Today would have christened the 2020 West Coast League Baseball season with the hometown Yakima Valley Pippins opening the year at The Orchard at Yakima County Stadium at State Fair Park against visiting Corvallis.
In a press release dated June 5, the club stated that, due to the COVID-19 pandemic and current protocols, they are "reluctantly" announcing the cancellation of the 2020 season.

Pippins General Manager Jeff Garretson, via the release, stated that season ticket holders will be able to roll their packages into the 2021 campaign as well as "tickets to two additional games at no additional charge."

The Pips were poised to have a host of local players on this year's roster including Selah standout Carter Young (Vanderbilt), Regan Haas (Wapato; Gonzaga), Cort Dietrich (Selah; Montana State Univ. Billings) and Xander Orejudos (Ellensburg; Georgia Gwinnett).

Other Pippins notes:

• Earlier this offseason, the Pippins extended their lease of Yakima County Stadium with State Fair Park for another three years, Garretson said.

• The WCL today announced the 2021 league season will begin Friday, June 4, 2021. The Pippins will open at home that day, with the opponent to be announced when the league schedule is released this fall.

• The 12 current teams in the WCL will be joined next year by an expansion team in Naniamo, British Columbia, which joined the league earlier this spring.

For updates on when the local sports scene returns to some semblance of normal, download the free 1460 ESPN Yakima mobile app for alerts sent directly to your phone.

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