A look at how Lakeshore Chinook alumni performed throughout baseball in 2016!

 

Grafton, WI – With former Chinooks Harrison Bader, Zack Granite, and Andrew Stevenson knocking on the major league door, the entire group of Lakeshore outfielders made significant progress in 2016.  Here is a quick rundown of their 2016 seasons and their status heading into spring training:

Zack Granite (AAA):  Granite (LAK 12) played the entire season for the Triple-A Chattanooga Lookouts in the Twins organization and was selected as one the organization’s top outfielders after hitting .295 and stealing 56 bases in 70 attempts. After being named to the Twins’ 40-man roster, the Twins can call the 2013 14^th Round pick up if they are looking to add speed to the major league club.

Harrison Bader (AA): The former Florida Gator blasted his way to become the St. Louis Cardinal’s No. 3 prospect after hitting .267 with 19 home runs and 19 doubles combined for Triple A Memphis and Double A Springfield where he was named a league all-star in 2016. With a solid showing in the Arizona Fall League, Bader (LAK 13) was named to the AFL’s All-Prospect and Rising Stars teams and for the second time was named an organization all-star for the Cardinals. Bader will get his shot to impress the club as a non-roster invitee to the big league club's spring training.

Mike Papi (AA):  The highest selected Chinook as the 39^th overall pick out of Virginia in 2014, Papi (LAK 13) transitioned to the outfield from first base for Advanced A Lynchburg and then AA Akron where he hit eight home runs and knocked in 41 for the RubberDucks’ in their drive to the Eastern League Championship. Papi will need to continue to improve his power numbers and cut down his strikeouts in order to take the next step.

 

Andrew Stevenson (AA):  Stevenson (LAK 14), who finished 2015 ranked as the Nationals’ No. 5 prospect, posted a .276/.332/.374 slash line with 39 stolen bases between Potomac (Adv. A) and Harrisburg (AA) last year. After participating in the Arizona Fall League for top minor league prospects and finishing second in the league in batting with a .353 average, the second round pick of the Nationals in 2015 has been awarded a non-roster invite to the Nationals’ big league spring training camp where he will compete to move up in the organization.

John Norwood (Adv. A):  Drafted out of high school, but choosing to attend Vanderbilt, Norwood (LAK 13) has made the most of a free agent signing that landed him with the Marlins in 2014.  He was named an organization all-star in 2015 and this past season was named a mid-season all-star for the Jupiter Hammerheads where he played the entire season, hitting .271 with nine home runs and 50 RBI.

Jerrick Suiter (Adv. A):  The former TCU Horned Frog, Suiter (LAK 13) has moved up in each of his three minor league season since being drafted in the 26^th round by the Pirates. Suiter hit .265 with 63 RBI for the Florida State League Champions, the Bradenton Marauders.

Connor McKay (A):  The 24^th round pick of the Texas Rangers, McKay (LAK 14) spent his second season in Class A with the Hickory Crawdads, but suffered a severe concussion after getting hit by a pitch.  Hitting just .180 in his two seasons, the former Kansas Jayhawk will need a strong 2017 season to continue his career.

 

 

 

 

Luke Raley (A):  Lakeshore’s 2015 MVP had a solid first season in 2016 after being selected by the LA Dodgers in the 7^th round out of Lake Erie College.  Raley (LAK 15) hit .288 with four home runs, six triples, and 14 doubles between the Dodgers’ two rookie teams in Ogden and Arizona and the club’s Class A team Great Lakes Loons.  Singled out by his coaches for attitude and effort, Raley will look to improve on a terrific first year.

Brett Siddall (A):  Also a former Lakeshore MVP, Siddall (LAK 14) spent the entire 2016 season with the Beloit Snappers.The 13^th round pick of the Oakland A’s in 2015, Siddall powered his way to nine home runs and 60 RBI while hitting .241.

Jack Sundberg (A):  A 26^th round pick by Washington out of the University of Connecticut, the speedy Sundberg worked his way to the National’s Class A team, the Hagerstown Suns as he hit a combined .256 and stole 12 bases out of 15 attempts.

 

 

 

 

To follow the progress of any of the Lakeshore alums who are playing professional baseball, click on the Alumni tab under the Team section at the top of this page.  Click on a specific player’s name to open a link to view their MiLB bio page.

The Northwoods League is the proven leader in the development of elite college baseball players. The 23-year old summer collegiate league is the largest organized baseball league in the world with 20 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 160 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 (DET), Curtis Granderson (NYM), Lucas Duda (NYM) and Ben Zobrist (CHC). All league games are viewable live via the Northwoods League website. For more information, visit www.northwoodsleague.com or download the Northwoods League Mobile App on the Apple App Store or on Google Play