The Corvallis Knights will have a strong local presence next June when they begin their fourth West Coast League season at Goss Stadium.

Crescent Valley High graduate Thomas McCarthy of Feather River (Calif.) Junior College, who hit .461 as a freshman at Western Oregon in 2009, is on the club's tentative 2010 roster.

So are Oregon State sophomore utility/pitcher Dylan Jones, a returnee from the 2009 team, and OSU freshmen corner infielder Danny Hayes and infielder/pitcher Matt Boyd.

"Thomas plays first and third and excelled last spring at Western Oregon," Knights' president Dan Segel said Monday in announcing McCarthy's commitment. "He's a big bat.

"We have nearly filled our 2010 roster with verbal commitments and are pleased with coach Brooke Knight's recruits. We lose a core group of guys that won't be easy to replace, but if we get all these kids here this summer we're going to be very competitive."

NCAA rules permit four players from one college team and the Knights may add another Beaver to reach that number, Segel said.

UC Riverside outfielder David Andriese, the younger brother of 2009 pitching standout Matt Andriese, also has a Corvallis connection.

The Knights are interested in 2009 Corvallis High graduate Aaron Corwin, a right-handed pitcher. He will also attend Feather River this year and play for coach Terry Baumgartner, a former coach with the Corvallis Richey's Market American Legion program and at Western Oregon.

"We expect Feather River will place Aaron with the Knights if it's the right fit for Aaron," Segel said.

McCarthy and Corwin would be the fifth and sixth ex-Marketmen to play for the Knights in Corvallis. Jake Roy, Brett Casey and Brett Brunner played in 2007; Billy Clontz played in 2008 and 2009.

One of the top commits is Josh Silver of San Jose State, a 6-foot, 185-pound middle infielder from Elk Grove, Calif. He hit. 377 in 24 games, with two homers and 17 RBIs, in 2009 before being injured.

"He's going to be an impact guy," Segel said of Silver, unless summer school commitments prevent him from playing.

Outfielder/pitcher Scott Lyman of UC Davis, outfielder Mitch Haniger of Cal Poly and pitcher Mitch Patito of UC Riverside are also considered "bonafide prospects," Segel said.

Lyman played for Yarmouth-Dennis in the Cape Cod League in 2009. Haniger was selected by the New York Mets as the 944th overall pick (31st round), and Patito went to Florida on the 1,208th pick (40th round), in the 2009 MLB draft.

Pitcher Evan Brock, an incoming freshman at UC Irvine, "has a chance to earn a spot" in the Anteaters' rotation, Segel said. "Coach Mike Gillespie likes him."

The outfield could also cause some confusion as the Knights have a commitment from another Dylan Jones, this one an incoming Oregon freshman center fielder from Valencia, Calif.

Coincidentally, both are left-handed hitters but OSU's Dylan Jones is a lefty and Oregon's Dylan Jones throws right-handed.

"We've heard (Oregon's) Dylan Jones can really fly," Segel said. "I'm excited about our outfield, it could be really strong."

OSU's Dylan Jones, Lyman, Boyd and catcher/pitcher Corey Davis of Mt. Hood are all two-way players.

The Knights also renewed ties with ex-OSU assistant coach Dan Spencer, now the head coach at Texas Tech. Two Red Raiders - catcher Bo Altobelli and third baseman Justin Berry - have committed.

Five other members of the 2009 Knights, who lost 2-0 to Wenatchee in the WCL Championship Series after winning the West Division's regular-season and playoff titles, are expected to join OSU's Jones (.274, 1-30; 2-0, 4.15, 1 save) for another season in Corvallis.

They are all-league pitchers Liam Baron (3-2, 2.25, 6 saves) of Gonzaga and Kyle Kraus (6-2, 2.04) of Portland; right-handed pitchers Trevor Smith (6-1, 2.68, 1 save) of Oregon and Eric Young (0-1, 4.00, 1 save) of Riverside, Calif., Community College, and first baseman D.J. Johnson (.298, 0-13) of WOU.

Baron and Johnson also played for the Knights' 2008 WCL championship team.

Finalizing the 2010 schedule and other league business will be addressed this weekend at the WCL league meeting in Portland.

2010 Corvallis Knights (tentative)

PITCHERS: LH Liam Baron (Gonzaga); RH Kyle Kraus (Portland); RH Scott Lyman (UC Davis); RH Mitch Patito (UC Riverside); LH Ben Doucette (UC Riverside); RH Evan Brock (UC Irvine); RH Trevor Smith (Oregon); RH Andy Beresford (UNLV); LH Matt Boyd (Oregon State); RH Eric Young (Riverside CC); RH David Luna (San Jose State); RH Chris Mendoza (Santa Clara); LH Dylan Jones (Oregon State); RH Corey Davis (Mt. Hood CC).

CATCHER: Bo Altobelli (Texas Tech); Miles Kizer (Washington); Corey Davis (Mt. Hood CC).

FIRST BASE: DJ Johnson (Western Oregon); Thomas McCarthy (Feather River CC); Dylan Jones (Oregon State); Danny Hayes (Oregon State); Matt Boyd (Oregon State).

MIDDLE INFIELDERS: JK Dykes (Washington State); Josh Silver (San Jose State); Justin Viele (Santa Clara).

THIRD BASE: Danny Hayes (Oregon State); Justin Berry (Texas Tech); Scott Lyman (UC Davis); Thomas McCarthy (Feather River CC).

OUTFIELDERS: Dylan Jones (Oregon State); Dylan Jones (Oregon); David Andriese (UC Riverside); Mitch Haniger (Cal Poly); Scott Lyman (UC Davis).