By: Ryan Hill — Public Relations

Madison, WI — May 29, 2013. The Madison Mallards have announced the signing of 9 players to temporary contracts for the 2013 season. These temporary players must be on the roster for a minimum of 10 days and must be waived or signed by the team to a full contract by June 30th.

Jeff Zimmerman, INF, Northern Illinois

Zimmerman, a 6’2,” 190-pound junior from Tinley Park, Illinois, played in 66 games for the Mallards last season, hitting .274 with 13 home runs, 57 RBIs and seven doubles. He also appeared in four games on the mound, pitching four innings of scoreless ball. 

He hit .267 with six home runs and 27 runs in 2012 for the Huskies and started in all 54 games for the 22-32 Huskies in 2013. He led the team in hitting (.333) and had 17 doubles, three home runs and 30 RBIs during the 2013 regular season.

Mitch Elliot, OF, Xavier

Elliot, a 5’11,” 180-pound redshirt junior from Wexford, Pennsylvania, hit .407 in nine games for the Mallards last summer. He registered 11 hits in 27 at-bats and hit one home run, while knocking in six runs and stealing three bases.

Elliot hit .279 with 17 RBIs and 27 runs scored for the Musketeers last spring. He hit .333 in 18 games during his freshman year in 2011. Elliot tore his labrum late last summer with the Mallards and has been limited this spring. He finished the regular season with a .152 batting average (7-for-46) with one home run and three RBIs.

Justin D’Amato, P, St. John Fisher College

D’Amato, a 5’9,” 165-pound junior from Canandaigua, New York, has appeared in 11 games and started in all of them for the 28-14 Cardinals this spring. He posted a 7-2 record with a 1.46 ERA during the 2013 regular season.

He appeared in 13 games for Cardinals last season and posted a perfect 11-0 record with a 2.14 ERA. He ended the season ranked fifth in the country in wins and sixth in strikeouts per nine innings (11.53). He recorded a career-high 14 strikeouts on March 18th, 2012 in a 9-0 win over Westminster and struck out 13 batters in just five innings against Penn State Altoona on March 3, 2012.

Luke Staub, P, George Washington

Staub, a 6’2,” 195-pound junior from Peoria, Illinois, has posted a record of 4-5 for the Colonials so far this spring. He had an ERA of 3.28 and registered 85 innings pitched during the regular season.

Staub pitched for Southeastern Community College in West Burlington, Iowa for his first two years of college and went 7-3 with a 3.48 ERA during his sophomore season.

 

 

Ben Neumann, P, Northern Illinois

Neumann, a 6’1,” 185-pound sophomore from Verona, Wisconsin, is 0-2 for the Huskies so far this spring. He registered an ERA of 9.19 and has struck out 13 batters in 15.2 innings pitched during the regular season.

Neumann made 13 appearances in relief last season for the Huskies. He pitched 14.1 innings and ended the season with a 6.91 ERA with 18 strikeouts and 10 walks. His highlight of his freshman year came on May 17, when he pitched 5.1 innings and struck out nine with no walks against Ball State.

 

Mike Fitzgerald, OF, Indiana State

Fitzgerald, a 6’1,” 210-pound junior from Rochester, Illinois, is batting .259 for the 24-23 Sycamores this spring. He hit two home runs and knocked in 19 runs while posting a .398 on-base percentage during the regular season.

Fitzgerald attended Lincoln Land Community College in Springfield, Illinois during his first two years of college and was a third-team NJCAA All-American selection after his freshman season. He led the team with a .443 batting average and also hit 11 home runs and had 61 RBIs. He hit .333 in 16 games as a sophomore, with two home runs and 17 RBIs.

 

 

Cam Verbeke, P, Illinois State

Verbeke, a 6’0,” 200-pound redshirt junior from Elmwood Park, Illinois has made six appearances, all in relief, for the 36-18 Cardinals this spring. He posted an ERA of 9.00 struck out three in four innings of work during the regular season.

Verbeke went 0-2 with an 8.62 ERA during his sophomore season in 2011 and struck out 14 batters. During his freshman season in 2010, Verbeke went 2-0 with a 7.53 ERA in 23 appearances in relief.

 

Justin Peters, P, Texas

Peters, a 6’4,” 185-pound junior from Deer Park, Texas, has not appeared for the 27-24 Longhorns this spring. In his first season with the Longhorns in 2012, he made two appearances while allowing three runs on six hits with no walks and four strikeouts. 

He played for Weatherford College in Weatherford, Texas during his freshman year in 2011 and struck out 48 batters in 41 innings of work. He is currently majoring in education.

Prairie du Sac, Wisconsin native Sam Koenig is also on the Mallards temporary roster. The Mallards announced the UW-Milwaukee Panther’s signing earlier this spring.

The Mallards will host their season opener against the Eau Claire Express on May 29th at 7:05 pm at the “Duck Pond.” Single-game tickets are on sale now! 

The Madison Mallards are part of the 16-team Northwoods League. The Northwoods Leage has more teams, plays more games, and draws more fans than any other Summer Collegiate Baseball League in North America. In 2013, the Northwoods League will celebrate its 20th season.