The Bellingham Bells are riding a hot wave after ripping off five straight victories and winning nine of their last 11 games following a 3-2 win over Kamloops Wednesday, June 19 at Joe Martin Field.
The Bells (16-11 West Coast League) secured the series victory with the win, and are currently sitting in fourth place in the eight-team North Division.
They’ll look to wrap up this series Thursday, June 20 before heading to Victoria for a showdown with the North Division leaders.
Pitching powerhouse
Bellingham’s recent run has been fueled by brilliant pitching performances — reminiscent of the Seattle Mariners’ current pitching production. It includes back-to-back shutouts June 14–15, while allowing a total of five runs in the last five games.
Ryan Beitel (2-0) and Sheldon Egger (2-0) are both ranked in the top 11 in ERA. Beitel’s (0.60) is tied for second-best in the league, and the right-hander has struck out 16 batters in 15 innings while allowing just four walks. Eggers ERA (2.03) is ranked 11th and he has nine strikeouts in 13.1 innings with four walks as well.
Caleb Cassie (0-2) has been a strikeout machine, fanning 15 batters across nine innings pitched. Also notching double-digit strikeouts so far are Will Franklin (11), Josh Flaugher (10), Callum Young (10) and Lathan Haywood (10).
Top hitters
Jacob Mejia continues to be one of the Bells top hitters this season, posting a team-high .344 batting average that ranks 13th in the league. Nate Kirkpatrick (.328) and Jason Shedlock (.291) are ranked second and third on the team. Meija and Kirkpatrick’s 22 hits are tied for second-most in the league, while Shedlock has 16. Meija also has two home runs.
Meija and Kirkpatrick are also tied for the second-most doubles (7) in the league, while Trent Mallonee has swiped the second-most stolen bases so far with nine.
Local watch
2024 Lynden grad and right-handed pitcher Lane Simonsen has a 0.00 ERA in three appearances, striking out nine while allowing three hits and two walks in five innings.
Right-handed pitcher Marques Brown, a Mount Baker alum, has a 2.07 ERA with three strikeouts, five hits and two walks in 4.1 innings of work.
Right-handed pitcher Eli Knowlton, a Squalicum grad, has a 3.68 ERA with nine strikeouts, five hits and seven walks in 7.1 innings on the mound.
What’s next
The Bells have a critical three-game road series against the North Division-leading Victoria HarbourCats (19-7). Bellingham trails Victoria by four games and will look to chip away at that lead when the two meet on June 21–23.
Bellingham will then continue its road tour with a three-game series at Edmonton Riverhawks (11-16) from June 25–27.
For schedules, stats and ticket information, visit bellinghambells.com.
Eric Trent is CDN’s news producer; reach him at erictrent@cascadiadaily.com.
