IL1 International League

International League Names Players of the Week

Published on July 30, 2018 under International League (IL1) News Release


The International League announced today that Lehigh Valley outfielder Dylan Cozens and Louisville right-handed starter Robert Stephenson have been named the League's Batter and Pitcher of the Week for the period from July 23-29. It's the second time both players have been so honored in their careers (Cozens: May 8-14, 2017; Stephenson: July 27-Aug. 2, 2015). The IronPigs have now claimed five weekly awards this season, as Cozens joins two-time recipients Joey Meneses and Cole Irvin. Stephenson follows reliever Kevin Quackenbush as the second member of the Bats to be honored.

DYLAN COZENS, Lehigh Valley IronPigs IL BATTER OF THE WEEK Lehigh Valley slugger Dylan Cozens helped keep his club firmly in control of the IL North Division this week as he hit .476 and was tops in the League with four home runs, four doubles, 13 RBI, six runs scored, 26 total bases, and a 1.238 slugging percentage. He went deep twice in the second game of Saturday's doubleheader sweep over Columbus, bringing him into a tie atop the League leaderboard for the season with 18 dingers. Cozens produced a pair of three-hit games this week to bring his batting average to its highest point since early May.

24-year-old Dylan Cozens is in his seventh season as a professional player since being selected by the Phillies in the 2nd round of the 2012 draft. He was an All-Star in his first season at the Triple-A level in 2017. He made his Major League debut earlier this season for Philadelphia, seeing action in twelve games. Cozens is a native of Scottsdale, Arizona.

ROBERT STEPHENSON, Louisville Bats IL PITCHER OF THE WEEK Robert Stephenson led Louisville to a pair of victories this week behind a League-best 14.0 innings of work with just three hits and two runs allowed. In Game 1 of Tuesday's doubleheader against Buffalo, he became the first Bats starter all season to go the distance as he shutout the Bisons 3-0. Stephenson went another seven frames Sunday against Rochester. He surrendered just one hit on the evening, but it was a two-run homer by Taylor Motter that prevented him from claiming the outright IL lead in victories. The Bats couldn't break the 2-2 tie until the 10th inning. Stephenson's ERA is now down to 3.03, 6th -lowest in the IL, and he is currently 2nd in strikeouts (122) and opponents' batting average (.190). He is one of just two hurlers with ten wins (Tyler Eppler, Indianapolis).

25-year-old Robert Stephenson is in his seventh season as a professional pitcher since being selected by the Reds in the 1st round of the 2011 draft. The highly touted prospect was the Reds Minor League Pitcher of the Year in 2013 and has seen time in Louisville each seson since 2015. He is a veteran of 43 games in the big leagues with Cincinnati. Stephenson is a native of Martinez, California.

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International League Stories from July 30, 2018


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