Shortstop JJ Moran (Stanford) has officially been named the 2025 Express Most Valuable Player. Despite only arriving in Eau Claire in mid-June, the Carlsbad, Calif., native lit up the Northwoods League and led the Express to an impressive offensive second half.
Named a Northwoods League Postseason All-Star on Saturday, Moran put together an incredible July to charge his way to these honors. His nine home runs in the month were tied for the most in the entire league, and he led the Great Plains divisions and ranked second in the league with 33 runs batted in.
His final numbers are remarkable as he slashed .279/.405/.486 over his 49 games in an Express uniform and hit 10 home runs, tied for fourth-most in a season in franchise history. His .486 slugging percentage is tied for the 10th-best slugging season ever, while his 38 runs batted in slot him at 14th.
Moran notched 14 hits and drove in five in 15 games in June, but he truly burst onto the scene in an early-July home series against Mankato. The infielder entering his sophomore season at Stanford notched five hits including three homers en route to nine RBIs over the two games against the MoonDogs.
Congratulations, JJ! We can’t wait to watch the rest of your career with the Cardinal and beyond.
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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 Northwoods League is the proven leader in the development of elite college baseball players. Entering its’ 32nd 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 380 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 World Series Champion Max Scherzer (TOR), two-time World Series Champions Ben Zobrist and Brandon Crawford and World Series Champion 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. Learn more and find complete streaming schedules at watchnwl.com. 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.
