Pirates head into all star break

Defending

WCCBL champions

9-19 at the

break

MOSES LAKE - After a slow start to the 2008 West Coast Collegiate Baseball League season, the Pirates enter tonight's all star game at Larson Playfield with a 9-19 record.

The Pirates are coming off of a home series win over the Bellingham Bells. The Pirates dropped the series opener 5-4 in extra innings but rebounded to win two straight.

Moses Lake Pirates manager Trevor Brown said his team is improving as the season progresses.

"We've made a lot of adjustments," he said. "We are getting a lot better."

While the Pirates are in last place in the East Division of the WCCBL, Brown said the Pirates have the talent to make a push in the second half of the season.

"We are about to start rolling," he said. "The bats are coming alive, the pitching has been good all season."

The Pirates have three representatives in tonight's WCCBL all star game; infielder Brandon Huerta of Pomona-Pitzer College, outfielder Dane Yelovich and A.J. Morris. Yelovich and Morris both attend and play baseball for Kansas State University.

Morris has the potential to be the ace of the Kansas State Univerity pitching staff next season.

"Morris is flat dominating," Brown said. "He is probably the Friday guy. He has a chance to be the number one guy."

Brown said division I university teams in the NCAA typically play games on Friday, Saturday, and Sunday. The ace of the pitching staff typically pitches on Friday, the first game of the weekend series.

Yelovich had a phenomenal junior season at Kansas State, Brown said.

"His numbers are starting to speak for themselves," Brown said. "He works his butt off."

Huerta is a clutch hitter who has been performing well for the Pirates, Brown said.

"He has had some big, key knocks this season," he said. "He has had three or four game-tying knocks, and two or three game-winning knocks."

The Pirates are starting to roll and could improve during the second half of the season, Brown said.

"With us winning the series with Bellingham, we still have a lot of opportunities to make up some ground," he said.

Brown said the Pirates need to keep pitching well during the second half of the season.

"It depends on how we pitch," he said. "Teams are gonna get tired. If we pitch well and play good defense, we are going to win some games."

Moses Lake hosts the WCCBL all star game at 7:30 p.m. tonight at Larson Playfield. The Pirates begin the second half of the WCCBL season Thursday with a three-game home series with the Kelowna Falcons at Larson Playfield.