JoJo Jackson (Georgia State) and Carlos Hernandez (Anderson University) represented Green Bay in Home Run Challenge
Traverse City, Mich.- In the 2023 Great Lakes All-Star Home Run Challenge, the Great Lakes East division defeated the Great Lakes West division 13-10 in nine innings Monday night at Turtle Creek Stadium, with Rockers JoJo Jackson (Georgia State) and Carlos Hernandez (Anderson) both competing in the challenge as two of the nine hitters for the west.
Brandon Nigh (Oakland University) from the Kenosha Kingfish took home the individual title after hitting five home runs in the middle of the challenge, giving the east the victory by one in the first edition of this event.
Even though Hernandez did not hit a home run in the challenge, he had several that were just shy of the wall on both sides, while Jackson’s homer in the top of the eighth trimmed the west’s deficit to just one late in the derby.
Owen Jackson (Toledo) of the Madison Mallards led the way for the Great Lakes West with two homers while Colin Brueggemann (Oklahoma State) tied the contest at 10 homers apiece in the top of the ninth to round out the west’s homers at Turtle Creek Stadium.
In the bottom of the ninth however, Roman Kuntz (Morehead State) won the challenge for the Great Lakes East with a deep home run to right field, sealing the deal for the east with three homers in total in the ninth to pull away from the Great Lakes West.
With the Home Run Challenge now completed, the Great Lakes All-Star Game is next up in the Great Lakes All-Star festivities this week. The game will begin at 6:05 p.m. CT Tuesday from Turtle Creek Stadium, with the Rockers having six total all-stars competing Tuesday night in Traverse City.
In addition to the home run challenge participants in Jackson and Hernandez, pitchers Tyler Horvath (Case Western Reserve), Jacob Faulkner (Princeton), Brett Sanchez (Belhaven), and Kyle Stoddard (Missouri Southern State) round out the six all stars for the Rockers. Additionally, field manager Chris Krepline along with assistant coaches Cody Hartman and Nathan Bonter will coach the Great Lakes West All-Stars with the game also being televised on ESPNU.
Single game tickets are on sale now. Visit www.greenbayrockers.com or call the ticket office at 920-497-7225 to reserve your seats today. The Rockers front office and Team Apparel Fan Shop at Capital Credit Union Park are located at 2231 Holmgren Way in Ashwaubenon. Office hours are Monday-Friday 8:30am-5pm.
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The Green Bay Rockers 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. Now in its’ 30th season, the Northwoods League is the largest organized baseball league in the world 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, over 325 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 (NYM), two-time World Series Champions Ben Zobrist and Brandon Crawford (SFG) and World Series Champion Chris Sale (BOS). As well as 2019 Rookie of the Year and 2019/2021 Home Run Derby Champion Pete Alonso (NYM) and 2021 All-Star, MLB Gold Glove winner and 2019 Second Team All-MLB shortstop Marcus Semien (TEX). All league games are viewable live via the Northwoods League website. League games are viewable live at watchnwl.com and on ESPN+. For more information, visit www.greenbayrockers.com or download the new Northwoods League Mobile App on the Apple App Store or on Google Play and set the Rockers as your favorite team.