(Rochester, Minn.) – The Rochester Honkers announced today that University of Texas Longhorns Beau O’Hara and Zack Zubia have signed on to play for the Honkers this summer.
O’Hara is a 6-foot-1, 195 lb. sophomore right-handed pitcher from Katy, Texas. He was ranked the 25th best shortstop in the state of Texas out of high school, earning first team 19-6A All-District honors his senior season. He began his collegiate career at Blinn College, a JUCO college in Brenham, Texas. The two-way player finished the season on the mound 2-3 with a 5.15 ERA, recording 46 strikeouts in only 43.2 innings, and led the pitching staff in appearances with 16. Despite the success on the mound, O’Hara could not find his swing at Blinn College going 0-16, leading him to focus on pitching instead. He signed with Tulane for his sophomore season, but was brought along to Austin, TX after the Green Wave head coach David Pierce was hired by Texas.
O’Hara faced and retired the last batter of a 5-4 win (7 innings) over Rice on Saturday (2/18). The out halted a 3-run final push by the Owls and gave him his first save of the season. Texas also won game two of the doubleheader against Rice 6-1. O’Hara did make his second appearance of the season on Sunday (2/19), pitching the 9th facing five batters, giving up 1 run on 1 hit and walking 1 as Rice defeated Texas 7-1.
Zubia is a 6-foot-4, 235 lb. freshman infielder and right-handed pitcher from Richmond, Texas. He finished his senior year at Strake Jesuit College Preparatory, hitting .440 with 12 homeruns, 51 RBIs and 33 walks in 36 games. He was named to the District 19-6A MVP and All-Houston 6A Hitter of the Year. He was rated the 72nd best third baseman in the nation and sixth-best in the state. He also spent time in high school at first base and pitcher.
Zubia also played football, where he holds school records in both passing yards and touchdowns in a season. He was named the District 19-6A First-Team All-District quarterback and Offensive Player of the Year.
Texas is 2-2 on the season. They face Sam Houston State on the road this Wednesday at 6:30 pm.
The Rochester Honkers 24th season begins on Tuesday, May 30th when the team hosts the Mankato Moondogs in their home opener at Mayo Field at 7:05 pm. Season Tickets, ½ Season Plans, Suites and Patios are now available. Call the Rochester Honkers office at 507-289-1170 for more information. The Honkers are also looking for host families for the 2017 season and ask all interested parties to call the business office for more information.
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The Northwoods League is the proven leader in the development of elite college baseball players. The 24-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 two-time Cy Young Award winner Max Scherzer (WAS), two-time World Series Champion Ben Zobrist (CHC) and MLB All-Stars Chris Sale (CWS), Jordan Zimmermann (DET), Curtis Granderson (NYM) and Lucas Duda (NYM). 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.
