Waterloo, Iowa – On Monday, the Northwoods League announced the 2021 Rawlings “Big Stick” Award winners which included three Waterloo Bucks:  Max Jung-Goldberg, Joshua Kasevich, and Garrett McGowan.  The annual award is given to the player at each position who had the best batting average during the 2021 regular season.  All three Bucks were also named to the NWL’s 2021 Postseason All-Star Team in August.

A redshirt sophomore from the University of San Diego and originally from Palo Alto, California, Max Jung-Goldberg hit .342 on the season.  The outfielder finished with the eighth best average in the NWL to go along with four home runs, 41 RBI, and 12 stolen bases.  Jung-Goldberg was also named a mid-season All-Star.

Shortstop Joshua Kasevich, a sophomore from the University of Oregon and originally from Eugene, Oregon, was third in the NWL in hitting with a .374 average.  Kasevich hit two home runs, 39 RBI, and five stolen bases on the year for Waterloo.  The infielder participated in the Major League Dreams Showcase in August.

Garrett McGowan, a junior from Pittsburg State University and originally from Blue Springs, Missouri, was named a Big Stick Award winner as a designated hitter.  McGowan finished fifth in the league with a .351 average and ended the year with the sixth-best slugging percentage with a .492 mark to go along with four home runs, 43 RBI, and 10 stolen bases.  McGowan was also named a mid-season All-Star.

Rawlings has been rewarding the top hitters in the Northwoods League since 2007 in addition to honoring the best fielders since 2002. To honor their achievement, the nine award winners from across the NWL will receive an engraved bat from Rawlings.  To be eligible for the award, a player would have needed to have enough plate appearances to qualify for a batting title. A player must have a minimum of 2.7 plate appearances per team game.

The complete list of 2021 Rawlings “Big Stick” Award Winners is below.

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.