Everett Merchants open season tonight
Published 11:24 pm Friday, June 5, 2009
EVERETT — The Everett Merchants open their 37th season under manager Harold Pyatte tonight with a 7 p.m. game against the Puget Sound Senior Baseball League All-Stars at Everett Memorial Stadium.
The Merchants, who field a roster of current college and former college and professional players, compete in the Pacific International League with the Seattle Studs and four teams from British Columbia. Their non-league schedule features games against the Everett AquaSox (June 18) and the Chinese National Team (July 28).
This season’s Merchants team has a strong connection to to Snohomish High School. Panthers coach Kim Hammons is one of Pyatte’s assistants, and his son’s, Jake and Nick, are on the roster as are brothers Eric and Kevin Rodland, who also played at Snohomish.
Jake Hammons, a catcher and pitcher, attends Central Washington. Nick Hammons, an infielder/pitcher, attends Everett Community College. The Rodlands will hold down the middle infield positions. Eric, a second baseman, reached the Class AA level in the Angels organization before retiring in 2007. Kevin is a senior-to-be at Nevada-Reno.
Tonight’s game will be followed by a 1 p.m. doubleheader Sunday against league foe Kelowna, B.C. The opening homestand concludes Monday with a 7 p.m. non-league game against Auburn.
