Former Steamer Outfielder Earns Nationals Minor League Player of the Year
February 4, 2014 - Coastal Plain League (Coastal Plain)
Edenton Steamers News Release
EDENTON, N.C- The Edenton Steamers of the Coastal Plain League announce today that former outfielder Billy Burns has been named the Washington Nationals Minor League Player of the Year.
Burns (picture courtesy of MILB.com) was the Nationals 32nd-round selection in the 2011 first-year player draft out of Mercer University (GA).
The 2013 season saw Burns have a major breakthrough on the diamond while spending time with both the high-A Potomac Nationals and the AA Harrisburg Senators. Burns played in 121 games for both squads combined and led all Nationals minor leaguers with a .315 batting average, a .425 on-base average and 74 stolen bases. His on-base average and stolen bases were good for ninth and third, respectively, amongst all minor leaguers. He added a .808 OPS, 96 runs, 140 hits, including 12 doubles and nine triples, while knocking in 37 and walking 72 times. Burns began his professional career in 2011 with the short-season single-A affiliate of Washington, the Auburn DoubleDays in the New York-Penn League. After logging 32 games and 107 at-bats with the DoubleDays, Burns suited up in 2012 for the low-A Hagerstown Suns in the South Atlantic League before starting 2013 with Potomac. For his professional career, spanning three seasons and 266 games, Burns has a .312 batting average, 200 runs, 296 hits, 29 doubles, 16 triples, 96 RBIs and 125 stolen bases in 142 attempts. His .421 on-base average and .379 slugging average combine for a career .800 OPS.
Along with these stellar offensive statistics, in 523 chances in the outfield, Burns has only committed five errors for a .990 fielding average. Along with earning the Minor League Player of the year honor, he was selected as Carolina League Topps player of the month for July and a postseason All-Star in 2013 prior to being traded to the Oakland Athletics in December.
"The season was exciting and I was blessed to have received those honors," said Burns. "I was fortunate enough to be on some great teams with some great coaches. I was shocked about the trade though; I never thought I was a guy that would be looked at by other teams for a trade. It came as a big surprise to my mom as well. She had to return all of the Nationals apparel she had purchased for our family members for Christmas and try to get the A's gear in fast," added Burns lightheartedly. "I'm also excited to learn from a new coaching staff and I'm looking forward to learning about base-stealing from Rickey Henderson. He will be able to help me improve my base-stealing and leadoff-hitter abilities."
In 2010 when Burns was an essential piece for the Edenton Steamers, he played in 42 games and batted .294 in 160 at-bats for the eventual wildcard Steamers that went all the way to the Petitt Cup Championship series. Burns was second on the team with 35 runs, picked up 47 hits, nine doubles, two triples, one home run and drove in 25. He slugged .394, had an on-base average of .398, walked 28 times and went 16-for-18 in stolen base attempts. For his work on the diamond, Burns was named an All-Star for the Clams in 2010.
"Edenton was amazing for me. It got me used to the everyday grind of playing baseball," said Burns. "I also had an amazing host family, the Burns (no relation), who treated me very well and that made my experience just like being at home. I felt like I was a part of their family and not just because we shared the same last name."
Burns becomes the second Steamer alumnus to earn Minor League Player of the Year honors for his respective organization after 2011 Steamer Joey Wendle garnered the distinction for the Cleveland Indians in 2013.
The Edenton Steamers are a proud member of the Coastal Plain League, the nation's hottest summer collegiate baseball league. Celebrating its 17th season in 2013, the CPL features 14 teams playing in North Carolina, South Carolina and Virginia. The CPL gives college players the chance to refine their skills with the use of wooden bats. Players are housed with local host families for the summer and past experiences have been very positive for both players and hosts.
Furthermore, the CPL has had over 1,000 alumni drafted and 63 alums - including 2011 AL MVP and Cy Young winner Justin Verlander -make their Major League debut thus far. For more information on the Coastal Plain League, please visit the league website at www.coastalplain.com, and be sure to friend us on Facebook (at www.facebook.com/coastalplainleague) and follow us via Twitter (as cplbaseball).
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Coastal Plain League Stories from February 4, 2014
- Marlins Ink Vanderbilt's Tyler Campbell - Morehead City Marlins
- Former Steamer Outfielder Earns Nationals Minor League Player of the Year - Edenton Steamers
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