Kitsap BlueJackets
From BR Bullpen
- Location: Bremerton, WA
- League: West Coast Collegiate Baseball League
- Stadium: Kitsap Fairgrounds
[edit] Team Bio
Founded in 2004, the Kitsap BlueJackets are a Summer Collegiate Baseball team playing in the West Coast Collegiate Baseball League. The BlueJackets play their home games at Kitsap Fairgounds in Bremerton, WA. The BlueJackets are named after the Bremerton Bluejackets, the last professional team to play in Bremerton, who left following the 1949 season.
The BlueJackets lost their innaugural game against the Kirkland Kodiaks on June 7, 2005. The BlueJackets fell 11-4 to the Kodiaks despite the fact that the umpires did not arrive until the fourth inning, and the BlueJackets staff officiated the first three innings of the game. Three days later, on June 10, the BlueJackets won their first home opener to the Aloha Knights with a score of 6-3. The Jackets finished their first season in 6th place in the 7 team WCCBL. In thier second season, the BlueJackets again failed to secure a playoff position, but finished with thier first winning record of 24-18.
The Kitsap BlueJackets are like every other summer college baseball team in that they are designed to provide an increased level of competition for NCAA players that wish to continue on into professional baseball, and fun and affordable entertainment for families. The Blue Jackets operate in a manner similar to an independent minor league team: playing nightly before fans in stadiums which seat thousands, using wood bats and minor league specification equipment, and experiencing road trips between games. The Kitsap BlueJackets actively recruit players, and have hosted collegiate athletes from throughout the United States and Canada. Like all other summer collegiate players, athletes are unpaid in order to maintain their NCAA eligibility, and live with host families in the same manner as Single A and Independent League players.
[edit] 2007 On-Field Staff
- Head Coach: Matt Acker
- Head Assistant/ Pitching Coach: Scott Colby
- Hitting Coach: Joe Dominiak, Southern Oregon '89
- Bullpen Coach: David Pearson
[edit] Farm System
The Blue Jackets are somewhat unique from other Summer Collegiate Baseball teams in that they are one of the few teams to operate affiliate teams to develop talent. The Tacoma Cardinals are owned and operated by the BlueJackets, and allow the team to perfect and further develop the skills of young collegiate athletes with potential (primarily freshmen and sophmores). The Cardinals, who were purchased from the Corvallis Knights following the 2005 season, operate as an independent barnstorming team and play a 25-30 game schedule which includes Kitsap, Corvallis and several other WCCBL teams.
