Robert Stephenson, Jesse Winker Selected to SiriusXM All-Star Futures Game
June 24, 2014 - Southern League (SL1)
Pensacola Blue Wahoos News Release
Major League Baseball today announced the Blue Wahoos and Cincinnati Reds will be represented by a pair of players in the 16th annual SiriusXM All-Star Futures game. RHP Robert Stephenson and OF Jesse Winker have both been selected to play for the U.S. Team in this year's annual event held around the Major League All-Star Game.
Stephenson, 21, is 3-5 with a 3.97 ERA with the Wahoos this season. He is second in the league in strikeouts with 80 and sits at third in the league with a .210 opponent batting average. Baseball America and MLB.com both named Stephenson as the Reds' No. 1 overall prospect entering the 2014 season.
Winker, 20, joined the Blue Wahoos following the All-Star break after a tremendous first half in High-A Bakersfield. He was hitting .317 with 13 home runs and 49 RBI over 53 games in the Bakersfield outfield. He ranked among the league leaders in batting average (8th), on-base percentage (3rd, .426), slugging percentage (3rd, .580) and home runs per at bat (2nd, 1/15.77).
The Blue Wahoos are the only team in the league with multiple players heading to the game. Three other current and former 2014 Southern Leaguers are headed to the game. The others are Kris Bryant (Tennessee Smokies), Micah Johnson (Birmingham Barons) and Jose Peraza (Mississippi Braves). Southern League umpire Matt McCoy has also been selected to the umpiring crew for the contest.
The game will be played on Sunday, July 13th at Target Field as part of Taco Bell All-Star Sunday. The prospect showcase between the U.S. and World Teams will start at 4:00 p.m. (CT) with live television coverage on MLB Network and MLB.com. The game can also be heard on MLB Network Radio (XM channel 89; Sirius channel 209).
Major League Baseball, along with the Major League Baseball Scouting Bureau, MLB.com, Baseball America and the 30 Major League baseball clubs selected the 25-man rosters. One hundred and fifteen players (115) have competed in both the SiriusXM All-Star Futures Game and the Major League Baseball All-Star Game. In 2013, 37 Major League All-Stars were alumni of the SiriusXM All-Star Futures Game. Twelve players - Jose Altuve, Adam Dunn, Neftali Feliz, Jose Fernandez, Jason Heyward, Bryce Harper, Francisco Liriano, Evan Longoria, Manny Machado, Jean Segura, Ben Sheets and Geovany Soto - appeared in the SiriusXM All-Star Futures Game and were named to the All-Star Game in the following season.
The Blue Wahoos are scheduled to open a five-game road trip tonight in Chattanooga against the Dodgers Double-A affiliate, the Lookouts. First pitch is slated for 6:15 p.m. (CT) from AT&T Field.
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