Although a majority of my NW baseball coverage the last 5 years has been centered around the NWAC, I actually started covering the West Coast League a few years before I ever attended my first NWAC game. Instantly I loved the atmosphere of the different stadiums I went to and I truly enjoyed seeing all of the talent gathered in the WCL.
In 2016, while on vacation, I got the the chance to go to a go in Bellingham for the first time and instantly I knew that it was a great place to watch a game. To this day I have and use the Bells water bottle that my daughter won that game and think back on the fun I had. So with that being said I’m excited to have the Bellingham Bells be the first WCL team to have their 2021 Season Preview article posted on the site.
2021 Coaching Staff
Head Coach Adam Geaslen (1st year)
Pitching Coach/Recruiting Coordinator Jim Clem (11th year)
Assistant Coach David Higuera (1st year)
Assistant Coach Haydan Hastings (1st year)
Returning Players
Pitcher Will Armbruester (New Mexico) was on the 2019 roster
Pitchers Kenji Pallares (UCLA), Ryan Bogusz (OK ST), Duncan Favor (CWU), Logan Gerling (UW) and IF AJ Davis (LCST) were on the 2020 roster (season cancelled due to COVID-19).
Key New Players
Our field of incoming freshman (current HS seniors) is highly touted and talented – UCLA commits Malakhi Knight, Cody Schrier, Nick McLain & Thatcher Hurd, Stanford’s Charlie Saum and Bainbridge HS/Gonzaga commit Kai Francis.
Some older more experienced players will give the Bells depth including Raheem Salmon & Jovan Gill from Stetson, Gerling, Nick Welch & Mark Sellers from UCSB. The Bells roster is deep this year and many great programs/players are represented.
Alumni at the professional level
We currently have one former Bell on a 40-man roster (Spencer Howard, Phillies) and 6 former Bells in MLB spring training (Chase Strumpf, Michael Rucker, Kody Hoese, Seth Martinez, Spencer Howard, David Banuelos). About 10 former Bells are drafted on a normal MLB draft year annually.
Impact on the Community
Community is a part of our mission statement & a huge priority for the Bells. In the last year, we have donated $2,500 to the Bellingham Food Bank, held a food drive gathering 2500 pounds of food, donated meals to local front-line workers, contributed with hundreds of ticket donations to local non-profits. We host fundraisers at the ballpark each summer, donating thousands of dollars to organizations like Camp Korey. We also try to connect with our community often through mascot appearances and community events. Our community is the reason we are here – we are Bellingham’s team – and we want to do everything we can to support local causes here in Whatcom County when we can.
Homefield and the atmosphere
Joe Martin Field – former home to the Bellingham Mariners, Giants & Dodgers (MILB Short Season A). Ken Griffey Jr played his rookie season at JMF with the Bellingham Mariners in 1987. JMF is a full synthetic turf facility with 3,000 capacity. Atmosphere at home games is awesome! Our fanbase is enthusiastic and loyal. We have consistently ranked toward the top of the WCL attendance list, and the atmosphere at Bells home games is hard to beat.
(Josh’s notes- As I said I attended here for the first time in 2016 and loved it. Even my daughter who was 4 at the time enjoyed being there and that is often the hardest thing to accomplish)
Hopes and expectations for 2021
First and foremost, provide a safe and healthy environment for all of our players, staff, host families and fans. We want to be able to bring Bells Baseball back to our community but also do so in a way that is in line with our state regulations and keeps everyone safe. Obviously we are hopeful the amount of fans we can host at the ballpark will increase from the current number (750), and that we can have a great summer welcoming our fans back to the ballpark.