MOBILE, Ala. - Before the BayBears battle the Jacksonville Suns at 7:05 p.m. on Monday night, Katie Peavy, the wife of 2007 National League Cy Young Award winner Jake Peavy, will be in attendance to announce the opening of the Jake Peavy Suite, which has been purchased by the Peavy Family for youth organizations such as St. Jude Hospital, the Children's Miracle Network, Mitchell Cancer Institute and Preschool for the Sensory Impaired.
Those groups along with many others have partnered with the BayBears to hold numerous special evenings at Hank Aaron Stadium throughout the season, and the Peavy Family has graciously provided their tickets and suite for the families of these groups. Jake and Katie, both Mobile natives, are the first people to have a suite named in their honor, with many more to come. Furthermore, their son Wyatt, will throw out the ceremonial first pitch at Monday's game as part of the BayBears' Field of Dreams team.
In addition to the historic celebration involving the Jake Peavy Suite, one of the best pitching prospects in baseball, Clayton Kershaw will be on the mound at "The Hank" in front of a national media spotlight. Kershaw, ranked as the fifth-best prospect before the season by Sports Illustrated and Baseball Prospectus, was said to have been the best left-handed pitcher ever in the Midwest League, according to one longtime scout.
Kershaw was drafted by the Los Angeles Dodgers in the first round of the 2006 draft and has pitched for the USA National Team. In 33.1 innings, Kershaw has only four earned runs while recording 37 strikeouts. Opponents are batting just .192 against him.
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