High Point Rockers Add Four Vets to Spring Training Roster
April 9, 2022 - Atlantic League (AtL)
High Point Rockers News Release
High Point Rockers RHP Ryan Dull
(High Point Rockers)
HIGH POINT, N.C. - The High Point Rockers on Saturday added four more returning players to their training camp roster including 1B Logan Morrison, INF Michael Russell, RHP Ryan Dull, and RHP Joe Johnson. All four players have agreed to terms and will be in camp when the Rockers begin preparations for the 2022 season on Monday, April 11, at Truist Point.
High Point opens the 2022 season at home on Thursday, April 21 at 6:35 p.m. against the Kentucky Wild Health Genomes. Tickets for all Rockers games are available at www.HighPointRockers.com.
Russell, a versatile infielder, led the Atlantic League in batting in 2021. Morrison, an 11-year Major League veteran, was with the Rockers last year, hitting .370 before having his contract selected by the Cincinnati Reds. Dull, another MLB veteran, was outstanding with High Point, allowing only a single run in his final 14 appearances of the season. Johnson, a High Point University grad, was a key two-way player for the Rockers in 2021, seeing action in the outfield and on the mound.
Russell, who played at North Carolina, led the Atlantic League in batting average in 2021, posting a .360 average, the third-highest in league history. Russell led the Rockers with 102 hits and a .430 on-base percentage and seven sacrifice flies. He played in 74 games while missing 38 contests after suffering a broken jaw at Gastonia on July 28. Russell was hitting .351 at the time of his injury with five home runs and 27 RBI. He hit .400 in July with four homers, 13 RBI and six doubles and then batted .378 with seven doubles and 21 RBI in the final 26 games of the season.
The most well-known slugger to ever don a Rockers uniform, Morrison has 140 Major League home runs over the span of 11 seasons. A veteran of seven different big league clubhouses, Morrison's best offensive season came with the Tampa Bay Rays in 2017, smashing 38 home runs and 85 RBI, good for the fifth-highest home run total in the American League. Morrison opened the 2021 season as the Rockers' first baseman, slugging three home runs in nine games while batting .370 with an OPS of 1.226 during his brief stay. On June 2 against Lancaster, Morrison went 3-3 with two home runs, including a monstrous blast that easily cleared the Truist Point video board. His contract was selected by the Cincinnati Reds and he stayed hot at the plate, batting .347 with two home runs and 12 RBI in 16 games for AAA Louisville before being shut down due to injury.
The Rockers added East Forsyth HS grad Dull as a free agent on Aug. 24, 2021. The righthanded reliever appeared in 16 games and posted a 1-1 record with a 2.87 ERA, the second-best ERA in the bullpen behind Jonathon Crawford's 2.70. Dull fanned 26 in just 15.2 innings of work and earned a win against Lancaster on the next to last day of the regular season. After allowing four earned runs against Long Island in his second appearance on August 28, Dull only allowed a single earned run in his final 14 appearances. A five-year Major League veteran, Dull made his debut on September 1, 2015, pitching a scoreless inning for the A's against the Angels. In 2016, his first full big league season, Dull appeared in 70 games, sporting a 2.42 ERA and recorded three saves.
Johnson returns to the Rockers after a successful rookie campaign in 2021. A graduate of High Point University, Johnson began the year as a two-way player, serving as both a pinch-hitter and reserve outfielder, as well as pitching out of the bullpen. He finished the season on the mound in strong fashion, shutting out opponents in each of his final eight appearances in September. On September 3, he recorded his first professional save at Charleston after earning his first career victory in the Rockers 2021 home opener against Lancaster on June 1. For the season, Johnson went 4-0 with a 4.91 ERA.
Images from this story
 High Point Rockers 1B Logan Morrison |
 High Point Rockers INF Michael Russell |
 High Point Rockers RHP Joe Johnson |
 High Point Rockers RHP Ryan Dull |
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