Waterloo, Iowa – Former Waterloo Bucks infielders Jonah Bride and Jake Means have been placed on rosters in the Arizona Fall League during professional baseball’s off-season.  Bride will suit up for the Mesa Solar Sox, while Means will play for the Surprise Saguaros.

Jonah Bride, a third baseman who played with Waterloo in 2015, suited up for the Midland Rockhounds in Double-A this past season, hitting .265 with 9 home runs and 49 RBI.  Bride was drafted by the Oakland Athletics with the 683^rd overall pick (23^rd round) in the 2018 MLB Amateur Entry Draft.  A native of Owasso, Oklahoma, Bride has 22 home runs and 141 RBI in his three years of minor league baseball, hitting .274 along the way.

A product of the Neosho Community College, Bride hit .237 in 28 games in his only season with the Bucks.  Bride drove in 18 RBI after being signed by the ballclub in early-July, 2015.

Third baseman Jake Means, who played for Waterloo in 2018, split time with the Columbia Fireflies and Quad City River Bandits, both Single-A affiliates of Kansas City, this past season, hitting .222 with 16 home runs and 52 RBI.  Means was taken in the 22^nd round with the 649^th overall pick by the Kansas City Royals in the 2019 MLB Draft.  In two years of professional baseball, the Olathe, Kansas native owns a .231 average with 21 home runs and 81 RBI.

A product of Indiana State University, Means hit .235 in six games for the Bucks in 2018 before an injury ended his season.

Starting this week, 21 former Northwoods League players will be competing over the next two months in Arizona against the top players in Minor League Baseball.  Nearly 60 percent of AFL players will at some point make a Major League roster.

There are six teams in the Arizona Fall League: Scottsdale Scorpions, Mesa Solar Sox, Salt River Rafters, Glendale Desert Dogs, Peoria Javelinas, and the Surprise Saguaros.  The teams are broken into two divisions, East and West and each Major League Baseball team sends six top prospects to the Arizona Fall League.  Most of the players are Double-A and Triple-A Minor League players.  Each team can choose to send one player considered a Class A player.

More information on the Arizona Fall League can be found here: Arizona Fall League.

The Bucks recently wrapped up their 27^th season of play, winning the Great Plains East Championship.  Cost Cutters Field at Riverfront Stadium, home of the Bucks, welcomed a new state of the art video board in 2016 thanks to a matching grant from the Black Hawk County Gaming Association.  Team ownership has invested nearly $400,000 in stadium improvements since the end of the 2014 season including group outing areas, painted bleachers, public Wi-Fi, sound system, kids zone inflatables, wiffle ball field, and concessions equipment.  Fans are encouraged to stay in touch with the Bucks by utilizing their website at www.waterloobucks.com or utilizing the Northwoods League Mobile App.

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The Waterloo Bucks 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. Having completed its’ 28^th season, the Northwoods League is the largest organized baseball league in the world with 22 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 250 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 (WAS), 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 Home Run Derby Champion Pete Alonso (NYM) and MLB Gold Glove finalist and 2019 Second Team All-MLB shortstop Marcus Semien (TOR). All league games are viewable live via the Northwoods League website. All league games are viewable live via the Northwoods League portal. For more information, visit www.waterloobucks.com or download the new Northwoods League Mobile App on the Apple App Store or on Google Play and set the Bucks as your favorite team.