Four Woodchucks Selected to Northwoods League Postseason All-Star Team
Northwoods Wausau Woodchucks

Four Woodchucks Selected to Northwoods League Postseason All-Star Team

Published on August 10, 2025 under Northwoods League (Northwoods)
Wausau Woodchucks News Release


WAUSAU, WI - This week, the Northwoods League announced the members of the 2025 Northwoods League Postseason All-Star team, and the Wausau Woodchucks were well-represented among the league's best.

The Woodchucks had four different players selected to the Postseason All-Star team, which was the second-most selections for a single Northwoods League team, and the most selections for any team in the Great Lakes Division. Wausau has now had eight different postseason all-star selections in their last three seasons under Corey Thompson.

Catcher Max Soliz Jr. (Kansas), infielder Dylan Schlotterback (Paris JC/Kansas), and outfielders Christian Smith-Johnson (Texas A&M-CC) and Noah Malone (Loyola Marymount) were the players to represent Wausau on the list. All four of those players were integral to the team's success in both the first half and the second half of the season. They were the four Woodchucks players to play in the most games this summer.

In the regular season, the four Postseason All-Stars combined for 311 hits, 231 runs, 35 home runs, 236 RBIs, and 106 stolen bases. All four players had batting averages above .300, and on-base percentages of .400 or higher. Here is a recap of the performance from each of Wausau's postseason all-stars.

Max Soliz Jr. - Wausau's primary catcher came back for his second season in the Northwoods League and showed power and poise that few in the league could replicate. After getting off to a slow start, Soliz went on an absolute tear, finishing the summer tied for fourth in the entire league in home runs (14) and second in RBIs (65). In addition, Soliz broke Wausau's franhcise record for career home runs this summer, when he passed MLB veteran Paul DeJong's mark with his 21st long ball as a Woodchuck on July 22 against Lakeshore. On top of all of that, Soliz had 17 multi-hit games, nine games with 3+ RBIs, and helped catch a Woodchucks pitching staff that had a top five ERA in the Northwoods League this summer.

Noah Malone- Wausau's freshman from California was incredibly special in his first year of summer collegiate baseball. An all-around hitter, Malone put up ridiculous video-game statistics all season long, finishing the regular season with the third-best batting average (.381), the best on-base percentage (.521), and the second-best slugging percentage (.673). Malone showcased this talent at the plate with a 43-game on-base streak during the season, the eighth longest in Northwoods League history and the second longest in Woodchucks history. He also made history when he was one of just two players this summer, and one of 25 players in Northwoods League history, to hit three home runs in the same game when he did so on June 24 against Lakeshore.

Christian Smith-Johnson- One of Wausau's leaders this summer set the standard on the field all the time for others to follow. The second-year Woodchuck has been on Wausau's roster ever since the first game back in late May, and showed consistent hitting, fielding, athleticism, and speed in 2025. In the first half, Smith-Johnson tied the hit-streak franchise record when he registered a hit in his first 23 games of the summer. In addition, Smith-Johnson finished the regular season with 54 stolen bases, the third-most by a single player in Northwoods League history, and the most ever by a Woodchuck. He also had 55 RBIs, making him the first player in the league's history to register 50 RBIs and steal 50 bases in a season. But Smith-Johnson was arguably better defensively, making several highlight-reel catches in center field, giving him an excellent chance at winning the "Finest in the Field" award at that position.

Dylan Schlotterback- Wausau's infielder was the ultimate ironman in the 2025 season. Across the entire Northwoods League, Dylan Schlotterback was the only player this summer to participate in 70 regular season games- the first to hit that mark since Traverse City's Camden Traficante played 71 games in 2022. The stats reflected Dylan's pure reliability in Wausau. In the regular season, Schlotterback led the Northwoods League in hits (89), had the joint-most runs scored by a single player (67), was tied for fourth in walks (53), and fourth in stolen bases (37). Schlotterback also put himself in the franchise record books, breaking the record for runs scored and walks, while tying the record for hits, and coming up just one shy of tying the franchise record for games played and at bats in a single season. Regardless, Schlotterback's remarkable persistence throughout the summer will be something that Wausau fans will remember for a long time.

Malone, Smith-Johnson, and Soliz were all picked as Northwoods League All-Stars and participated in the All-Star Game in July in Madison. Schlotterback was the lone Postseason All-Star selection that did not make the initial All-Star team. While these four players had fantastic summers individually, Wausau barely missed out on "Player of the Year" and "Pitcher of the Year" awards this summer.

These four Woodchucks will hope to lead Wausau in the postseason, as Wausau punched its ticket to the 2025 Northwoods League playoffs on the final day of the regular season- winning the second half Great Lakes West title in the process. The Woodchucks will begin their postseason run tonight, when they meet the Green Bay Rockers to begin a three-game series. Game one is at Capital Credit Union Park on, with a 5:05 p.m. first pitch. Game two will be at Athletic Park in Wausau, beginning at 6:05 p.m tomorrow night. If the series goes to game three, that will be played on Tuesday night in Wausau, and the game would start at 6:35 p.m. Fans can purchase playoff tickets to Wausau's games at Athletic Park using this link: https://wausau-woodchucks.nwltickets.com/SingleGame/Tickets/SelectSeats/8237

Below is the official release from the Northwoods League regarding the 2025 Postseason All-Star selections.

Duluth's Surowiec is Most Valuable Player, Madison's Milburn is Top Pitcher

Rochester, Minn. - The Northwoods League announced the 2025 Postseason All-Star Team and award winners on Saturday, August 9. Duluth third baseman Ethan Surowiec was named the League's Most Valuable Player and Madison's Isaac Milburn was named Pitcher of the Year as voted by the League's coaches and members of the media. Todd Reid from Traverse City was named the Manager of the Year. Caleb Berry from Traverse City and Logan Lawrence from St. Cloud were named co-Coaches of the Year.

Ethan Surowiec was named the Northwoods League MVP, and he was also a 2025 mid-season All-Star for the Huskies. For the season, he is hitting .383 with 17 home runs, 23 doubles, three triples and 68 RBI. Surowiec is a native of Gulfport, Mississippi.

Milburn, a left-handed pitcher from the Madison Mallards, was named the Northwoods League Pitcher of the Year. Milburn has appeared in seven games and is 3-0 with a 2.76 ERA. In 42.1 innings he has struck out 50 batters while walking only seven. He also pitched 1.0 innings in the NWL All-Star game and struck out two.

Traverse City Pit Spitter Aaron Piasecki was also selected for the Postseason All-Star Team and is currently leading the League in batting with a .406 average.

Surowiec, Milburn and Piasecki are among the 37 players selected to the NWL's Postseason All-Star team. The St. Cloud Rox led the voting with five selections while the Wausau Woodchucks had four and Eau Claire, Madison, Traverse City, and Waterloo had three selections each.

In his first season in Traverse City as Field Manager, Todd Reid of the Pit Spitters is the 2025 Manager of the Year. The Pit Spitters currently have the second-best overall record in the league at 48-22 and are the First and Second Half Champions in the Great Lakes East Division.

Caleb Berry shares the award for 2025 Coach of the Year in the Northwoods League. He recently finished his first season with the Pit Spitters after signing with the Boston Red Sox as an undrafted free agent after a successful career at Michigan State.

Logan Lawrence of the St. Cloud Rox captured his share of the 2025 Coach of the Year Award. After finishing his first year on staff at Murray State College, Lawrence brought a strong track record of success to St. Cloud from his time at Northwest Florida State College. During his tenure, the program compiled a 74-34 record, capturing back-to-back Panhandle Conference titles, a Region 8 Championship, and finishing as National Runner-Up at the NJCAA Division I World Series in 2024.

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