MWL1 South Bend Cubs

Midwest League Announces 2019 All-Star Game Rosters

June 5, 2019 - Midwest League (MWL1)
South Bend Cubs News Release


SOUTH BEND, IN - With the 55th annual Midwest League All-Star Game at Four Winds Field under two weeks away, the Midwest League has announced the official team rosters for the game between the Eastern and Western Divisions. This year's game will again be loaded with supreme talent from each team in the league.

In particular, the game will feature two number one overall prospects. 18-year-old shortstop and number one Tampa Bay Rays prospect Wander Franco has taken baseball by storm since debuting as a 17-year-old in the Rays system. Franco is hitting over .320 with the Bowling Green Hot Rods this season and will start at shortstop for the East. Peoria's Nolan Gorman will start at third base for the Western Division and is ranked as the top prospect in the St. Louis Cardinals system. Gorman currently ranks fourth in the Midwest League in home runs with 10.

The hosting South Bend Cubs will send five players to the All-Star game, including four pitchers. Shortstop Andy Weber will be a reserve off the bench for Manager Buddy Bailey. Pitchers Brailyn Marquez, Riley Thompson, Cam Sanders, and Jeff Passantino will all be available on the mound for the East.

Other notable Eastern Division players on the team include Lake County's Will Benson and Fort Wayne's Xavier Edwards. Benson, a returning Midwest League player from 2018, leads the league in home runs for the second straight season with 16. Edwards will not turn 20 until August 9, but has burst onto the scene with Fort Wayne by leading the league in batting average at .354.

Top pitching prospects headline the West's roster. This includes the Midwest League strikeout and ERA leader. Clinton's Chris Vallimont leads the league in K's with 70, while Burlington's Cristopher Molina has his ERA all the way down to 1.49 in over 50 innings.

Bowling Green will send the most players to the All-Star Game this season with eight. Tied for the lead in the Western Division are the Wisconsin Timber Rattlers and Quad Cities River Bandits with six players each.

The total team representatives in the East include Bowling Green with 8, South Bend 5, Lansing 5, Great Lakes 5, Fort Wayne 3, Lake County 3, Dayton 1, and West Michigan 1.

In the West, Wisconsin has 6 players, Quad Cities 6, Peoria 4, Kane County 4, Cedar Rapids 3, Clinton 3, Burlington 3, and Beloit 2.

The full team rosters are listed below.

Eastern Divison Starters

C: Chris Betts - Bowling Green

1B: Jake Brodt - Lansing

2B: Xavier Edwards - Fort Wayne

3B: Miguel Vargas - Great Lakes

SS: Wander Franco - Bowling Green

OF: Niko Hulsizer - Great Lakes

OF: Will Benson - Lake County

OF: Ulrich Bojarski - West Michigan

DH: Roberto Alvarez - Bowling Green

Eastern Division Reserves

C: Pabel Manzanero - Dayton

INF: Dillon Paulson - Great Lakes

INF: Andy Weber - South Bend

INF: Nick Podkul - Lansing

INF: Tyler Freeman - Lake County

INF: Ryan Gold - Lansing

OF: Grant Witherspoon - Bowling Green

Eastern Division Pitchers

Easton McGee - Bowling Green

Shane McClanahan - Bowling Green

Alan Strong - Bowling Green

Caleb Sampen - Bowling Green

Ryan Weathers - Fort Wayne

Henry Henry - Fort Wayne

Jose Chacin - Great Lakes

Austin Drury - Great Lakes

Manuel Alvarez - Lake County

Josh Winchowski - Lansing

Cobi Johnson - Lansing

Jeff Passantino - South Bend

Riley Thompson - South Bend

Brailyn Marquez - South Bend

Cam Sanders - South Bend

Western Divison Starters

C: David Fry - Wisconsin

1B: Brady Whalen - Peoria

2B: Blaze Alexander - Kane County

3B: Nolan Gorman - Peoria

SS: Brice Turang - Wisconsin

OF: Jerar Encarnacion - Clinton

OF: Alek Thomas - Kane County

OF: Austin Dennis - Quad Cities

DH: Chris Williams - Cedar Rapids

Western Division Reserves

C: Cesar Salazar - Quad Cities

INF: Gabe Snyder - Cedar Rapids

INF: Trey Dawson - Quad Cities

INF: Buddy Kennedy - Kane County

INF: Jeremy Pena - Quad Cities

INF: Delvin Perez - Peoria

OF: Jesus Lujano - Wisconsin

Western Division Pitchers

Eric Marinez - Beloit

Aiden McIntyre - Beloit

Robinson Pina - Burlington

Jose Soriano - Burlington

Cristopher Molina - Burlington

Josh Winder - Cedar Rapids

Humberto Mejia - Clinton

Chris Vallimont - Clinton

Blake Workman - Kane County

Diego Cordero - Peoria

Matt Ruppenthal - Quad Cities

Austin Hansen - Quad Cities

Adam Hill - Wisconsin

Aaron Ashby - Wisconsin

Logan Gillaspie - Wisconsin

2019 Midwest League All-Star Game

The 2019 Midwest League All-Star Game presented by Four Winds Casinos takes place Tuesday, June 18 and will feature some of the most promising players in professional baseball today. It is the first time in 30 years the Midwest League All-Star game will be held in South Bend, Indiana. The 2019 event will kick off with a concert on Sunday, June 16 at Four Winds Field featuring global superstar Pitbull, along with two additional acts. Fan Fest at Four Winds Field will take place on Monday, June 17 and will feature a home run derby with the top hitters in the Midwest League, an autograph session with several former Chicago Cubs players along with the 2019 Midwest League All-Star players. On Tuesday, Chicago Cubs Hall of Famer Ryne Sandberg will headline an All-Star Luncheon at the Century Center in downtown South Bend, with proceeds benefitting Beacon Children's Hospital. For more information on the 2019 Midwest League All-Star Game and any of the events leading up to it, including tickets for the All-Star Luncheon, visit SouthBendCubs.com and search for All-Star Festivities.

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