The Portland Barbers won their second straight American Legion Oregon State and Northwest Region titles this year.
Unlike last year, the Barbers went all the way to the national title game this year, becoming the first Oregon team to make it that far since 1969.
The Barbers are an American Legion team made up of players 19 and younger, based at American Legion Post 158 in Tigard.
Four of the players are also on the Tigard High School baseball team: Camden McCormack, Ryan Frye, Miles VanDoren, and Grayson Rose.
The Barbers finished the season 34-5-1 overall and went a perfect 5-0 in the state tournament to capture their third state title in four years.
They opened the tournament with a 6-3 win against Salem, backed by three RBIs from Gabe Coltman.
The Barbers cruised in their next two games, a 16-6 win against the Hillsdale Merchants and an 11-3 win over the Medford Mustangs. McCormack picked up the win on the mound in the second win of the tournament, and Coltman chipped in two more RBIs in the third game to go along with four runs batted in by Ryan Hemsley.
Frye led the Barbers to a win in the semifinals, earning the win in 4.2 innings pitched in a 5-3 win against the Eugene Challengers. He also helped his own cause with a hit in the win, as well.
Portland brought home the state title with a 4-2 win against Medford, backed by 7.2 innings on the mound by Ben Foglio, who struck out eight. Cooper Berta picked up the save, and Coltman had four hits, including a double and a triple.
Coltman was named MVP of the state tournament with 15 hits and a batting average of .761 in the five games.
The Barbers put themselves in a hole in the regional tournament, dropping their first game. Rose picked up the win on the mound in their second game to get Portland back on the winning side of things.
They won five straight games to clinch the Northwest title and earn a spot in the American Legion World Series in North Carolina.
The Barbers’ run came to an end in the World Series championship game with a 9-6 loss to a team from Nebraska.
Frye was named to the All-Tournament Team as a pitcher, along with Berta. Hemsley earned the Slugger Award for the player with the highest batting average combined between the regionals and World Series.
The second-place finish is a step up for the Barbers, who finished third in 2025.
The season also saw the team in the Firecracker Invitational and finish second in the Curt Daniels Invitational. The Barbers also picked up the program’s 500th win en route to the World Series.
