La Crosse, Wis. – The La Crosse Loggers Baseball Club bolstered their 2021 roster today when they announced the signing of a pair of southpaws. North Florida’s Tony Roca will return to La Crosse for his second season and two-way talent Josh Allen will follow in the footsteps of many Duke Blue Devils before him.
Red-shirt freshman Tony Roca was one of the Loggers top starters during the shortened 2020 campaign as he tied for the team lead in starts (7) while posting a 1-2 record with a 3.77 ERA. The 6-3, 221-pound hurler ranked fifth on the team with 28.2 innings pitched and his 25 punchouts were sixth best for the Lumbermen. Prior to arriving in La Crosse, Roca had worked himself into the North Florida weekend rotation during their abbreviated spring when he turned in a 3.31 ERA over four appearances (3 starts) across 16.1 innings pitched. The Ponte Verde Beach, Fla. native is once again expected to be one of the Osprey’s top arms when they open the season on Feb. 19 against 24th ranked Florida State.
True freshman Josh Allen will be continuing the streak of Duke Blue Devils spending their summer in the Coulee Region and the Northwoods League. The 6-2, 205-pound two-way talent came out of Oviedo (Fla.) High School as the 8th best left-handed pitcher in the state (according to Perfect Game) before entering Duke. Allen enjoyed a decorated prep career as he earned first-team all-conference accolades during each of his high school seasons and was tabbed a pre-season Perfect Game and Under Armour All-American his senior season. Allen possesses a power arm from the left side as well as power in his bat with athleticism to also play in the outfield making him a valuable two-way asset for both the Blue Devils this spring and the Loggers in the summer.
Roca, Allen 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.