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Northwoods League Announces 2017 All-Star Selections
Rafters set new team record with six selections from this year’s team
Wisconsin Rapids, Wis.—The Northwoods League has announced the rosters for the 2017 Northwoods League All-Star Game, which will be played on Tuesday, July 18th at 7:05 at Athletic Park in Wausau, Wisconsin.
In the South Division, the First-Half Champion Wisconsin Rapids rafters have set a new franchise record with six players named to the roster. The Rafters are led by lefty starter Jack Eagan (Madison College), who paces the team with a perfect 6-0 record and a 1.54 ERA. Eagan is the only pitcher in the Northwoods League this season with six wins. He is joined by fellow starters Jesse Slinger and Quinn DiPasquale on the All-Star team.
Slinger (Youngstown State) owns a 5-0 record and 1.34 ERA, recently tossing a complete game in his last start, allowing three hits and one run. Slinger appeared in his first game out of the bullpen, but moved to the starting rotation in his last six outings. He joins Eagan as the only two pitchers with five or more wins in the league this season. DiPasquale (Stevens Institute of Technology) holds a 4-1 record and an ERA of 2.97 in six starts. Cameron Busby (Belmont Abbey) joins the group of starters out of the bullpen. The reliever has a 1-0 record in 13 appearances, holding a 0.40 ERA in 22 innings. This is the second consecutive season Busby has been named an All-Star in the Northwoods League.
On the offensive end, Dustin Woodcock (SIU-Edwardsville) leads the charge with five home-runs, 30 runs batted in (tied for a team-high), and a .334 batting average. The third-year Rafter is making his first All-Star appearance. Joining Woodcock from the outfield is Jake Guenther (Sacramento City Community College). Guenther started the season with a 31 game on-base streak, which is a franchise record to begin a season. The outfielder is hitting .324 this summer with three home-runs and 19 runs batted in.
Field Manager Craig Noto and his coaching staff including John Halama, Kirk Shrider, and Matt Hill will be in the dugout for the South. The Rafters, who won the first-half championship in the South Division, currently have a 28-9 record and are 1-0 in the second half.
The North Division will be coached by the staff of the St. Cloud Rox, led by Augie Rodriguez, the Rox Field Manager. Al Newman, Adam Maxon, and Riley Price join Rodriguez in the dugout for the North.
This year’s All-Stars were chosen in a vote by the 20-member teams of the Northwoods League. Ballots were cast by each team’s field staff and media contacts.
The 2017 Northwoods League All-Star Game festivities will be held July 17th and 18th in Wausau, WI. The Home-Run Derby will begin at 5:05 p.m. on July 18th followed by the All-Star Game at 7:05 p.m.
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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 170 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 http://northwoodsleague.com/wisconsin-rapids-rafters/ 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.
