Hillcats Send Two Players to 2008 All-Star Game
June 10, 2008 - Carolina League (CarL1)
Lynchburg Hillcats News Release
LYNCHBURG, VA - The Lynchburg Hillcats are proud to announce that infielders Jim Negrych and Brian Friday have been selected to play in the 2008 California-Carolina League All-Star Game. The contest will be played at BB&T Coastal Field on Tuesday, June 24th in Myrtle Beach, SC.
Negrych, in his first season in High-A, has torched Carolina League pitching all season, leading the circuit with a .353 batting average. His 82 hits in 2008 not only lead the league, but they also rank him ninth in all of minor league baseball. Negrych owns two nine-game hit streaks this season, his second capped by a 4-for-4 night against Winston-Salem on May 5th that raised his average to .414 at the time. The Buffalo, New York-native also ranks third in the Carolina League in RBI (39), third in on-base percentage (.428), and second in runs scored (46). Negrych was selected in the sixth round of the 2006 First-Year Player Draft by the Pittsburgh Pirates out of the University of Pittsburgh, where he was a First Team All-American second baseman. This season the Pirates have converted Negrych to a third baseman.
Friday is also in his first year in the Carolina League, and his first full season in professional baseball. The Houston, Texas-native entered the season as the number-12 prospect in the Pirates organization according to Baseball America, and his 2008 production has not disappointed. Friday's .301 batting average ranks 9th in the league, while his 41 runs scored stands fifth. The Hillcats leadoff hitter has excelled in setting the table for the rest of the Lynchburg lineup, as he is batting .458 in the first inning of games this season. Friday has progressed at the shortstop position as well, where Baseball America named him the Pirates organization's "Best Defensive Infielder." He was drafted in 2007 out of Rice in the third round.
In 2007, the Hillcats sent one player to the California-Carolina League All-Star Game in Stockton, California. Infielder Jason Delaney represented Lynchburg in a game won by the California League 10-5. Despite the loss, Delaney went 2-for-4 with a home run and a pair of RBI. At the time of the contest, Delaney led the Carolina League in batting average and on-base percentage.
Two different Hillcats earned places on the 2007 year-end ceremonial Carolina League All-Star team. Second baseman Shelby Ford and outfielder Brad Corley were both named to the squad. Ford, who was kept out of the lineup after late-July with a back injury, hit .281 with five home runs and 55 RBI in 94 games. Corley was hitting .285 with 14 homers and a league-best 89 RBI before his promotion to Double-A Altoona on August 27th.
This year's All-Star Game is in its 13th installment. The two-day event will also include the 2008 California-Carolina League All-Star Gala to be held at Hard Rock Park on Monday, June 23rd at 7 PM.
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