Northern League Names Player and Pitcher of the Week
Published on June 14, 2010 under Northern League (NL) News Release
Outfielder Cristian Guerrero of the Gary SouthShore RailCats was named Northern League Player of the Week, and Fargo-Moorhead RedHawks pitcher Jake Laber received the Northern League Pitcher of the Week honors for the period ending June 13th , 2010.
Guerrero, who is the younger cousin of the Texas Rangers designated hitter Vladimir Guerrero, batted .368 (7-for-19) with a double, five home runs and eight RBI in five games played during the week. He also scored seven runs while posting a league-high 1.211 slugging percentage in that span.
On his way to the Player of the Week honor, the 29-year-old slugger entered the all-time record books by hitting a home run in five consecutive at-bats. On June 9th in a doubleheader versus the Rockford RiverHawks, Guerrero hit home runs in his final two at-bats of the first game, and started the nightcap by hitting home runs in his first three plate appearances. It is believed to be only the second time in professional baseball history a player has hit a home run in five consecutive at-bats. It tied a record set in 1996 by Corey Parker of the Bangor Blue Ox of the old Northeast League.
The 6-5, 220-pounder was originally signed by Milwaukee Brewers organization as a non-drafted free agent in August 1997, only a month after celebrating his 17th birthday. Over his 13-year minor league career, the Bani, DR-native has a career .269 batting average and has played for four different major league organizations as well as two independent teams. He first signed with Gary SouthShore on April 3rd , 2008 and is currently playing his third straight season with the RailCats.
Laber, a local product who was born in Fargo, ND and played collegiately at North Dakota State University, went 2-0 with a 1.04 ERA over 17.1 innings pitched during the week for Fargo-Moorhead. In each of his two home starts, he only allowed one run as he went the distance on June 8th versus Schaumburg and hurled 8.1 innings versus Kansas City on June 12th . In that span, he combined to strikeout 12 batters while walking none. On the year, he sits tied for second in the Northern League in wins (3) and seventh in strikeouts (21).
Laber, who turns 24-years-old on Tuesday, is in his second tour of duty with the RedHawks after originally signing with Fargo-Moorhead as a non-drafted free agent on June 10, 2008. After primarily pitching out of the bullpen for a little over a month in '08, Laber was released and later caught-on with River City of the Frontier League. Going a combined 13-7 over parts of two seasons with River City, the left-handed starting pitcher re-signed with Fargo on March 1st , 2010. In his five starts this season, the 'Hawks have a 4-1 record.
Laber, who graduated from North High School (Fargo, ND) in 2004 and was named the North Dakota High School Senior Player of the Year, went on to be a four-year letterwinner at North Dakota State University (Fargo, ND). He graduated as NDSU's career record holder in starts (45) and innings (287), and was second in strikeouts (234).
Northern League Stories from June 14, 2010
- Flyers Pick Up Win in Series Opener with Rockford - Schaumburg Flyers
- Dual Four-Run Frames Down T-Bones - Kansas City Monarchs
- RailCats Storm Back, Stun T-Bones for 11-9 Win Monday - Gary SouthShore Railcats
- Errors Costly in RiverHawks' 6-4 Loss - Rockford RiverHawks
- Cristian Guerrero Named Northern League Player Of The Week - Gary SouthShore Railcats
- RailCats Sign Former Laporte H.S. Standout Andy Weeks - Gary SouthShore Railcats
- JackHammers Proud to Present Professional Womens Softball - Joliet JackHammers
- LABER NAMED PITCHER OF THE WEEK - Fargo-Moorhead RedHawks
- Northern League Names Player and Pitcher of the Week - NL
- Weekly Sports League and Franchise Report - OSC Original by Dan Krieger
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