Isola Named Mid-Season All-Star
Published on July 15, 2026 under Atlantic League (AtL)
Hagerstown Flying Boxcars News Release
(New York) - The Atlantic League and Drake, the official baseball of the ALPB, today announced the 2026 Mid-Season All-Star team. The 17-member team includes representatives from eight of the ALPB's 10 clubs and was selected in a vote by the league's managers.
The team will be announced on DugoutTV Tuesday evening prior to each of the league's five contests and will be available for viewing at anytime on DugoutTV.org.
The South Division first half champions, the Southern Maryland Blue Crabs, led the way with four selections including three members of the pitching staff. The Long Island Ducks and York Revolution each placed three members on the team.
Long Island reliever Ramon Santos was the only unanimous selection. Santos, a right-hander, led the ALPB with nine saves in the first half and struck out 42 in his 19 innings of work. Santos has since had his contract transferred to Saltillo in the Mexican League.
In fact, eight of the 17 Midseason All-Stars have had their contracts acquired by either a Major League affiliate team or an international league.
The Hagerstown Flying Boxcars, under manager Mark Minicozzi, have orchestrated one of the great turnarounds in ALPB history. Minicozzi led the Boxcars to 41 first half wins and the North Division championship. Hagerstown, in its third year in the ALPB, had not won more than 39 games in either prior full season. For that reason, Minicozzi has been named one of the two Midseason All-Star managers. He is joined by the manager of South Division champion Southern Maryland, Brett Jodie. Jodie, who managed his 1,000th career ALPB game in the first half, is in his first season with the Blue Crabs. He previously won a League Championship with the Somerset Patriots in 2015.
Following Southern Maryland's league-best four selections, the Long Island Ducks had three players selected as Midseason All-Stars as did the York Revolution. The Gastonia Ghost Peppers and the Lancaster Stormers each had two players voted to the team while Hagerstown, the Lexington Legends and Staten Island FerryHawks each had one player selected.
The second half of the ALPB season commenced on Friday, July 3 and will run through September 13. League postseason play will begin on Tuesday, September 15 with the North and South Division Championship Series.
2026 Atlantic League Mid-Season All-Star Team
C Alex Isola Hagerstown
1B Grant Lavigne Gastonia
2B Brenden Dixon Lexington
SS Viandel Pena Southern Maryland
3B Brandon Lewis York
OF Jacob Robson Long Island
OF Nate Scantlin Gastonia
OF Josh Palacios Staten Island
DH Jacob Teter York
SP Kyle Virbitsky Southern Maryland
SP Braden Scott York
SP Quinton Martinez Lancaster
SP Trevor Bauer Long Island
RP Ethan Hammerberg Southern Maryland
RP Andrew Schultz Lancaster
CL Ramon Santos Long Island
CL Rafi Vazauez Southern Maryland
Player Capsules:
Hagerstown catcher Alex Isola was outstanding both offensively and defensively in the first half. He ranked among the top catchers in the league in cutting down base stealers and also led the league with 66 walks to go with a .280 batting average and 17 home runs, the second-most in the league.
First baseman Grant Lavigne of Gastonia is on a pace to set the ALPB season record for RBI, collecting a league-best 73 RBI to go with a .315 batting average, and 16 doubles. His 73 RBI in the first 63 games puts him on a pace to eclipse the ALPB season record of 129 RBI.
Second baseman Brenden Dixon of the Lexington Legends had such an outstanding first half that his contract was acquired by the Chicago White Sox organization just 32 games into the season. In his time in the ALPB, Dixon hit .332 and was leading the league with 14 homers.
Shortstop Viandel Pena was instrumental in Southern Maryland's first half championship. He committed the fewest errors among all starting shortstops with just four while adding offensive firepower with nine home runs and 48 RBI. Pena is now in the Detroit Tigers farm system.
Third baseman Brandon Lewis of the York Revolution was leading the league with 19 first half homers when his contract was transferred to the Philadelphia Phillies. Lewis was the third-leading hitter in the ALPB at .349 and posted an 11-game hitting streak.
The designated hitter is Jacob Teter of the York Revolution. While primarily the first baseman for the Revs, Teter hit .326 in the first half and drove in 54 runs while smashing 13 homers. Teter led the Atlantic League with the highest batting average among everyday first basemen at .341 while also topping the first sackers with having a hand in 55 double plays.
Three outstanding outfielders were named to the All-Star squad including Jacob Robson, a Major League veteran who hit .273 for the Long Island Ducks in the first half. Seeing most of his action in center field and left field, Robson clubbed 16 homers and drove in 47 runs while keeping the Ducks in the first half pennant race up until the final days.
Joining Robson in the outfield is Gastonia Ghost Pepper Nate Scantlin. Gastonia's every day center fielder is in his third season in the ALPB and hit .280 in the first half with 13 homers and 57 RBI while ranking among the league stolen base leaders.
The third outfielder is another MLB veteran in Josh Palacios who spent most of the first half with the Staten Island FerryHawks until his contract was obtained by the Pittsburgh Pirates. While playing center field for Staten Island, Palacios had a 14-game hitting streak to go with a .339 batting average, eight homers and 22 RBI.
The pitching staff includes four starters who would be treasured by any club in the ALPB. Southern Maryland's Kyle Virbitsky led the league with 13 starts in the first half, going 6-2 with a 3.97 ERA.
The top left-handed starter in the league was Braden Scott of the York Revolution. Scott led the league with 73 first half innings and 92 strikeouts. The southpaw held ALPB opponents to a paltry .215 batting average against him before signing a contract with the Atlanta Braves organization.
Trevor Bauer made a huge impact in the ALPB over his seven starts. The 2020 National League Cy Young Award winner and 10-year MLB veteran tossed a no-hitter on April 26 at Lancaster and set the Long Island Ducks franchise record with 15 strikeouts against Gastonia on May 12. Bauer's success led him to a contract with the Mexico City Reds, one of the top teams in the Mexican League.
Rounding out the rotation is Lancaster righty Quinton Martinez who earned an ALPB Player of the Week award in June and was able to obtain a contract in the Korean Baseball Organization. In his nine starts for the Stormers, Martinez was 5-1 with the league's top ERA for a starting pitcher at 2.94.
The All-Star bullpen features a pair of tremendous middle relievers and two premier closers. The middle innings relievers include Southern Maryland's Ethan Hammerberg. The six-five righty led the Atlantic League with seven holds in the first half while posting a 1-1 record and a miniscule 1.67 ERA in 24 appearances. He is joined by Lancaster's Andrew Schultz. The six-four righty only threw 16 first half innings for the Stormers before being acquired by the St. Louis Cardinals. Schultz struck out 31 in those 16 innings and allowed just four hits while holding opponents to a .077 batting average.
Closing out the All-Star bullpen are two high-leverage relievers. The third Long Island Duck on the team, Ramon Santos, was the only unanimous selection on the team. He led the league with nine saves and struck out 42 batters in his 19 innings before being acquired by the Mexican League. The fourth Blue Crab named to the All-Star team is Rafi Vazquez who led all ALPB relievers with a 0.37 ERA in the first half and his seven wins were tied for the most among any pitcher in the league. Over his 33 innings, Vazquez allowed just one earned run.
Atlantic League Stories from July 15, 2026
- Revs Place Three on Mid-Season All-Star Team - York Revolution
- Dixon Named Atlantic League First Half All-Star at Second Base - Lexington Legends
- Isola Named Mid-Season All-Star - Hagerstown Flying Boxcars
- Revs Extend Winning Streaks Upon Return Home - York Revolution
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