PORTLAND, Ore. — Former ESPN and Fox Sports journalist Rob Neyer has been named Commissioner of the West Coast League, league president Tony Bonacci announced Tuesday.

The Port Angeles Lefties are one of 11 teams that compete in the 14-year old wood bat collegiate summer baseball league.

“We are thrilled to have Rob Neyer represent the West Coast League and act as our league’s commissioner,” Bonacci said. “His knowledge of the game and passion for what we are doing, not to mention his contacts in baseball, should help us elevate the league to new heights.”

“We can’t be more pleased that Rob has joined us as our commissioner.”

The commissioner position was added to the league’s leadership structure with Neyer’s hire. He is the league’s first commissioner since American Baseball Coaches Association Hall of Fame head coach Jim Dietz of San Diego State University presided over the West Coast Collegiate Baseball League in the circuit’s formative years.

A baseball writer known for his pioneering use of statistical analysis and sabermetrics, Neyer began his career working for Bill James and STATS, Inc. He’s also worked for 15 years as a columnist and blogger for ESPN, and was National Baseball Editor at Vox Media’s SB Nation from 2011 to 2013, then Senior Baseball Editor for Fox Sports through 2015.

His recent work has been featured in The New York Times, Vice Sports, Complex Sports, and Yahoo.com.

This October, HarperCollins will publish POWER BALL: Anatomy of a Modern Baseball Game, his seventh book.

“I’m a passionate, longtime fan of baseball history generally, and Pacific Northwest baseball specifically,” Neyer, who lives in Portland, Ore., said.

“So it’s difficult for me to imagine a more exciting opportunity, and I’m honored to be associated with such a fine organization. This summer, as I connect with the owners and visit all the beautiful ballparks, I’ll do everything I can to help this great league become even greater.”

Bonacci said Neyer’s duties include to arbitrate and regulate during the season; to further connect the league and its teams with the baseball community, its markets and those that follow the game and to act as a league ambassador.

Peninsula Daily News