For high school baseball players in Central Oregon, getting seen and scouted by college coaches is difficult.

Fortunately for those players, the Bend Elks are here to help.

On Friday, the Elks will host the Central Oregon High School All-Star Game at Vince Genna Stadium. The game is for players representing seven different schools in Central Oregon, giving those players an opportunity to demonstrate their talents in front of coaches from about a dozen Northwest colleges.

“We have a huge inventory of high school ballplayers,” says Jim Richards, owner and general manager of the Elks, who is coordinating the showcase event. “Some of them, in our opinion — as we’ve gotten to know them over the years playing Little League and travel ball — there’s a handful of them that have Division I (college) potential.”

Coaches from high schools being represented (Bend High, Mountain View, Summit, La Pine, Madras, Ridgeview and Sisters) nominated players to participate in the showcase, and those players were invited to display their skills.

The showcase will consist of two of what Richards calls “professional-style” workouts — one for players in the graduating classes of 2015 and 2016, another for those in the 2013-2014 classes. The workouts will be overseen by college coaches ranging from Division I programs such as Oregon State and the University of Washington to Northwest Athletic Association of Community Colleges members such as Lower Columbia College (Longview, Wash.) and Salem’s Chemeketa Community College.

“It’s very difficult to get our kids in Central Oregon the visibility that the kids in the (Willamette) Valley have — a higher propensity of getting in front of these guys (college coaches) just because of geographic proximity to their schools,” observes Richards, whose Elks team is a member of the summer collegiate West Coast League. “As the Bend Elks have matured — this is our 14th year doing this — all those (college) coaches are very knowledgeable of our program. They also recognize that there is some talent in this area, and they want to start making this a stop on their tour, so to speak.”

To wrap up the afternoon and evening affair, the high school graduating classes of 2013-14, headed by the Elks’ coaching staff (head coach Joe Dominiak and assistants Alan Embree and Scott Anderson) will take on the Bend Bucks, the Elks’ developmental squad. Game time at Genna Stadium is 7:05 p.m. The game will follow opening ceremonies for the Oregon Little League District 5 All-Star tournaments, which get underway Saturday in Bend.

Admission is free, and concession stands will be open. More than 50 Central Oregon players will showcase their skills for some of the top collegiate programs in the Pacific Northwest, and it is Richards and the Elks who are providing those players with the rare opportunity.

“This is something we’re doing with our connections in the college baseball world,” Richards says, adding, “providing this venue for them at no cost.”

If you go

What: Central Oregon High School All-Star Game schedule

Where: At Vince Genna Stadium, Friday

Schedule:

• 2 p.m.-4 p.m.: Classes of 2015-16 workout

• 4 p.m.-5:30 p.m.: Oregon Little League District 5 All-Stars opening ceremonies

• 5:30 p.m.-7 p.m.: Classes of 2013-14 workout

• 7:05 p.m.: Central Oregon All-Stars vs. Bend Bucks