2019 Top Defenders Rewarded for Best Fielding Percentages
Rochester, Minn. – The Northwoods League has announced the recipients of the 2019 Rawlings ‘Finest in the Field’ Award. The annual award recognizes the top fielders at each position. The winners are selected based on final fielding statistics compiled by league statistician Pointstreak. The 2019 Rawlings ‘Finest in the Field’ Award recipients and their fielding percentages are below.
| Position | Player | NWL Team | College | Fielding Percentage |
| C | Jake Dunham | Wisconsin Rapids Rafters | Northern Illinois | .997 |
| 1B | Sam Kohnle | Eau Claire Express | Winona State | .997 |
| 2B | Jack Chernow | Bismarck Larks | Columbia | .969 |
| 3B | Jacob Buchberger | Green Bay Booyah | Davenport | .965 |
| SS | Nick Novak | Mankato MoonDogs | Angelo State | .983 |
| OF | Brandon Seltzer | Wisconsin Woodchucks | Palm Beach Atlantic | 1.000 |
| OF | Peter Matt | Wisconsin Rapids Rafters | Pennsylvania | 1.000 |
| OF | Richie Schiekofer | Wisconsin Rapids Rafters | Rutgers | 1.000 |
| P | Garret Rukes | Willmar Stingers | Alabama | 1.000 |
Rawlings has been rewarding the top defenders in the Northwoods League since 2002. The recipients receive a special Rawlings engraved trophy. Rawlings is the official equipment provider for the Northwoods League. To qualify for an award a player needs to appear in at least two-thirds of the scheduled games at a specific position, with the exception of catcher, which is half. For pitchers, the player that had the highest total defensive chances without committing an error earns the number one spot.
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The Northwoods League is the proven leader in the development of elite college baseball players. Having completed its’ 26th season, the Northwoods League is the largest organized baseball league in the world with 22 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, over 230 Northwoods League players have advanced to Major League Baseball, including three-time Cy Young Award winner Max Scherzer (WAS), two-time World Series Champions Ben Zobrist (CHC) and Brandon Crawford (SFG), World Series Champion Chris Sale (BOS) and MLB All-Stars Jordan Zimmermann (DET) and Curtis Granderson (MIA). All league games are viewable live via the Northwoods League website. For more information, visit www.northwoodsleague.com or download the Northwoods League Mobile App on the Apple App Store or on Google Play.