The AppleSox will once again include players from Oregon State University as three Beavers are set to play in Wenatchee this summer. OSU is sending outfielder Ryan Barnes, right-handed pitcher Cole Baylis, and right-handed pitcher Glenn Wallace to join the AppleSox.

“We love our relationship with OSU and it goes back a long time,” said AppleSox head coach Ed Knaggs. “They are always well-coached players who are good team guys.”

For the third straight season the AppleSox will feature a group of talented young players from the University of California-Irvine. The Anteaters are sending a pair of freshmen, left-handed pitcher Tyler Abbott and right-handed pitcher Phillip Ferragamo to join the AppleSox this summer.

“Like many of our players they are coming here because of our history with the coach and their program,” said Knaggs, who played for UC Irvine head coach Mike Gillespie at the College of the Canyons in Valencia, CA. “This year it worked out that they wanted to send us two young pitchers. They have been really happy with the improvement their pitchers have made here in the past and we are excited to have them.”

The AppleSox will feature a new hat design when the players take the field for the 2011 season. In a closely contested race the AppleSox alternate “Sox” logo on a red crown and a blue bill won the weeklong online fan poll with 41.7% of the vote. The AppleSox current hat featuring the diamond logo on a blue crown and red bill finished in second place with 37.3% of the vote. The AppleSox alternate “Sox” logo on a blue crown and red bill finished in third place with 21% of the vote.

“I’m really excited to have a red hat and I think it’s going to be a very neat look,” said AppleSox head coach Ed Knaggs. “I went online and voted each day just like the fans and I’m happy to say I agree with their choice.”

The two-time defending West Coast League Champion Wenatchee AppleSox will have four Gonzaga Bulldogs joining the team in 2011. Gonzaga is sending outfielder Payden Cawley Lamb, right-handed pitcher David Bigelow, right-handed pitcher Aaron Brooks, and infielder Thomas Henderson to play for the AppleSox this summer.

“We have a great tradition of Gonzaga players coming through our program,” said AppleSox head coach Ed Knaggs, who spent seven years as a Gonzaga assistant coach. “It’s one of the schools that we always get the full allotment of four players from.”

The AppleSox were honored with an achievement award at the annual Northwest Baseball Coaches Convention. The award was presented to AppleSox head coach Ed Knaggs at the convention’s “Walk of Champions" luncheon.

“It is always nice to be recognized. The award is a reflection on the whole AppleSox organization from our owners, players, coaches, fans, and host families,” said Knaggs.

Former AppleSox assistant coach Fletcher Vynne has graduated with honors from the U.S. Naval Officer Candidate School in Newport, R.I.

Vynne graduated in early December and is now attending Naval Flight School in Pensacola, FL. The popular coach joined the military after the AppleSox season wrapped up last summer.

Following an outstanding freshman season and a dominating summer with the AppleSox, Jeff Ames has been named a junior college Preseason All-American by Baseball America. Ames was also listed by the magazine as the #12 junior college prospect in the country.

Ames flourished with the AppleSox in 2010 when he converted to the closer role in early July. He ended the season with nine saves, including three in the playoffs. He did not allow a run in league play throughout July and August.

Stop by and see the AppleSox at the first ever Wenatchee Valley Youth Sports Fair. Parents can register their kids for the AppleSox 2011 Youth Clinics and the Bat Kids Program. The free event will run from 10:00 AM – 4:00 PM on January 22nd at the Wenatchee Convention Center.

The event is hosted by the Wenatchee Valley Sports Council and will feature information on every youth sports offering in the Wenatchee Valley.

The AppleSox eleventh season was one for the record books. The year was capped off by the Wenatchee World selecting the AppleSox as the region’s top sports story in 2010. To read the full story from the Wenatchee World, click here.

In addition to capturing the WCL Championship for the second straight season, there were many other accomplishments on and off the field that made 2010 such a special year for the AppleSox.

The Wenatchee AppleSox have put the finishing touches on their 2011 coaching staff by hiring Sean Winston as an assistant coach. Winston comes from Paradise Valley Community College in Phoenix, Ariz., where he is in his first year as an assistant coach.

“He fits the mold for the position,” said AppleSox head coach Ed Knaggs. “He is a young aspiring coach who isn’t afraid to work.”