PIPPINS ADD LOCAL FLAVOR TO ROSTER

The Yakima Valley Pippins have looked locally for their newest roster additions, signing Connor Lau and Kelly Fitzpatrick from Yakima Valley Community College (YVCC) to the 2014 roster. YVCC is also home to Pippins’ Manager Marcus McKimmy, whose roster now stands at 22 players.

Lau a two-way player for the Yaks, serves as a pitcher and an infielder. The sophomore out of Redmond, Ore. is hitting .231 with eight RBIs in 23 games this season, in addition to his ten games on the mound, which includes six saves and an ERA of 1.62.

"Connor will have a chance to pitch quite often when the team is tied or in the lead,” said McKimmy. “I have confidence in him setting-up or even closing some games. Connor is a winner. He has won at every level of baseball he has been at, and we are counting on that attribute to translate directly into our success this summer." 

Fitzpatrick is a freshman pitcher for YVCC out of Newport, Wash. He was highly touted

out of Mount Spokane High School, and McKimmy sees a lot of potential in the left-hander.

"Kelly is going to open some eyes this summer,” said McKimmy. “He is getting very close to 100% after coming off Tommy John surgery in 2013. His arm has been cleared for baseball activity for some time, but that confidence and timing that made him an early WSU commit out of high school is going to make him an important left-handed arm for the Pippins this summer."

The Yakima Valley Pippins Inaugural Season will commence at Yakima County Stadium on June 6th, 2014 at 7:05 P.M. against the Wenatchee AppleSox. Tickets are now on sale for the 2014 season, including full-season and partial-season packages, as well as select team merchandise. Single game tickets will go on sale May 1st. You can reach the Pippins Front office by calling 509-575-HITS (4487) or emailing us at info@pippinsbaseball.com.

Pippins gear is also available at the Pippins Front Office, the entire retail line can be seen at www.pippinsbaseball.com/pippinsgear, while ordering and purchasing can be done in person on via phone at 509-575-HITS (4487).