An outfielder and utility man bring the roster to 24
Eau Claire, Wis. – After a year’s hiatus, the University of Illinois Chicago and the Eau Claire Express have reconnected. The Express front office today announced the addition of two Flames players to the 2014 roster in outfielder Jake Nath and utility man Jeff Boehm.
Nath, a 5-foot-10, 190-pound junior hailing originally from Parker, Colo., is in his first season with the Flames after a stellar career at Colby Community College in Kansas, where he was a first-team all region player. As a sophomore at Colby, he hit .394 with 86 hits, including 15 doubles, eight triples and four home runs. He was also named the MVP of the Kansas Jayhawk Community College Conference. Through Saturday for UIC, he is batting .260 in 27 games with 23 starts in the outfield. He leads the Flames with 10 stolen bases in 11 attempts.
In his first season for the Flames, the 6-foot-1 inch, 215-pound Boehm can do it both at the plate and on the mound. He is second on the team with a .363 average in 19 games. He leads UIC in extra base hits with 15, including 10 doubles, a triple and three home runs. He has also appeared in one game on the mound, pitching one inning without allowing a run and striking out one. The left-hander batted a stellar .357 with one home run and seven RBIs for the Kentucky Wildcats in 11 games from the plate as a freshman. On the mound, he appeared in six games as a freshman and only allowed one hit in 3.2 innings of work. In the NCAA tournament his freshman year, he hit had two clutch pinch-hit appearances at the plate, drawing a key hit by pitch against Kent State and then drilling an RBI double off the wall against Kent State once again.
Nath and Boehm become the eighth and ninth members of the UIC program to ink a contract for the burnt orange and black, joining former players Nick Addison, Brian Evak, Jason Ganek, Harry Kammholz, Andy Leonard, Steve McGuiggan and Ryan Shober.
The Express begin their 10th season of play in the Northwoods League on Tuesday, May 27 versus the Lakeshore Chinooks. First pitch is scheduled for 6:35 PM with gates opening at 5:30. Season tickets and voucher packs are on sale now. Single-game tickets will go on sale May 1. To subscribe to the Express schedule on your internet and/or phone calendar and have it be updated with any changes in promotions and game times, click the link below.
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The Eau Claire Express 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 Cy Young Award winner Max Scherzer (DET) and MLB All-Stars Chris Sale (CWS), Jordan Zimmermann (WAS), Curtis Granderson (NYM), 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.eauclaireexpress.com.