Kalamazoo, MI – The college baseball season is in full swing which means plenty of former, current and future Growlers are back on the diamond. Let’s take a look around college baseball to see what has unfolded thus far.
Jake Gelof: University of Virginia – Growler in 2021
Gelof picked up right where he left off in 2022. Jake hit his 26th career home run which places him at #10 all time in home runs at UVA. Expect him to continue to climb up that list.
Casen Taggart: Centralia College (Washington State commit) – Growler in 2022 & 2023
Taggart is widely known to have the biggest hit in Growlers history; a go-ahead home run in the 10th inning of the Great Lakes Championship last season. Earlier this week, Casen had a monster series where he hit two home runs and had a whopping nine RBI in just two games. This included a triple and Grand Slam.
Tyler Johnson: Alma College – Growler in 2022 & 2023
Johnson was a key piece of the Growlers bullpen in 2022, often serving as the set-up man in the 8th inning. After week one of the college baseball season, Johnson was named the MIAA Baseball Pitcher of the Week. In his season debut, Tyler pitched 6.2 innings while striking out 14 batter including eight of the last nine.
Will Furniss IV: Ole Miss – Growler in 2023
Furniss is one of a pair of Ole Miss Rebel freshman who will be bringing their talents too Kalamazoo this summer. Furniss has exploded onto the scene is his freshman year at Ole Miss. In his first collegiate at-bat, Will hit one out of the yard for his first career home run.
Judd Utermark: Ole Miss – Growler in 2023
Utermark is the other half of the Ole Miss duo coming to Kzoo this summer. Just like his teammate Will Furniss, Utermark hit a home run in his very first at-bat. Judd came in as a pinch hitter and crushed a three-run home run.
Keep your eyes here over the next few months as we continue to keep an eye on all past, present and future Growlers as they dominate their collegiate seasons.
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The Kalamazoo Growlers 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’ 29th 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, 300 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.growlersbaseball.com or download the new Northwoods League Mobile App on the Apple App Store or on Google Play and set the Growlers as your favorite team.