Five Crawdads and Coaching Staff on 2010 SAL All-Star Team
Published on June 7, 2010 under South Atlantic League (SAL1)
Hickory Crawdads News Release
HICKORY, NC - The South Atlantic League announced on Monday the rosters for the 51st Annual SAL All-Star Game, and the Hickory Crawdads will be represented by five players, which ties for the most in the league. Additionally, the Crawdads coaching staff -- Manager Bill Richardson, Pitching Coach Brad Holman, Hitting Coach Jason Hart and Athletic Trainer Jeff Bodenhamer -- will be at the helm of the Northern Division Team. The All-Star Game is scheduled for Tuesday, June 22 at 7:15 p.m. and will be played at Fluor Field in Greenville, South Carolina.
CF Miguel Velazquez, 22, was voted as the starting center fielder for the Northern Division squad. Velazquez is tied for 2nd in the league with 44 RBIs, tied for 4th with 10 home runs, 3rd with 41 runs scored and tied for 5th with 109 total bases, and leads the team in each category. The San Juan, Puerto Rico, native was named to the Northwest League Post-Season All-Star team last season as a member of the Spokane Indians, and was originally selected by the Texas Rangers in the 19th round of the 2006 draft out of high school.
LHP Robbie Ross, 20, is one of four Crawdads pitchers on the All-Star Team. Ross leads the team and is tied for the SAL lead with eight wins this season, and has also logged the second-most innings pitched (70.1) while registering 9th in the league with a 1.92 ERA. Ross earned his eighth win in the Crawdads 18-9 victory against Lexington on Sunday, during which he surrendered only one run in six innings of work. It was the first earned run he had allowed since May 16. In his penultimate outing, Ross faced the minimum 24 batters through eight shutout innings in Charleston, retiring 23 in a row after a lead-off single in the near-perfect start. The Lexington, Kentucky, native joined Velazquez on the Northwest League Post-Season All-Star team last year.
LHP Robbie Erlin, 19, joins Ross as a fellow lefty on the Northern Division All-Star pitching staff. After starting the season in the bullpen, Erlin transitioned into a starting role on May 18 in Kannapolis, when he tossed five perfect innings, striking out nine of the 15 he retired in a row. Through 13 outings and five starts, he is 1-1 with a 1.39 ERA while striking out 46 and only walking nine.The Santa Cruz, Californa native is making his first professional All-Star appearance in his first full season of Minor League Baseball after being drafted by the Texas Rangers in the 3rd round last year out of high school.
RHP Matt Thompson, 20, is the third Crawdads starter named to the team. The Burleson, Texas, native leads the team and is 5th in the South Atlantic League with 62 strikeouts this season. Through his 12 outings (11 starts), Thompson has gone 4-3 with a 3.51 ERA. Thompson spent the 2009 campaign in the rotation for the Spokane Indians in the Northwest League, posting a 4-4 record and 4.38 ERA. He was selected out of Grace Prep Academy in the 7th round of the 2008 draft by the Rangers. RHP Trevor Hurley, 22, represents the Crawdads bullpen on the Northern Division squad. The Houston, Texas, native leads current Crawdads with six saves and a 0.93 ERA. No pitcher in the entire South Atlantic League has logged a lower batting-average-against than Hurley's .124 clip, and he also leads the league with a 5.90 fewest-baserunners-per-nine-innings-pitched ratio. He's registered a 5:1 strikeout-to-walk ratio with 35 strikeouts and only seven walks through 29 total innings of work. Hurley was selected by Texas in the 22nd round of the 2008 draft out of Kansas State University.
Richardson is in his first season as field manager with the first-place Crawdads, and fourth campaign in the Rangers farm system. In addition to Holman, Hart and Bodenhamer, he will be assisted by Hagerstown Suns Field Manager Matt LeCroy during the All-Star Game.
On the day of the All-Star Game, the gates to Fluor Field will open at 5:30 p.m. The Home Run Derby will begin at 6 p.m., with the first pitch of the game set for 7:15 p.m. The finals of the Home Run Derby will take place after the second inning.
Crawdads Clippings: Tuesday is the second consecutive Education Day game at L.P. Frans against Lexington, starting at 11 a.m. and presented by Sylvan Learning Center. As part of the Businessperson's Special, all fans that bring their business card to the Ticket Office can get a Box Seat to the game for just $5! Also, bring a KRAFT Singles wrapper to the Ticket Office for a buy one, get one offer from KRAFT!
South Atlantic League Stories from June 7, 2010
- Gnats Sweep Doubleheader Monday - Savannah Sand Gnats
- Intimidators Swept in Doubleheader, 4-3 and 7-1 - Kannapolis Cannon Ballers
- BlueClaws Down Grasshoppers, 11-3 - Jersey Shore BlueClaws
- Drive Drop Second Straight Game Versus 'Jackets, 7-2 - Greenville Drive
- Rome Braves Late Charleston Storm, Dogs Fall 4-3 - Charleston RiverDogs
- 'Birds Survive for 7-6 Win over Suns - Delmarva Shorebirds
- Pitching Again Drives Jackets Past Greenville - Augusta GreenJackets
- Suns Rally Not Enough, Fall 7-6 to Shorebirds - Hagerstown Suns
- Shorebirds Transactions: 6/7 - Delmarva Shorebirds
- Four Legends Named to Sal Southern Division All-Star Team - Lexington Legends
- Gnats Game Notes: Monday, June 7 - DH vs. Kannapolis at 5:35 pm - Savannah Sand Gnats
- Five Crawdads and Coaching Staff on 2010 SAL All-Star Team - Hickory Crawdads
- Legends Come from Behind, Then Hold on for Win Over Hickory - Lexington Legends
- Three Shorebirds Land on 2010 SAL All-Star Team - Delmarva Shorebirds
- 'Dads 9th Inning Rally Falls Short, 6-5, Before 3,737 - Hickory Crawdads
- Gnats Mark Cohoon Named SAL Pitcher of the Week - Savannah Sand Gnats
- Five Suns Named to Sal All-Star Team - Hagerstown Suns
- Power Game Notes - Charleston Dirty Birds
- Almonte, Flannery, Murton Named to 2010 SAL All-Star Team - Charleston RiverDogs
- Six Gnats Earn All-Star Recognition - Savannah Sand Gnats
- Drive Sending Five to the 2010 South Atlantic League All-Star Game - Greenville Drive
- Five Tourists Named to SAL All-Star Game - Asheville Tourists
- Four BlueClaws to South Atlantic League All-Star Game - Jersey Shore BlueClaws
- Rome Braves Send Three All Star Game Representatives - Rome Emperors
- Intimidators Top SAL Northern Division with Five All-Star Selections - Kannapolis Cannon Ballers
- Machemer Headlines GreenJacket All-Stars - Augusta GreenJackets
- 11th Annual "Kindness Beats Blindness" Auction on June 26 Benefits MUSC's Storm Eye Institute - Charleston RiverDogs
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