Duluth announces four additions for 2021 roster, including a familiar face to the Northwoods League.
Duluth, Minn.- The Huskies welcome four newcomers to the team in anticipation for the upcoming season. Infielder Cooper Trinkle, infielder/outfielder Ambren Voitik, catcher Zach Beadle, and right-handed pitcher Mattew Craven have all signed to play part of the season with Duluth.
Before transferring to Saint Leo University, Trinkle played in ten games with the Indiana Hoosiers in 2020, batting a .281 per saintleolions.com. Cooper is also no stranger to the Northwoods League, as he played in 13 games with Battle Creek Bombers in 2019. The Columbus, Indiana native is excited to play in the league once again, citing how the Huskies are a great organization, in a great city, in an upstanding league. Cooper says he is named after Cooperstown, NY, which is where the Baseball Hall of Fam is located. “I was born to play ball!” he said. Despite Covid-19, Trinkle was able to play in Grand Park Summer League in 2020, while continuing to train throughout the pandemic.
Ambren Voitik is an Enid, Oklahoma native who plays ball for the Northern Oklahoma College Jets. Voitik has had a busy spring season with the Jets through 32 games in 2021; the sophomore has racked up 41 runs off 48 hits to pair with 11 homeruns and 30 RBIs, per nocjet.com. The 2nd baseman boasts a slugging percentage of .771 so far this spring, proving the work he put in away from the team paid dividends when Covid-19 struck down the 2020 season. “When everything got shut down and baseball was over, all I could really do was get my work in from home,” Ambren said. “It was hard to stop playing, but I knew everyone else was going through the same thing…the shutdown helped me realize to not take the game for granted anymore.” In his spare time, Voitik likes to golf, spend time at the lake, and mountain bike.
Catcher Zach Beadle finds his way to Duluth by way of Madonna University in Livonia, Michigan. The Canton, MI native received an inside scoop on the Duluth Huskies from Madonna Crusaders’ hitting coach Anthony Lim, who coached in the same capacity with the Huskies in 2019. “My hitting coach at Madonna coached up there a few summers ago,” Beadle said. “I knew I wanted to play in the Northwoods League, so when Duluth offered, it was a no-brainer (to sign).” Zach says baseball has always been his true passion, but he really fell in love with all aspects of the game towards the end of high school. When he is not settled in behind the home plate, Beadle likes to work some magic for his meal plate. “I like to cook and find new ways to make healthy food taste good,” he said.
Matt Craven is in his third year of school with the Bellarmine University Knights of Louisville Kentucky. A native of Louisville, Craven did not have to go very far to continue his playing career. The 6’4” right-handed pitcher and his 90-mph fastball was one of the top-rated recruits coming out of Kentucky in 2018. Matt has also spent time with the Henderson Flash baseball team. The Flash is a member of the Ohio Valley League; a collegiate wooden bat summer league aimed at helping college ball players continue towards their dreams of playing ball at the next level. Craven comes to Duluth with a taste of victory, as he and his Flash teammates won the honors of being the 2019 Eastern Division Champions just three years into the program’s existence.
Please join us in giving Cooper, Ambren, Zach, and Matt a warm Duluth welcome to the Huskies organization!
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The Duluth Huskies are a member of the finest developmental league for elite college baseball players, the Northwoods League. 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 and World Series Champion Max Scherzer (WAS), two-time World Series Champions Ben Zobrist (CHC) and Brandon Crawford (SFG) and World Series Champion Chris Sale (BOS). As well as 2019 Rookie of the Year and Home Run Derby Champion Pete Alonso (NYM) 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.