A look at where these players have been and where they are going next
RIDGEFIELD — The Ridgefield Raptors have a few players with local connections but most come from outside of the area, and many from outside the Northwest.
So we wanted to take the opportunity to get to know the Raptors, find out where they are from, and what they think of Ridgefield.
Now keep in mind, some of these players will be with the Raptors all summer. Others are on temporary contracts because they might have commitments in other parts of the country. Summer leagues for college-eligible athletes, such as the West Coast League, have fluid rosters.
We hope to say hello to more Raptors as they come to town. But here is a brief intro to the original Raptors, with comments about the city, and maybe a fun fact or two from their online bios from their colleges or online news sources.
The Raptors complete their first homestand of the season with a 6:30 p.m. game tonight (Thursday) at the Ridgefield Outdoor Recreation Complex.
No. 1 Wyatt Hoffman, infielder
He went to Cathedral Catholic High School in San Diego and now plays for the University of the Pacific in Stockton, Calif.
A good friend of his knows Raptors coach Chris Cota, and they worked it out for Hoffman to play in Clark County.
“Big crowd last night. Ridgefield’s a nice place. A lot of green.”
Fun fact: Son of Hall of Famer Trevor Hoffman.
No. 2 Justin Boyd, infielder/outfielder
He grew up in Parker, Colo, attending Legend High School — what a great name for a school. He just finished his senior year and is heading to Oregon State.
“I had no idea” of Ridgefield. “I love it. Small, little town. The people are great. It was an amazing atmosphere last night.”
A top recruit: OregonLive reported that Boyd was the No. 2 recruit from Colorado and a top 200-player nationally, regardless of position. Can hit for power and steal bases. Also, when he commits, he commits. He said yes to Oregon State back in 2016.
No. 3 Peter Allegro, pitcher
He attended Bellarmine Prep High School in Tacoma and plays for the University of Portland.
“It’s super exciting that we have a brand new team here. A lot of the guys are from all over the place, and we’re really getting along. I think it’s going to be a really good year for Ridgefield.”
Fun fact: Allegro, in his freshman year at UP, went 4-0 in 12 relief appearances.
No. 5 Tyler Erne, infielder
He is from Valencia, Calif. — home of Magic Mountain — and went to the College of the Canyons and now is heading to Chico State.
First, a summer in the Northwest.
“It’s pretty beautiful. Fans have been awesome, and the stadium is awesome,” he said.
Fun fact: The head coach of College of the Canyons is Chris Cota, who just happens to be the manager of the Raptors. So that was an easy connection for Erne.
No. 6 Cameron Repetti, infielder/pitcher
Graduated from Cypress High School last week and will be a freshman at Cal State Fullerton.
His college coach, like many of the out-of-state Raptors, had the connections to find him a spot in the West Coast League.
“I had never heard of Ridgefield. I thought it was a population of 200. I like it. It’s way different than I thought. It’s really cool.”
Fun fact: On Wednesday, the Orange County Register Guard named Repetti the high school player of the year for the county. He led his high school team to a South Section title, the equivalent of a state title.
No. 7 Jonny Weaver, infielder
He grew up in Phoenix and now plays for Grand Canyon University.
Ridgefield is brand new to him.
“Definitely a pretty cool town. A lot of fans showed up for opening night, and that was cool,” he said.
Talking turkey: Grand Canyon University baseball players make an appearance at a grocery store every November to ask for donations for the hungry. When Weaver was a freshman, the team raised more than $3,000 in cash and turkeys in just a few hours. A senior teammate credited Weaver. “He might have a future in sales,” because Weaver is such a smooth talker.
No. 8 Ethan Clough, pitcher
He will be a sophomore at Long Beach State and grew up in Temecula, about an hour north of San Diego.
“I had never heard of Ridgefield before, but I like it so far. It’s super green. I’m from the beach so this is a big change of scenery.”
Fun fact: As a senior in high school, he was named to the all-CIF Southern Section team. The state is so big, the California Interscholastic Federation goes with different sections. Think of making all-section as all-state.
No. 10 Dominic Enbody, catcher
We missed him during pregame Wednesday so no quote from Enbody, but his bat did plenty of talking Tuesday. He hit the first home run in Raptor’s history.
Enbody is close enough to be called local, growing up in Wilsonville, Ore. He plays for Concordia in Portland.
Fun fact: Led Concordia in batting average as a freshman and then again this past season.
No. 11 Michael Spellacy, pitcher
The roster says he is from Puyallup. That is, after all, where he graduated from high school. But Spellacy played his first two years of high school ball at Battle Ground. The former Tiger now plays for Gonzaga University.
“It’s cool to be back down here, to see how Ridgefield has changed. When I was young, it wasn’t much of an area at all. Now it’s developed a lot more and you’ve got this nice, beautiful ballpark here. It’s cool to be back.”
Fun fact: Named the player of the year by the News Tribune his senior year at Puyallup in 2017.
No. 12 Grayson Sterling, infielder/outfielder
He attended Capital High School in Boise, Idaho, and is now at Gonzaga University.
“I had never heard of Ridgefield before I came here. I really like the area. I think it’s one of the places I could live when I grow up.”
Raptors history: Sunday’s game was an exhibition, so on Tuesday, it was Sterling who got the first official hit in Raptors’ history. He also scored the first run.
Fun fact: He is a Raptor now but last summer he was a Sasquatch. Sterling was on the roster of the Spearfish Sasquatch in South Dakota. Don’t you just love baseball mascots?
No. 16 Eli Shubert, pitcher
He is from Eagle, Idaho, and now plays at Lower Columbia College in Longview. In fact, he lives in Woodland.
“I had seen all the press about this place,” he said, so he asked his coach to inquire about the possibility of joining the Raptors. Here he is now, enjoying Ridgefield.
“It was crazy,” he said of opening night, adding it was the biggest crowd he had ever played in front of in his career.
Fun fact: He was voted all-state in high school and threw eight consecutive complete games during his senior year.
No. 17 Zach Barnes, pitcher
He grew up in Chandler, Ariz., and plays for Grand Canyon University. His coach at GCU set up the opportunity to play for the Raptors.
“It’s beautiful here, and the atmosphere here for opening night was unreal.”
Tidbits: He told Grand Canyon University that his best high school memory was throwing a shutout on senior day. He had 23 appearances this year at GCU with a 3.48 ERA.
No. 21 Steve Ramirez, catcher
He attends Riverside City College in California and is originally from San Bernardino. Flew into town Wednesday so he missed opening day. But he got a quick look at the town.
“Never heard of Ridgefield, but I like seeing all this green,” he said. “It’s a lot different than back home.”
A few hours later, in his first game with the Raptors, he hit a home run.
Fun facts: His high school team, Etiwanda, won the CIF Southern Section, the equivalent of a state championship, when he was a junior. … This season at Riverside, he drove in 32 runs in 33 games played, hitting .333.
No. 22 Kase Ogata, first base
He is from Meridian, Idaho and attends Boise State University.
“I was scrolling Twitter, and they hit me with that ‘follow.’ That’s how I found out (about the Raptors). They hit me with that ‘follow’ and I was like, ‘I want to play there.’ Gotta go there, and now I’m here.”
Ridgefield, he said, reminds him of home.
“Cool town and an awesome field,” he said.
A new beginning: Boise State has a baseball team. The roster is on the athletic department’s website. Don’t look for any statistics, though. Boise State has not played yet. The reinstated baseball program will officially begin play in 2020. Ogata, according to the Idaho Statesman, was the first player to commit to the program.
No. 23 Mike Young, utility
Attended Francis Parker High School in San Diego and then signed with a hometown program at the University of San Diego.
“Never heard of Ridgefield, but I love it so far. The people are just kind. Beautiful people. They’re all nice. We had a sold-out crowd at the home opener. That was a lot of fun. It’s just a really fun place, a good environment.”
Fun fact: This Californian does not mind going north for some baseball. A year ago, he was on the roster of the Peninsula Oilers of the Alaska Baseball League.
No. 24 Jack Bauer, outfielder/catcher
Yes, he’s No. 24. Of course Jack Bauer is No. 24.
A local product, Bauer starred at Union High School in Vancouver. “Go Titans!” he said. Bauer is about to enter his senior year at Campbellsville University in Kentucky.
He is thrilled to be able to play summer league in Clark County.
“I see a lot people I know around the ballpark, and it’s a great baseball atmosphere here. Southwest Washington is big on baseball, and that’s why I’m staying close to home.”
Hmmm: According to the bio when he played for Dixie State University, he said his favorite baseball team is the Boston Red Sox. His favorite players, though, are Yankee legends Derek Jeter and Bernie Williams. Something does not add up.
No. 30 Addison Berger, pitcher
Just graduated from Marin Catholic High School in the San Francisco Bay Area. He is going to the University of Oregon.
“Ridgefield? I had never heard of it until the other day. I have a great host family. It’s a really supportive community. I’m excited to go explore and go golfing all around Oregon and Washington.”
His college coach got him the connection to play in the West Coast League.
“I’m super excited and ready for a great season.”
Fun fact: As a junior in high school, he threw a no-hitter and then came an inning away from back-to-back no-hitters.
No. 31 Mike Hicks, outfielder
Played for Coeur d’Alene High School. Went to the University of Portland for a couple years and now is back in his home state, preparing to play for Boise State.
So yes, he had heard of Ridgefield. Still, he was impressed with Tuesday’s opener.
“Last night was awesome. Good turnout,” he said.
Fun fact: The New York Yankees drafted Hicks out of high school. He opted for college, including two years with the Pilots.
No. 32 Joey Martin, pitcher
He is from Comfort, Texas, and plays for Kansas State University. He once hit a walk-off to beat the No. 1 team in Texas in the state playoffs.
“I’ve never heard of Ridgefield before now. I love the town. Great fan base. Great people. Host homes are nice. Love it here.”
Fun fact: Averaged better than a strikeout per inning in 12 appearances his first season at Kansas State.
No. 33 Wesley Harper, pitcher
He grew up in San Jose, Calif., and is set to play for Boise State University.
“I had never heard of it before my coach said we’re going to send you to Ridgefield this summer. I immediately went to Google to ‘google’ Ridgefield. Alright, let’s see where it is.”
So far, he is impressed.
“It’s been great. The atmosphere was awesome. The town give you an old-school kind of vibe.”
Fun fact: Played at Bellarmine College Prep in San Jose, which was ranked among the top 100 high school baseball programs in the nation. He threw a shutout in the semifinals of the section tournament his senior year.
No. 34 Ole Arnston, infielder
He is from Gresham and went to La Salle Preparatory High School in Milwaukie, Ore. He plays college ball at Wabash Valley College in Illinois.
“My parents live 15 minutes down the road in Vancouver now. It’s so nice they can just drive up. This is awesome. Been a great experience so far. I’m loving it.”
Fun fact: USA Today put Arnston on its Oregon all-state team when he was a senior at La Salle.
No. 40 Tyler Elliott, pitcher
From central Oregon, he most recently played for Mount Hood Community College in Gresham and is going to be a junior at Montana State Billings next academic year.
He was already familiar with Ridgefield. Now he gets to play there.
“The atmosphere here is really good. The fans were getting into it when we scored some runs. That’s always a good thing.”
Fun fact: He struck out 50 batters in 41 innings of work this spring with Mt. Hood CC.
No. 43 Carter Benbrook, utility
From Carmichael, Calif., he went to Jesuit High School in the Sacramento area. He is headed to UC Santa Barbara.
Never heard of Ridgefield until he became a Raptor.
“Great town. Nice small town. Similar to my town, but not really,” he said.
Tidbit: When he was a freshman, his high school posted on its Facebook page a video of Carter, his brother, and a friend for giving out doughnuts on National Doughnut Day. Heroes, all of them. And yes, we do have a link for you: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ih_PHFpuDuQ&fbclid=IwAR04ZUNOkW6UiROWQ8O8Ap8e7yXNfgAY5JoMgxswJgn-F_62ISeV9hz5jDM
No. 44 Connor Dreyer, pitcher
He is originally from Granada Hills, Calif., and plays college baseball at Cal State Dominguez Hills.
Ridgefield is new to him.
“It’s pretty nice. It’s different. It’s definitely different from driving in L.A. Everything out there is dead. It’s all green here, which is nice.”
Stats: He led Cal State Dominguez Hills in saves this season, striking out 44 batters in 38 innings of work.
Also: Spencer Andersen. Ridgefield’s own. We featured him earlier in the week:
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