Connor Schaefbauer and Jordan Smith to trade in Maroon and Gold for Teal and Black!
(Rochester, Minn)— The Rochester Honkers Baseball Club announced today that University of Minnesota Golden Gopher teammates, Connor Schaefbauer and Jordan Smith will return to the Honkers in 2015.
Schaefbauer, a 6-foot, 190-pound junior infielder from Sioux Falls, S.D. hit .307 for the Honkers last summer. He played in 37 games, collecting 16 RBIs in stealing 16 bases before a nagging injury shut him down for the summer. The team’s every day starting infielder saw action at both second base and shortstop during his six weeks with the club.
Schaefbauer finished his sophomore season at Minnesota as the Gopher’s Paul Molitor Batting Champion Award winner, hitting .287 in 195 at-bats. He led the team with 19 multi-hit games, runs scored (30), total bases (73), triples (3) and stolen bases (13).
Smith is a 6-foot-3, 208-pound redshirt sophomore outfielder from Eden Prairie, Minn. He finished the 2014 Northwoods League season hitting .253 in 49 games played. Smith collected nine doubles, with 25 RBIs and stole seven bases. Most impressive is that Smith committed zero errors in the outfield earning him the prestigious 2014 Rawlings “Finest in the Field” Award, recognizing the top defenders at each position.
As a redshirt freshman at Minnesota last year, Smith hit .241 for the Gophers. He started 40 games, making appearances in all three outfield positions. He strung together a team-best 18-game on-base streak and posted a .365 on-base percentage in Big Ten play.
The Rochester Honkers 2015 schedule will be released very soon. Season Tickets, Bonus Books, Suites and Patios are now available for the team’s 22nd season of calling Rochester home. Call the Rochester Honkers Office at 507-289-1170 for more information. The team is also looking for host families for the 2015 season, and ask all interested parties to call the business office for more information.
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The Rochester Honkers are a member of the finest developmental league for elite college baseball players, the Northwoods League. Playing its 22nd season of summer collegiate baseball in 2015, 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 120 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 (BOS) and Ben Zobrist (TB). All league games are viewable live via the Northwoods League Website. For more information, visit www.rochesterhonkers.com
