Roger Clemens Appearance Added to Northwoods League All-Star Game Festivities
Home Run Challenge Participants Announced
Traverse City, MI, July 18, 2023- Today, the Traverse City Pit Spitters are proud to announce that Roger “Rocket” Clemens will be in Traverse City to attend the upcoming Northwoods League All-Star Game brought to you by Traverse City Tourism. This announcement comes on the heels of the release of the Great Lakes Home Run Challenge participants.
11-time All-Star Roger “Rocket” Clemens will join the Pit Spitters for an appearance at Turtle Creek Stadium as they welcome the Northwoods League Great Lakes All-Star Game to town, Tuesday, July 25th. Clemens played 24 seasons in Major League Baseball, tallying 4,672 strikeouts , 7 Cy Young Awards, more than any other pitcher in history, and two World Series Championships in his career.
“As a native Houstonian, I remember Roger from his Astros days,” said General Manager, Jacqueline Holm. “Roger is one of the best to ever do it and bringing his accolades to Traverse City is incredibly exciting for our fans. His interest in this event also speaks to the quality of baseball in this league and the talent level of the kids on these All-Star rosters!” Roger is slated to be on field during the Home Run Challenge on Monday night and back for the All-Star Game on Tuesday to throw out the ceremonial first pitch.
Clemens’ appearances on Monday and Tuesday add to an already jam-packed lineup of fan festivities, kicking off with the Home Run Challenge, July 24th, a matchup of Great Lakes East and West’s best home run hitters going yard! Tuesday, July 25th kicks off at 4:00 p.m. with Fanfest prior to the All-Star Game featuring live music from The Knuckleheads, face painting, bounce houses, catch on the field and kids run the bases with All-Star Game Entertainment provided by Tyler’s Amazing Balancing Act! Tyler has entertained fans at ballparks across America and now he’s at Turtle Creek Stadium- check out his balancing here!
The Pit Spitters players looking to go yard at this year’s Home Run Challenge are center-fielder Parker Brosius, catcher Tyler Minnick and third baseman Glenn Miller, along with 15 other Great Lakes East and Great Lakes West players. The Northwoods League also added two Pit Spitters to the Great Lakes East roster: alternate pitchers Aren Gustafson and Aaron Forrest. In addition to the three Home Run Challenge participants, and two alternates, seven additional Pit Spitters were named to the All-Star Game Roster for the Great Lakes East, coached this year by Field Manager, Josh Rebandt.
“The opportunity to coach an All-Star Game has always been on my bucket list,” said Josh Rebandt, Field Manager for the Traverse City Pit Spitters. “It’s thrilling to not only have great representation from the Pit Spitters on the Great Lakes East roster, but to be able to host and coach at home makes it even more special!”
The Pit Spitters host a homerun challenge on Monday, July 24th and the Great Lakes All-Star Game on Tuesday, July 25th as part of a two-day event at Turtle Creek Stadium. All-Star tickets and VIP packages start at $16 and are available for purchase at PitSpitters.com.
Clemens will be available to the media at 5:30 p.m. July 25th at Turtle Creek Stadium.
The Great Lakes All-Star Game Homerun Challenge and All-Star Game will feature not only high caliber baseball, but live, local bands, entertainment from Tyler’s Amazing Balancing Act, an on field, VIP reception during the Homerun Challenge and more. Tickets start at $16 and are available for both events. For more information about the Home Run Challenge, All-Star Game, groups, theme nights, suites and more visit the Pit Spitters web site, www.PitSpitters.com or call (231) 943-0100.
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About the Traverse City Pit Spitters: The Traverse City Pit Spitters are a member of the finest developmental league for elite college baseball players, the Northwoods League. The Northwoods League is the proven leader in the development of elite college baseball players. Now in its’ 30th season, the Northwoods League is the largest organized baseball league in the world with 24 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, over 325 Northwoods League players have advanced to Major League Baseball, including three-time All-Star and 2016 Roberto Clemente Award winner Curtis Granderson, three-time Cy Young Award winner and World Series Champion Max Scherzer (NYM), two-time World Series Champions Ben Zobrist and Brandon Crawford (SFG) and World Series Champion Chris Sale (BOS). As well as 2019 Rookie of the Year and 2019/2021 Home Run Derby Champion Pete Alonso (NYM) and 2021 All-Star, MLB Gold Glove winner and 2019 Second Team All-MLB shortstop Marcus Semien (TEX). All league games are viewable live via the Northwoods League website. League games are viewable live at watchnwl.com and on ESPN+. For more information, visit www.greenbayrockers.com or download the new Northwoods League Mobile App on the Apple App Store or on Google Play and set the Rockers as your favorite team.
About the Northwoods League: The Northwoods League is the proven leader in the development of elite college baseball players. Now in its’ 30th season, the Northwoods League is the largest organized baseball league in the world with 24 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, over 325 Northwoods League players have advanced to Major League Baseball, including three-time All-Star and 2016 Roberto Clemente Award winner Curtis Granderson, three-time Cy Young Award winner and World Series Champion Max Scherzer (NYM), two-time World Series Champions Ben Zobrist and Brandon Crawford (SFG) and World Series Champion Chris Sale (BOS). As well as 2019 Rookie of the Year and 2019/2021 Home Run Derby Champion Pete Alonso (NYM) and 2021 All-Star, MLB Gold Glove winner and 2019 Second Team All-MLB shortstop Marcus Semien (TEX). All league games are viewable live via the Northwoods League website at watchnwl.com and on ESPN+. For more information, visit www.northwoodsleague.com or download the Northwoods League Mobile App on the Apple App Store or on Google Play.
