MANKATO-Minn. The Mankato MoonDogs baseball club, a member of the Northwoods League is excited to announce the additions of Dalton DeLeon, Morgan Stotts, Peter Maris, and Derek Umphres to the 2014 MoonDogs roster.
Deleon, a 6 foot, 217-pound junior from the University of Texas, Arlingon was a redshirt this spring after transferring from Louisiana State Eunice where he played for two seasons. As a sophomore at LSUE, DeLeon hit .327 in 24 games. In 52 at bats, he had 14 runs scored along with nine RBI’s, 11 walks, and a .453 on base percentage. Deleon will add depth to the MoonDogs lineup at the catcher position.
Stotts, a 6-foot, 200-pound junior from the University of Nevada, Las Vegas is having a strong season this spring for the Rebels. In 43 games, Stotts has a .344 batting average with 31 runs batted in, 11 doubles, and two home runs. Before coming to UNLV, Stotts played three years with the College of Southern Nevada. He was named the Region 18 Player of the Year, Defensive Player of the Year, and to the all-region first team as a sophomore. He led CSN in three categories, hitting .378 with nine home runs, driving in 50 runs. Stotts has the ability to play infield or outfield for the MoonDogs this summer.
Maris, a five-foot-eight-inch, 170-pound sophomore joins the MoonDogs after playing for the University of California-Santa Barbara this spring. Maris hit .281 for the Gauchos with 30 runs scored, seven doubles, one home run, and 28 runs batted in. In his first season with the team in 2012, he proved himself a reliable defensive option at shortstop and second base, appearing in 34 games and starting in 26.
Before coming to UCSB, Maris was a three year letter winner at Dana Hills High School, where he played shortstop, batting .387 as a junior and .294 as a senior.
Umphres, a six-foot-two-inch, 200-pound sophomore is batting .324 for New Mexico State this spring. He has 45 starts for the Aggies, including 10 doubles, 33 runs batted in, and two home runs. As a freshman in 2013, Umphres started 13 games at third base and another five at shortstop. He finished the season with a .246 batting average, a .449 slugging percentage, 15 RBI’s, and three home runs.
Umphres was a four year starter for Safford High School where he helped his team reach to playoffs all four years. He was named a first team all-state member at shortstop his junior and senior year and he led the state of Arizona in batting average as a senior, hitting .673 that season.
The MoonDogs home opener is scheduled for Wednesday, May 28 at 7:05 p.m. against the Alexandria Blue Anchors at Franklin Rogers Park. Season tickets are now on sale at the MoonDogs office located at 1221 Caledonia Street.
The Mankato MoonDogs 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 via the Northwoods League YouTube channel. For more information, visit www.mankatomoondogs.com.