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Published On: October 10th, 2019

We’ve been on a bit of a 2016 kick as of late. Remember the summer of 2016? The Rio Olympics were in full swing, Pokemon Go swept over the nation, and Kyle Marinconz made his first appearance for the Eau Claire Express. Good times.

Marinconz joined the Express prior to the start of his freshman season with the Cal Poly Mustangs, a path that his younger brother, Nick, would take in 2019. Kyle Mariconz would go on to appear in 47 games for the Express in 2016, ranked second on the team with a .299 batting average and tied for third with 56 hits and 26 RBIs. A successful season was made all the better with his participation in the Major League Dreams Showcase and the Northwoods League Post Season where the Express would advance to the title game with Marinconz batting .500 through 18 plate appearances.

The San Jose, California native would return to the Orange and Black in 2017 where he would again rise to the top of the Express’s batting statistics. Marinconz hit for .291 with 35 RBIs, three home runs, and four doubles.

Marinconz was drafted by the Washington Nationals in 2018 in the 24th round and began his minor league career with the Auburn Doubledays of the New York-Penn League. While with the Doubledays, Marinconz was selected as a Mid-Season All-Star and finished the year with a .284 batting average, five doubles, and one long ball.

Marinconz just finished the 2019 season with the Hagerstown Suns where he batted .243, with 20 doubles, five home runs, and 41 RBIs. Memorably, a three-run home run by Marinconz back in June helped the Suns to a sweep of the Lakewood BlueClaws in their doubleheader.

Keep a lookout all off-season for more alumni updates presented by Lakeland University. At Lakeland University you’ll find unique 14-week BlendEd courses that allow you to complete coursework either online or in class from week to week depending on your location, schedule, and other life commitments allowing you to choose the format that works best for you.

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The Eau Claire Express are a member of the finest developmental league for elite college baseball players, the Northwoods League. The 25-year old summer collegiate 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 200 former 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) and MLB All-Stars Chris Sale (BOS), Jordan Zimmermann (DET) and Curtis Granderson (MIA). All league games are viewable live via the Northwoods League portal. For more information, visit www.eauclaireexpress.com or download the new Northwoods League Mobile App on the Apple App Store or on Google Play and set the Express as your favorite team.