KALAMAZOO, MI – The Kalamazoo Growlers are pleased to announce the signing of two right-handed pitchers who will travel nearly 3,000 miles combined to join the team. Gabe Gunter of Shelton State Community College and Sean Isaac of Vanguard University will join Travis Wade’s staff for the 2015 season.

Gabe Gunter: 6’6” – 250lb, RHP, Bats R/Throws R, Shelton State/Marshall (So.), Andalusia, AL

Sean Isaac: 6’4” – 230lb, RHP, Bats R/Throws R, Vanguard (Jr.), Redondo Beach, CA

Gabe Gunter will pitch at Marshall next season after completing his sophomore year at Shelton State in Tuscaloosa, AL. Through nine appearances this season, including four starts, he has compiled a 2-0 record with a 2.15 ERA, 0.920 WHIP, and 23 strikeouts over 29.1 innings of work. Gunter’s steady right arm has helped lead Shelton State to a 25-18 record through 43 games, good for first place in the Alabama Community College Conference North Division. Marshall head coach Jeff Waggoner sees his imposing new hurler as a “power arm with a tremendous upside.”

A native of Andalusia, AL, Gunter turned several heads while still a freshman at Tate High School in Cantonment, FL. With a fastball that touched 91 miles per hour, he attracted scouts from LSU, Mississippi State, and Virginia Tech. Gunter was considered a top-100 recruit coming out of high school and received a high honorable mention nod for the 2012 Rawlings/Perfect Game High School Senior Preseason All-America teams. He also played football in high school, following in the footsteps of his father Russell. The elder Gunter rushed for 2,200 yards during his 1986 senior season at Straughn High School, including 339 yards during a Halloween game against Coffee Springs in which he ran the ball a national-record 72 times.

Sean Isaac is the top starter at Vanguard, an NAIA institution in the Los Angeles suburb of Costa Mesa. Through 15 starts this season, he leads the team in wins and leads all starters in ERA, going 8-4 with a 2.60 ERA, 1.125 WHIP, and 83 strikeouts over 93.1 innings.

Isaac’s finest performance came during an April 2 game against San Diego Christian in which he struck out a staggering 16 batters over eight innings, allowing one run on three hits in the Lions’ 3-1 win. That performance earned him Golden State Athletic Conference Pitcher of the Week. In an earlier start on February 6, Isaac tossed a complete game, allowing one run on seven hits and striking out nine in a 1-0 loss to Arizona Christian.

The Redondo Beach, CA native began his collegiate career at El Camino College in Torrance, where he was an honorable mention All-South Coast Conference pitcher as well as an everyday player. Before that, he starred at Mira Costa High School in Manhattan Beach. Isaac was an All-Bay League and All-Area selection in 2011, a year in which he earned team MVP honors after hitting for a school record .449 batting average.

Kalamazoo begins its second season on Tuesday, May 26 at Madison. The Growlers’ home opener comes on Friday, May 29 against the Battle Creek Bombers. The full Growlers schedule can be found here. For information on 2015 Growlers season tickets, click here.

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The Kalamazoo Growlers are a member of the finest developmental league for elite college baseball players, the Northwoods League. Playing its 22nd season of summer collegiate baseball in 2015, the Northwoods League is the largest organized baseball league in the world with 18 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, more than 120 Northwoods League players have advanced to Major League Baseball, including Cy Young Award winner Max Scherzer (WAS) and MLB All-Stars Chris Sale (CWS), Jordan Zimmermann (WAS), Curtis Granderson (NYM), Allen Craig (BOS) and Ben Zobrist (OAK). All league games are viewable live via the Northwoods League Website.  For more information, visit http://www.growlersbaseball.com.