Eau Claire, WI- The Northwoods League has announced the rosters for the 2017 Major League Dreams Showcase, which will be hosted by the Madison Mallards at Warner Park on Tuesday, August 8.

The annual Showcase will consist of a double-header featuring the top players from the Northwoods League who were selected by a panel of Major League Baseball Scouts.  The players will participate in a day of workouts in front of scouts, which will be followed by the double-header.

The first game will start at 4:05 p.m. and will match two teams featuring a mix of North and South Division players. The players on the visiting team in this game will primarily come from St. Cloud, Battle Creek, Thunder Bay, and Duluth. The home team will be made up of players mainly from La Crosse, Mankato, Wisconsin Rapids, Eau Claire and Rochester. Augie Rodriguez of the St. Cloud Rox will skipper the visiting team while Dale Varsho of the Eau Claire Express will manage the home team.

The Express will send six players from their active roster to participate in the Showcase, the most of any organization in the North Division.

Matt Duce, C (Dallas Baptist)

Joining Eau Claire in the middle of the season on July 6^th, it wouldn’t be long before the lefty-hitting Duce established himself as one of the premier power threats in the Express batting order. In just 40 at-bats this season, Duce connected on three doubles and two home runs to maintain a .550 slugging percentage. While he was one of the six Eau Claire players scheduled to appear at this year’s Showcase, the junior won’t be participating due to injury.

Luke Bandy, 2B-OF (Dallas Baptist)

One of the, if not the, tools-iest player(s) to suit up for the Express in 2017, Bandy has filled a number of roles for the team in 2017. A power-speed threat with the bat in his hands, and jack-of-all trades in the field, the freshman from Betonville, Arkansas adds value to a ball club with his versatility alone. Bandy has cracked four home runs and swiped nine bags in 34 appearances with Eau Claire this year.

Zach Ashford, OF (Fresno State)

A returner from last season’s North Division-winning Express squad, Ashford has continued to be the on-base machine we saw last year in his second campaign with Eau Claire. Ashford’s .411 on-base percentage trails only NWL All-Star Zach Gilles for the team-lead in that category, and his 16/23 strikeout-to-walk rate highlights his fantastic knowledge of the strike zone. The left-handed sophomore has also shown improvement in the power department this season, leading the Express in doubles with eight two-baggers.

Jake Sommers, RP (UW Milwaukee)

A recent addition to the Express bullpen, the righty-throwing Sommers has been steadying presence in 6.2 innings pitched for Eau Claire this season. Running an ERA of 2.70, Sommers has flashed a hard low-90’s fastball that likely caught the attention of the scouts who will be taking a closer look at the 6’2 sophomore in Madison this August.

Lane Ramsey, SP (Oklahoma)

Just one glimpse at Ramsey’s measurables  and you’ll know exactly why the 6’8 righty was chosen to show his stuff in this year’s showcase. While the sophomore’s stature garners plenty of attention, Ramsey wields the pitching ability to back it up, as evidenced by the 3.76 ERA he’s carried to this point in the season.

Kenny Ogg, RP (Ohio)

Since making his first relief appearance with the Express in 2017 back on the Fourth of July, Ogg has built up arguably the most impressive statistical performance of any arm in Eau Claire’s bullpen. The righty’s 1.68 ERA is the lowest of any pitcher currently on the team with over 10 innings thrown this season, and his 0.84 WHIP paces the team’s pitching staff in that category as well. 

For the full Showcase rosters can be found here. 

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The Eau Claire Express are a member of the finest developmental league for elite college baseball players, the Northwoods League. The 23-year-old summer collegiate league is the largest organized baseball league in the world with 20 teams, drawing significantly more fans, in a friendly ballpark experience, than any league of its kind. A valuable training ground for coaches, umpires and front office staff, more than 180 former Northwoods League players have advanced to Major League Baseball, including two-time Cy Young Award winner Max Scherzer (WAS), two-time World Series Champion Ben Zobrist (CHC) and MLB All-Stars Chris Sale (BOS), Jordan Zimmermann (DET), Curtis Granderson (NYM) and Lucas Duda (NYM).  All league games are viewable live via the Northwoods League portal. For more information, visit www.eauclaireexpress.com or download the new Northwoods League Mobile App on the Apple App Store or on Google Play and set the Express as your favorite team.