Nanaimo NightOwls add Hendriks, Vrlak

The West Coast League’s Nanaimo NightOwls have signed IF/RHP Cody Hendriks (Coquitlam, B.C.) for the 2022 season. Photo: Nanaimo NightOwls

March 17, 2022

Official Nanaimo NightOwls News Release

Canadians Cody Hendriks and Jake Vrlak are among the five players recently signed by the West Coast League’s Nanaimo NightOwls.

Hendriks (Coquitlam, B.C.) has represented the Netherlands at the European Championship, winning a gold medal, and can both pitch and play infield spots. Born in Holland but growing up in Coquitlam, he was named the top player in B.C. at age 15, and hit .438 for the Coquitlam Jr. Reds in 2019. Time will tell if he settles in as a pitcher, or a position player.

Vrlak, a product of the North Shore Twins, is red-shirting this spring but will bring the ability to play multiple positions and battle his at-bats. The North Vancouver, B.C. native hit .387 for the Twins in the BCPBL in 2019.

The NightOwls have also added three American players: Jaycob Acosta, Alex Finney and Isaac Kim.

Acosta (Exeter, Calif.), a sophomore, was named league MVP in his senior year of high school, and spent the summer of 2021 with the Ridgefield Raptors of the WCL. He is 2-1 with a 3.78 ERA so far this spring for UC-Bakersfield.

Finney (Oxford, Mich.), a junior catcher, will bring experience and poise to the catching group and is known for working well with pitchers. He’s hitting .361 already this season and walking nearly once per game, a rarity in baseball these days.

Pretty much everywhere Kim (Stevenson Ranch, Calif.) goes, he leads the league in home runs and is bestowed community service awards, while making the honour roll. He’s hitting .426 with five doubles and three home runs in the first 16 games this spring.