Avans is the 391^st former Northwoods League player to debut in MLB

Rochester, Minn. – St. Cloud Rox alum Drew Avans made his Major League debut on Tuesday, May 27, 2025. Avans is the 391^st former Northwoods League player to reach the Major League level.

Avans, who played collegiately at Southeastern Louisiana University, played for the Rox in 2017. He was drafted in the 33^rd round of the 2018 MLB draft by the Los Angeles Dodgers. Avans is the 4^th Major Leaguer from the Rox 2017 NWL Championship team joining Michael Busch, Cameron Eden and Daniel Schneeman.

In 2017 with the Rox, Avans played in 54 games and hit .267 with one home run, six doubles, and three triples. He stole 30 bases and drove in 16.

Avans spent six seasons in the Dodgers system before electing free agency after the 2024 season. In November of 2024 he signed a minor league contract with the Athletics.

Across 691 games he has a career .277 average with 55 home runs, 37 triples, 116 doubles. He has stolen 177 bases and driven in 315.

Prior to his call-up to the Athletics, Avans was with the Las Vegas Aviators of the Triple-A Pacific Coast League. In 48 games he was hitting .328 with four home runs, eight doubles, and 16 stolen bases. In his Major League debut against the Houston Astros, Avans entered the game as a defensive replacement in right field and went 1 for 1 at the plate.

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The Northwoods League is the proven leader in the development of elite college baseball players. Now in its’ 32^nd season, the Northwoods League is the largest organized baseball league in history with 24 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, nearly 2400 NWL alums have been drafted and over 390 Northwoods League players have advanced to Major League Baseball, including three-time All-Star and 2016 Roberto Clemente Award winner Curtis Granderson, three-time Cy Young Award winner and two-time World Series Champion Max Scherzer (TOR), two-time World Series Champions Ben Zobrist and Brandon Crawford and World Series Champion and Cy Young Award winner Chris Sale (ATL). As well as 2019 Rookie of the Year and 2019/2021 Home Run Derby Champion Pete Alonso (NYM) and 2023 World Series Champion, MLB All-Star, MLB Gold Glove, two-time Silver Slugger winner and two-time All-MLB first team shortstop Marcus Semien (TEX). League games are viewable live on Northwoods League+ (at watch.northwoodsleague.com), ESPN+, and the Northwoods League Network.