Pair of Infielders Commit to Rafters for 2017

Sutton and Owens bring consistent bats, strong defense to Rafters

 

Wisconsin Rapids, Wis. –With the Division I spring collegiate about to commence this weekend, the Rafters have announced the additions of two infielders to the summer roster. First baseman Sean Sutton of Seattle University and Nick Owens of St. Johns River State College have both signed contracts for 2017.

 

“We’re excited to partner with Seattle University again and looking forward to beginning a relationship with St. John’s River State in Florida,” said Rafters general manager John Fanta. “Sutton is a big left-handed hitting first baseman we’re looking forward to adding to the heart of our lineup and Owens is a sure-handed shortstop who will solidify our defense up the middle.”

 

INF – Sean Sutton, 6’3”, 225, (L/L), Junior, Seattle University

Seeing playing time since his freshman year at Seattle, Sutton exploded onto the scene in 2016 as a sophomore. A year ago, Sutton started nearly every game, batting .337 and tallying 69 hits, 13 doubles and 32 runs batted in. After the strong season, Sutton garnered First Team All-WAC in addition to earning WAC All-Tournament Team honors. In high school he was part of the core group of players to lead the team to the IEL regular season and district tournament championship all four years he was on the varsity team. He also shined on the mound, pitching to a 10-3 record with an ERA of 2.21. He batted .418 with five home runs as a senior. Sutton is a native of Coeur D’Alene, Idaho.

 

 

INF – Nick Owens, 6’0”, 175 (R/R), Sophomore, St. Johns River State

Primarily a shortstop, Owens will add a dynamic set of skills to the Rafters middle infield in 2017. As a freshman, Owens appeared in 55 games and posted a .350 batting average for the season. He also smacked two home runs, drove in 25, while scoring 51 runs and stealing seven bases. Owens also showed strong plate discipline, striking out just 21 times in 234 plate appearances while earning 27 walks. He also reached base 17 times via hit by pitch, ranking 19^th in the country for most times a player was beaned a year ago.  The Charlotte, North Carolina native graduated from Charlotte Christian High School in 2014. He was the 25 overall prospect in the state, while holding the number five ranking among all shortstops.

 

 

The season and home opener for the Wisconsin Rapids Rafters is May 30th at 7:05 against the Kenosha Kingfish. Solarus Founders Club, bleacher 9-Game ticket packages, and group outing packages are on sale now. Call 715-424-5400 or stop by the Rafters Front Office Monday-Friday from 9-5 to purchase a ticket package or book a group outing.

 

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The Wisconsin Rapids Rafters are a member of the finest developmental league for elite college baseball players, the Northwoods League. The 23-year-old summer collegiate league is the largest organized baseball league in the world with 20 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 160 former Northwoods League players have advanced to Major League Baseball, including two-time Cy Young Award winner Max Scherzer (WAS), two-time World Series Champion Ben Zobrist (CHC) and MLB All-Stars Chris Sale (BOS), Jordan Zimmermann (DET), Curtis Granderson (NYM) and Lucas Duda (NYM).  All league games are viewable live via the Northwoods League portal. For more information, visit www.raftersbaseball.com or download the new Northwoods League Mobile App on the Apple App Store or on Google Play and set the Rafters as your favorite team.