Madison, Wis. (August 4) – A combination of radar guns, notebooks and sunglasses will illuminate the scenery behind home plate at Warner Park on Tuesday evening when the Madison Mallards play host to the Northwoods League’s 2015 Major League Dreams Showcase at the Duck Pond. A host of Major League scouts will evaluate the top prospects of North America’s largest summer collegiate baseball league in a double-header at Warner Park, with game one of the talent-saturated twin bill scheduled for 4:05 p.m. and the nightcap penciled in for a 7:35 p.m. start time.
The Mallards, who enter today’s off-day on the heels of a comeback victory made possible by Jonathan Quintana’s (Barry University) clutch triple in the bottom of the eighth on Monday against Alexandria, will be well represented in today’s showcase. A total of 11 Madison players were hand-selected by a panel of big-league talent evaluators to take part in today’s double-dip after piecing together impressive beginnings to their respective 2015 summer collegiate campaigns. Eight of those 11 Mallards players chosen will lace up their spikes to participate.
Representing Madison’s starting rotation this evening will be A.J. Bogucki (North Carolina), who has pitched to a 4.20 ERA and strikeout-to-walk ratio of 35:13 across 40.2 innings this summer. Relievers Mike Kaelin (Buffalo) and Tyler Frohwirth (Minnesota State) will join Bogucki amid a flurry of projectable big-league talent on the mound. Kaelin, who sits 90-92 MPH with his fastball with a spike-curveball to complement it, leads Madison in whiffs (50) and crafted a 15.2 scoreless-innings streak to begin 2015. Frohwirth owns a 2.01 ERA with 18 whiffs in 22.1 frames with Madison’s bullpen.
With the lumber, the Mallards will also make their presence known on Tuesday. Anthony Gonsolin (St. Mary’s College), still the only Northwoods League hitter with double-digit marks in home runs (11) and stolen bases (16), will suit up alongside Cameron Frost (Washington State) and Jean Ramirez (Illinois State) for the home squad in the finale of tonight’s double-dip. Frost has mashed six home runs with 11 nabbed bases offensively this summer, while Ramirez, a 2015 All-Star selection, has swung the lumber to the tune of a .304 batting average across 217 at-bats. Jason Goldstein (Illinois) will flaunt his defensive chops behind home as a catcher for the away team in today’s first game.
Though they were chosen to participate, Mallards infielder Ro Coleman (Vanderbilt) and catcher/designated hitter Collin Theroux (San Joaquin Delta CC) will not participate in Tuesday’s showcase. Coleman has managed a .292 batting average, .373 on-base percentage a 12:7 walk-to-strikeout ratio as a versatile bat for field manager Donnie Scott thus far in 2015. Theroux, a 6-foot-3 signal caller from San Mateo, Calif., clubbed seven home runs on his way to a team-best .279 isolated slugging percentage over his first 26 games donning green and yellow. Vince Arobio (Pacific), who owns a 10.9 K/9 mark from Madison’s bullpen, has also selected but will not participate on Tuesday.
Fans interesting in attending both games of today’s double-header will only be required to purchase one ticket. Gates to the stadium will open at 2:30 p.m. Tuesday’s showcase will also feature the first installment of the Mallards 2015 Double-Decker Pizza Bus Celebrity Chef Series, which will run through the final home game of the season on Friday, August 7. For tickets to today’s double-header or questions on how to purchase tickets for 2015 Mallards playoff home games, call the Mallards Ticket Office at 608-246-4277 or visit www.MallardsBaseball.com for more information.
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The Madison Mallards 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), Lucas Duda (NYM) and Ben Zobrist (OAK). All league games are viewable live via the Northwoods League Website. For more information, visit www.MallardsBaseball.com.
