La Crosse, Wis. – The La Crosse Loggers Baseball Club has had a fruitful relationship with the University of San Diego dating back to the 2009 season and that relationship will continue for its 13th consecutive season in 2021 as the Loggers announced today that three more USD Torreros will be dawning the Logger green this summer. Last week, the 19-year old Northwoods League member announced that Lucas Braun from USD will be returning and today the Lumbermen released that outfielder Michael Dixon will also return and be joined by freshmen Kevin Sim and Cole Colleran.
Dixon, a toolsy outfielder, appeared in just three games for the Loggers to start the shortened 2020 season but La Crosse liked the potential that they saw in that short span. The Oakland, Calif. native opened his freshman campaign starting in the USD outfield and hitting in the three-hole for the Torreros and went on to see action in 15 games last spring before the season was cancelled due to COVID-19. A former top 100 freshman prospect in the nation, according to Perfect Game, the athletic Dixon has the ability to wreak havoc on the base paths (6.7-60) and possesses elite bat speed.
Joining Dixon is USD’s top freshman recruit for 2021, third baseman Kevin Sim. Like Dixon, the 6-2, 210-pound Sim showcases tools in all parts of his game and enters this 2021 spring season ranked as the 29th best freshman in the country, according to Perfect Game. A former high school All-American, Sim played in the 2019 Area Code Games and comes from great family lineage as his father, Jong-soo Shim, played for 15 seasons in the Korean Baseball Organization where he clubbed 328 career home runs while driving in 1,029 runs earning him the nickname “Hercules”. The younger Sim has the same power potential as his father but also possesses an even more well-rounded set of tools on the diamond. The summer of 2021 will be Sim’s second go-around with summer collegiate baseball after hit .240 with 2 home runs and 11 RBI’s over 18 games played in the San Diego summer collegiate league as a high school senior last summer.
Southpaw Cole Colleran rounds out the featured four from USD and promises to be a major piece of the Loggers staff this summer. The 6-foot, 185-pound lefty enters San Diego after a highly decorated high school career at Canyon Crest Academy in San Diego where he set school records for the most career wins (17) and strikeouts (175) while posting a 1.43 era during his high school stint. Colleran was a two-time all-conference selection and two-time pitcher of the year honoree in his conference. Like Sim, Colleran got his feet wet in the summer collegiate circuit in 2020 when he posted a 1.50 ERA over six innings of work, while striking out seven and walking no one for the Brewers of the San Diego League.
Dixon, Sim, Colleran and the rest of the Loggers will open their 2021 campaign on Monday, May 31 when they travel to Mankato to take on the MoonDogs at ISG Field at 6:35 p.m. The Loggers home opener is set for Wednesday, June 2 when they welcome the Thunder Bay Border Cats to Copeland Park for a 6:35 p.m. first pitch. Season tickets and ticket packages are on sale now for the 2021 season at www.lacrosseloggers.com or by calling the Loggers ticket office at 608-796-9553.
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The La Crosse Loggers are a member of the finest developmental league for elite college baseball players, the Northwoods League. The 27-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, more than 245 former 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 (WAS), two-time World Series Champions Ben Zobrist (CHC) and Brandon Crawford (SFG) and World Series Champion Chris Sale (BOS). As well as 2019 Rookie of the Year and Home Run Derby Champion Pete Alonso (NYM) and MLB All-Star Jordan Zimmermann (DET). All league games are viewable live via the Northwoods League portal. For more information, visit www.lacrosseloggers.com or download the new Northwoods League Mobile App on the Apple App Store or on Google Play and set the Loggers as your favorite team.