Baseball Blurbs by Bruce Wenatchee at Kelowna Friday-Sunday Game Times: 6:35 p.m. Fri. and Sat. 6:05 p.m. Sun. Elks Stadium (Kelowna, BC.) By: Bruce Bennett, 7/5

Wenatchee 9, Kelowna 1 last night

Wenatchee (14-11) at Kelowna (7-18) 6:35 tonight.

600 This evening’s game is the 600th league contest in franchise history...156 in the Pacific International League and 444 in the West Coast League. Of the first 599 Wenatchee has won 369 and lost 230 for a 61.6 winning percentage.

Cole Gillespie No Longer a Mariner Former AppleSox, Cole Gillespie was designated for assignment yesterday by the Mariners. Gillespie played for Wenatchee in 2004. From the Seattle Times: “The Mariners made a somewhat expected roster move today, activating Corey Hart from the disabled list. To make room for Hart, outfielder Cole Gillespie was designated for assignment.

“Hart played left field for the Rainiers the other night – a sign that his legs were starting to become strong enough to make a return. In 10 rehab games with Tacoma, Hart was hitting .297 (11-for-37) with three doubles, a triple, a homer and four RBI. Hart has been on the DL since May 18 after suffering a hamstring strain against the Minnesota Twins on a stolen base attempt.

“Gillespie appeared in 34 games, hitting .254 (18-for-71) with two doubles, a homer and five RBI. His playing time had dwindled in the last week. He’d played just twice since July 25. Gillespie was signed in the offseason as a minor league free agent. The Mariners have 10 days to either release, trade or outright Gillespie.”

Jason Hammel to Oakland The first AppleSox to make the majors, Jason Hammel, is on his way form the to the Oak- land Athletics according to the Chicagosuntimes.com in a story early this morning. In a move that upstaged fireworks shows late Friday night, the Cubs traded two of the top available — and Jason Hammel — to the in a 4-for-2 deal that returned the A’s top two prospects and promising young right-hander , sources confirmed.

Hammel played for the AppleSox in 2001 and has spent nine years in the majors pitching for the , , and the Cubs. In Oakland he will team with fellow who played for Wenatchee in 2006. A couple of weeks ago there was talk that Hammel might be traded to the Mariners.

July 5 Games Wenatchee is in a comeback mode for games the fifth of July. They have only played eight games on this date and had real problems for the first six;..namely, lost them all. But they have rebounded to win the most recent pair in 2011 and ‘12. They are overall 2-6, league 2-5, nonleague 0-1, home 1-4 and away 1-2. Twice they played Kelowna on the fifth and lost them both (‘07 and ‘09). Baseball Blurbs by Bruce Wenatchee at Kelowna Friday-Sunday Game Times: 6:35 p.m. Fri. and Sat. 6:05 p.m. Sun. Elks Stadium (Kelowna, BC.)

Standings East: Yakima Valley 14-9, WENATCHEE 14-11, Walla Walla 9-14, Kelowna 7-18 West: Bellingham 17-5, Cowlitz 11-12, Victoria 10-12, Kitsap 8-13 South: Corvallis 16-10, Bend 15-11, Medford 12-10, Klamath Falls 15

Who’s Hot: Bellingham has won 9 straight. Bend has won 9 of 10. Victoria has won 5 straight. Corvallis has won 5 of 6. Who’s Not: Kitsap has lost 9 straight. Kelowna has lost 9 of 10. Medford has lost 5 straight.

In Bellingham’s last 14 games, 12 of which they’ve won, they’ve given up a miserly 1.93 runs per game.