Battle Creek, Mich.- The Bombers roster continues to grow as they have added two players from the baseball powerhouse of San Diego State University. Spencer Thornton (OF) and Brad Haynal (C) will join Bombers for the 2014 campaign after the completion of their seasons at San Diego State.
Spencer Thornton, a redshirted sophomore, is returning to the Aztec lineup after an injury that benched him for the 2013 season. Thornton, an Alto Lime, California native was a starting outfielder in 2012 as a freshman, turning in a spectacular season while committing zero errors. The lefty finished with an impressive conference batting average of .319 and an eye-popping on base percentage of .440. Now fully healed, he has begun the 2014 season with San Diego State as the starting right fielder.
The Bombers are also adding Brad Haynal to their roster. Haynal will be a welcome addition behind the plate as a strong defensive catcher with a bat to match. The redshirted junior spent most of the 2013 season behind the plate, but would appear as a designated hitter as well. During the 2013 summer, Brad played summer ball for the Bethesda Big Train in Maryland as a part of the Cal Ripken League. There he played a myriad of positions including catcher, designated hitter, first, and third while committing just one error for a .995 fielding percentage. Brad was the recent recipient of the Mountain West Baseball Player of the Week for season-opening games this past week.
“Anytime you are building a roster the middle must be solid defensively. That is what we have accomplished with the signing of Brad behind the plate and Spencer in center field,” added Bombers coach Dan Trivett. “These guys will bring a ton of experience to Battle Creek this summer and fans will love to watch these two swing away.”
The Battle Creek Bombers are a member of the finest developmental league for elite college baseball players, the Northwoods League. Playing its 21st season of summer collegiate baseball, the Northwoods League is the largest organized baseball league in the world with 18 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 115 Northwoods League players have advanced to Major League Baseball, including MLB All-Stars Max Scherzer (DET), Chris Sale (CWS), Jordan Zimmermann (WAS), Curtis Granderson (NYY), Allen Craig (STL) and Ben Zobrist (TB). All league games are viewable live and free of charge via the Northwoods League YouTube channel. For more information, visit www.battlecreekbombers.com
