2023 All-Star Game Home Run Derby Field Revealed
July 18, 2023 - New England Collegiate Baseball League (NECBL) News Release
NORTH ADAMS, MA - The New England Collegiate Baseball League and Commissioner Sean McGrath are excited to announce the 2023 NECBL Home Run Derby Contestants. The Home Run Derby will be featured as the opening event of the NECBL's All-Star Festivities, which this year will take place at historic Fraser Field, home of the North Shore Navigators on Sunday, July 23rd. The Derby will begin at 2:00 p.m., with the first pitch of the All-Star Game set for 4:30 PM.
Tickets for the All-Star Festivities are available for $7 per person using the link here. For more information on the All-Star Game, click here.
There will be thirteen participants in this year's Home Run Derby, with two rounds of competition. The first round will see each contestant have three minutes to hit as many home runs as they can without any timeouts. The top two hitters with the most home runs after round one will move on to the Championship round.
In the championship round, the two finalists will have four minutes to hit as many home runs as they can with one thirty-second timeout, which can be used anywhere within the four minutes. The player with the most home runs in the championship round will be crowned the Home Run Derby champion. Home runs hit in round one will not carry over to the championship round.
If there is a tie, a one minute tiebreaker will be implemented to determine a winner.
2023 NECBL Home Run Derby Participants
Daniel Hussey (Bristol, OF, CCSU): Hussey leads the Blues with three home runs on the season, with his most recent coming on June 30, when he knocked a Grand Slam in a 9-3 win over the Upper Valley Nighthawks. In 22 games this year for the Blues, Hussey has ten runs scored, fourteen RBI, and six stolen bases.
Samuel Tackett (North Adams, OF, Virginia Tech): Tackett has shown off his power this season for the Steeplecats, leading the team in home runs by a wide margin, and also tying for the NECBL lead in home runs this season with eight. Tackett's last home run came July 8 at Vermont, as part of a two RBI game. Tackett is around the league lead in walks (24), RBI (22), runs scored (24), and doubles (7).
Anthony Steele (Danbury, P/1B, Penn State): Steele has two home runs on the season for the Westerners, with his last coming as a three run blast on July 1 in a 9-7 win over the Steeplecats. Steele has also pitched in nine games for the Westerners and has a 1.08 ERA over 16.2 innings.
Devin Taylor (Keene, OF/1B, Indiana): Taylor leads the SwampBats in home runs this season with six. His latest homer came on July 14 as part of a two hit, two RBI game in Vermont. Taylor is hitting .291 this season in 24 games, with twelve runs scored and seventeen RBI.
Carsten Sabathia (Martha's Vineyard, 1B/OF, Georgia Tech): Sabathia has three homers on the season in 18 games, hitting .210 during that span. His last homer came on July 9 in a 10-9 win against the Ocean State Waves.
Anthony DePino (Mystic, INF, URI): DePino leads the Schooners in home runs this season, with four home runs in twenty-seven games. He currently leads the Schooners in RBI (15), runs (16), and triples (1).
Billy Butler (Newport, OF, Rhode Island): Butler has two home runs on the season, helping fuel a dominant Gulls' offense this season. Butler currently has two home runs, nine RBI, and nine runs scored.
Jackson Hornung (North Shore, C, Kansas State): Hornung currently has two home runs on the season in thirteen games, and also has two doubles, six RBI, and five walks. His last home run came on July 8 against Danbury.
Christian Ficca (Ocean State, OF/1B, Georgetown): Ficca has not hit a homer this season, but in his Junior year at Georgetown, he hit eight home runs with 34 RBI. This season with the Waves, he is batting .280 with nine walks, two doubles, and five RBI.
Jeremiah Jenkins (Sanford, 1B/OF, Maine): Jenkins leads the Mainers in home runs this season (4), his last coming July 15 when he launched a three run shot to fuel the Mainers to a 10-0 win over Keene. He has collected fourteen RBI and has eight runs scored and 16 hits in 27 games.
Ryan Cesarini (Upper Valley, OF, St. Joseph's): Cesarini does not have a home run this season for the Nighthawks, but he still has produced in a big way. He is second on the team in total hits (30), runs scored (18), leads the team in walks (11) and is third on the team in average (.297).
Michael Zarrillo (Valley, INF, Lafayette): Zarrillo is currently tied for the Blue Sox' lead for home runs this season (2). He leads the team in walks (20) and is third in runs scored (15). His last home run came on July 15 at Danbury, launching a solo shot as part of a multi-hit performance.
Nathan Waugh (Vermont, C, Cornell): Waugh is currently second on the Mountaineers in home runs this season with two, and is currently batting .209 with ten RBI, six doubles, and twelve runs scored.
The 2023 NECBL All-Star Game on July 23rd will feature the best players and top talent in the league and will provide for a night full of excitement and entertainment. The 2023 All-Stars will look to showcase their talents with the hopes of continuing their baseball career beyond college and the NECBL, with 30-40 total scouts representing every Major League Baseball (MLB) team expected to be in attendance.
The New England Collegiate Baseball League is a wooden bat college summer league that fields teams in all six New England states. Partially funded by Major League Baseball, the New England League started play in 1994 and has sent over 225 alumni to the Major Leagues with nearly 30 alumni taken in the first round of the MLB Draft. For continuing coverage of the NECBL, visit NECBL.com and follow the league on Twitter, Instagram and on Facebook.
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