Sophomore pitchers Johnson, Cortez, & Heilenbach bolster roster

Willmar, Minn. – The Willmar Stingers are excited to announce that they have added three new pitchers to the roster for the 2014 season. University of California-State Northridge teammates Jordan Johnson and Anthony Cortez will join Steve Heilenbach from Illinois State University as the newest members of the Stingers. All three players are sophomores and will provide depth to the pitching staff for this summer. With these three additions, the roster is now comprised of 23 players for the 2014 season, the Stingers fifth in the Northwoods League.

Johnson is a 6-foot, 180 pound red-shirt sophomore from Elk Grove, CA. The righty has made five starts for the Matadors this season and posted a 2-2 overall record.  In 30 2/3 innings pitched, he has 20 strikeouts and only eight walks with a 3.82 Earned Run Average. During his time at Franklin High School, Johnson was named to the Delta Valley Conference First Team his junior season and was selected to try out for Team USA in 2011.

Cortez is a 6-foot, 180 pound sophomore from Los Angeles, CA. Cortez has been used out of the bullpen thus far by head coach Greg Moore, making seven appearances. Only giving up two runs in his seven innings, Cortez has proven to be a valuable reliever. Cortez has seven strikeouts, three walks, and an ERA of 2.57 in the early going of the 2014 season. During Cortez’s freshman season, he appeared in 18 games and amassed 14.0 innings with 18 strikeouts.

Heilenbach is a 6-foot, 185 pound right-handed pitcher originally from Western Springs, IL. Heilenbach has made three appearances for the Redbirds this season, with one start. With a record of 1-0, Heilenbach has an ERA of 2.79 with only three earned runs allowed in 9.2 innings.  As a freshman, Heilenbach made nine appearances with a 0.52 ERA and held opponents to a batting average of .185.

Field Manager Matt Hollod, along with the Stingers organization, will continue to build the roster for the fifth season of Stingers baseball in 2014.  2014 season tickets for the upcoming season are currently on sale now.  For more information regarding this story or season ticket pricing, please call 320-222-2010 or visit www.willmarstingers.com.  The 2014 season is presented by Charter.

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The Willmar Stingers are a member of the finest developmental league for elite college baseball players, the Northwoods League. Playing its 21st 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 115 Northwoods League players have advanced to Major League Baseball, including Cy Young Award winner Max Scherzer (DET) and MLB All-Stars Chris Sale (CWS), Jordan Zimmermann (WAS), Curtis Granderson (NYM), Allen Craig (STL) and Ben Zobrist (TB). All league games are viewable live and free of charge via the Northwoods League YouTube channel.  For more information, visit www.willmarstingers.com.