TL1 Frisco RoughRiders

Eight Roughriders Named to All-Star Team

Published on June 14, 2012 under Texas League (TL1)
Frisco RoughRiders News Release


FRISCO, TEXAS (JUNE 14, 2012) -The Frisco RoughRiders are proud to announce that eight of their players have been named to the South Division All-Star team for the Texas League All-Star Game on June 28 in Tulsa, Okla. Shortstop Jurickson Profar, third baseman Mike Olt, outfielder Engel Beltre, catcher Zach Zaneski, and pitchers Chad Bell, Jake Brigham, Justin Grimm and Barret Loux were all named All-Stars when rosters were announced earlier today.

The RoughRiders are tied with the host Drillers for the most All-Stars on any one team. The game will be played at ONEOK Field at 7:05 p.m. CDT on June 28. The South Division squad will be coached by defending league champion San Antonio's field staff while Tulsa's staff will coach the North Division All-Stars.

For interview requests with any of the All-Stars (minus Grimm, who will join the Texas Rangers this weekend), please contact Alex Vispoli at (972) 334-1976 or at avispoli@ridersbaseball.com. The RoughRiders will be in town through Sunday's game against Corpus Christi and then will return to Frisco to start a four-game series on June 21.

FRISCO ROUGHRIDERS MID-SEASON ALL-STARS

Jurickson Profar: The youngest player in Double-A, Profar is batting .296 with six home runs, 16 doubles, six triples, 28 runs batted in, 44 runs scored and nine steals in 62 games. He was recently named "Topps Texas League Player of the Month" for May. Over a 28-game stretch in May, Profar hit .322 with three home runs, nine doubles, two triples, and 14 runs batted in. Featuring a hitting approach that is wise beyond his 19 years, the switch-hitter carried a 29-game hitting streak from April 19-May 20 and put together a 50-game on-base streak from April 7 - June 3. Both are the longest streaks of their kind in all of professional baseball this season.

Mike Olt: In 61 games this season, Olt is batting a team-leading .318 with 19 home runs, 12 doubles, one triple, 55 runs batted in, 44 runs scored and three steals. Named the Rangers "Minor League Player of the Month" for May, Olt has continued to hammer TL pitching in the month of June. Through his first nine games, Olt has hit eight home runs and currently leads all of Double-A in round trippers (fourth in the Minors). Six of homers came over a three-day period in which Olt hit two home runs in back-to-back-to-back games. The Branford, Conn. native also leads the TL in runs batted in and slugging percentage (.622) and is third in on-base percentage (.420).

Engel Beltre: Beltre is batting .247 with six home runs, seven doubles, nine triples (tied for the most in the Minors), 26 runs batted in, 37 runs scored and 16 steals. One of the league's best outfielders, Beltre was named the organization's "Minor League Defender of the Month" for May. He has not committed an error in 57 defensive games this season and is fifth in outfield assists with seven.

Zach Zaneski: The University of Rhode Island graduate is the reserve catcher for the South Division team. In 25 games this season, Zaneski is batting .325 with three home runs, five doubles, a triple, 14 runs batted in and 11 runs scored. He recently had a 14-game hitting streak that lasted from May 5 - June 10 and was the second-longest streak for a RoughRiders player this season. The Connecticut native hit .449 (22-49) during the streak. This is the second straight season that Zaneski has been named a mid-season All-Star, as he played in the California League - Carolina League All-Star Game in 2011.

Chad Bell: Since joining the RoughRiders from Advanced-A Myrtle Beach on April 24, Bell has posted a 2-0 record with a 1.77 ERA over 11 games (five starts). He compiled a 0.56 ERA out of the bullpen (including two saves) in his first six appearances with the 'Riders and then was moved into the rotation on May 19. He has struck out 33 batters and walked eight in 40.2 innings and left-handed hitters are batting just .069 (2 for 29) against him. Bell is coming off his finest start of the season against Midland on June 11, tossing 6.2 scoreless innings with only one hit allowed.

Jake Brigham: Brigham's first Texas League All-Star Game comes in his second year with the RoughRiders. In 13 starts, he is 3-3 with a 4.02 ERA this season. The 'Riders' workhorse, Brigham has logged the second-most innings (80.2) of any pitcher in the TL and has thrown at least six innings in 10 of his 13 starts. Brigham also ranks second in the league strikeouts with 75. The right-hander was drafted by Texas in the sixth round in 2006 and he is a member of the Rangers' 40-man roster.

Justin Grimm: The former University of Georgia right-hander is 8-3 in the Texas League with a league-leading 1.87 ERA and 67 strikeouts with 14 walks this season. Grimm will make his Major League debut in a start for the Rangers on Saturday, June 16 in Arlington. Prior to this promotion, he served as the 'Riders' staff ace. He recently saw a streak of 25 scoreless innings end on June 10 against Midland and has held opposing hitters to a .228 batting average in 13 starts (fifth lowest in the TL). Grimm was named the Rangers' "Minor League Pitcher of the Month" for April.

Barret Loux: A former Texas A&M standout and Golden Spikes finalist, Loux is tied for the minor league lead in wins (11) along with Trevor Bauer of Triple-A Reno. This season he became the first pitcher in all of the majors or the minors to double digit victories, winning each of his first 10 starts. Overall, he is 11-0 with a 2.81 ERA (third in the Texas League), 62 strikeouts and 24 walks in 67.1 innings. In only his second professional season, Loux has already exceeded his win total from 2011, when he went 8-5 for High-A Myrtle Beach.

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