St. Cloud, MN – St. Cloud Rox outfielder Ricky Ramirez has been selected to represent his team at the 2016 Home Run Derby in the Harbor, the Northwoods League announced Wednesday. The event will take place on Monday, July 18 as part of the Northwoods League All-Star festivities.

    Ramirez is tied for the team lead this season with four home runs and leads the team in RBI, while carrying a slugging percentage of .447 which ranks second among position players for the Rox. Ramirez was one of seven St. Cloud players named to the North Division All-Star team last week.

    The first ever event of its kind in baseball, the Home Run Derby at the Harbor, will feature top Northwoods League hitters batting from a pier that extends in to Lake Michigan. Sailboats from the Kenosha Yacht Club will serve as the foul poles to mark the dimensions of Simmons Field and a floating barrier will mimic the outfield wall. Derby participants will attempt to hit home runs over the floating barrier into the downtown Kenosha Harbor. Each Northwoods League team will send a representative to compete in the event.

The format for the Home Run Derby at the Harbor is below: 

1.         There will be 9 innings with each player having one half inning.

2.         Away team (North) player bats first in the top of the inning, and home team player next (South) in the bottom half of the inning.

3.         Each player will have one half inning at bat that will consist of 6 outs

4.         The player with the most home runs at the end of the 9 innings, will be the Home Run Derby at the Harbor Winner 

5.         The team (North or South) with the most home runs will be announced as the winner of the team competition.

For the complete Home Run Derby lineup and more information on the event, find the official league release here.

Ramirez will lead the Rox into Willmar to take on the Stingers on Wednesday night, before returning to the Rock Pile on Thursday to take on the Mankato MoonDogs. Thursday's game will have a Rox Seat Cushion Giveaway presented by Medica for the first 300 fans 60 and older. It will also be Polka Night presented by 1150AM KASM.

The St. Cloud Rox are a member of the finest developmental league for elite college baseball players, the Northwoods League. Playing its 23rd season of summer collegiate baseball, the Northwoods League is the largest summer collegiate 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 150 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.stcloudrox.com or download the new Northwoods League Mobile App on the Apple App Store and on Google Play.
             
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