin Ferguson and outfielder Lucas Jones.
Pauwels’ 11 home runs ranked fifth in the Ohio Valley Conference.
Devon DeRaad is an outfielder for Occidental College in Los Angeles, where he set a season record with 16 home runs.
Right-handed pitcher John Matros plays at Ouachita Baptist in Arkadelphia, Ark., and lefty Tony Ortiz pitches at Arkansas State in Jonesboro, Ark.
Righy Jake Brewer, one of a handful of returning BlueJackets, is a teammate of former Chimacum High School standout Quinn Eldridge at Concordia University in Portland, Ore.
Another BlueJackets returner is Colten Barnes, who Monday was the starting pitcher for Pierce College as it played for a spot in the NWAC championship game.
The Raiders lost to Steckler and Peterson’s Everett Trojans 3-2. Barnes allowed only three hits amd two runs in six innings.
The West Coast Guns, like the BlueJackets, are based in Bremerton.
The Guns are an independent team that plays against West Coast League, Pacific International League and Puget Sound Collegiate League clubs.
The Guns are made up of graduated college players and other professional players looking to further their careers.
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Sports Editor Lee Horton can be reached at 360-417-3525 or at lhorton@peninsuladailynews.com.
