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FL Joliet Slammers

Slammers Add More Local Talent to Roster

March 9, 2011 - Frontier League (FL)
Joliet Slammers News Release


(Joliet, IL) - The Joliet Slammers announced the signings of local star pitchers Cedric Redmond, Andy Deain, and Brian Smith today.

Redmond, 22, is the youngest of the bunch. He was selected by the Chicago Cubs out of Joliet West High School in the 27 th round of the 2006 Amateur Draft. The right-hander advanced as high as the Triple-A level with the Cubs during his two years in the organization.

"After taking last year off, we're very excited that Cedric is coming home to play ball for us," Slammers VP of Baseball Operations Ron Biga said. "He's made it clear that this is where he wants to play and we're happy to have him."

Deain, 24, re-wrote the Northern Illinois record books during his time with the Huskies. A graduate of Prairie Ridge High School, Deain made 128 appearances during his time in DeKalb. That was the most appearances in the history of the Mid-American Conference. He finished with 23 career saves, good for second in program history and eighth all-time in the MAC. During his senior season Deain saved 12 games, 11 th most in the country. His 17 career wins ranks fourth in the history of the Huskies. Meanwhile, Deain's 156 career K's are ninth most ever at NIU.

His stellar collegiate stats were rewarded when he signed a professional contract with the Baltimore Orioles. He spent 2010 in the O's organization, compiling an impressive 3.29 ERA in 38 1/3 rd innings for three different teams within the system.

"We were very surprised that Andy was even available for us to sign based on his minor league numbers, which are outstanding," Biga said. "I have been following Andy's career for awhile thanks to my relationship with Northern Illinois coach Ed Mathey and we expect Andy to be an end of game type pitcher for us."

Smith, 24, is another former NIU pitcher joining the Slammers. After a stellar freshman campaign in 2005, where he posted a 2.85 ERA in 82 innings, injuries slowed down the 6'3'' right-hander. But the graduate of Harold L. Richards High School in Oak Lawn showed that when healthy, he can pitch with the best of them as he was outstanding during two summers pitching in the prestigious Northwoods League.

"Brian is fully recovered from his injuries," Biga said. "We are hoping he can give us a lot of innings because he's shown that he can compete at the national level when healthy."

The Slammers begin play in their inaugural season on Thursday, May 19th, 2011 against the Washington Wild Things. For tickets, please call (815)722-BATS (2287).

The Joliet Slammers are members of the Frontier League of Professional Baseball. The Frontier League is the oldest continuously operating independent professional league, in its 19th season in 2011. For more information about the Frontier League visit www.frontierleague.com.

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