Written by: Reese Lannon

The Mankato MoonDogs will return five players from 2022’s 40-28 squad, including multiple
regulars from a lineup that was one of the Northwoods League’s best.

The players returning are catcher Ari Armas (San Diego), infielder Dustin Crenshaw (Grand
Canyon), outfielder Easton Fritcher (Minnesota), left-handed pitcher John Lundgren (North
Alabama) and utilityman Angelo Peraza.

Armas, a sophomore at USD, was an on-base machine for Mankato in 2022. He slashed
.274/.475/.381 with three home runs and 20 RBI while sporting a near 3-1 walk-to-strikeout ratio
(35-12). Armas’s .855 OPS also ranked third among regulars in the MoonDog lineup.

Crenshaw, a Junior at GCU, returns for his second year in Mankato and his third overall in the
Northwoods League. Playing multiple positions for the team last summer, he slashed a solid
.284/.387/.417 with three home runs and 22 RBI while also swiping six bases.

Fritcher, a Minnesota native, latched on with the MoonDogs down the stretch run after
graduating high school. The current Minnesota freshman hit an impressive .327 in 52 at-bats
during his stay in Mankato. He also knocked in four runs and stole three bases.

Lundgren, returning for his third straight year in Mankato and his fourth in the Northwoods
League, accumulated the third most innings on the pitching staff in 2022. Overall, the left-hander
from North Alabama had a 3-3 record in 12 games (seven starts) with a 5.08 ERA and just 12
walks in 44.1 innings. Overall between 2021 and 2022 in the black and orange, he has
accumulated an even 90 innings of work and has pitched in 33 career games.

Peraza, a Junior at USD, played in 18 games for Mankato last summer, hitting .241 and stealing
six bases. At San Diego in 2022, he achieved an OPS north of .800 while seeing most of his
action in right field.

The MoonDogs will open the 2023 season against the Thunder Bay Border Cats on May 29th at
ISG Field.