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NL Gary SouthShore Railcats

Tony Cogan Named to Northern League Full Season All-Star Team

September 3, 2009 - Northern League (NL)
Gary SouthShore Railcats News Release


GARY, Ind. - One day after pitching his club to a win in Game One of the Northern League Semifinals against the Kansas City T-Bones, Gary SouthShore RailCats left-hander Tony Cogan has been named to the full season All-Star Team as his club's lone representative, the league announced today.

Cogan was named to the 11-player team as the left-handed pitcher and was the only RailCats player voted to the All-Star lineup, selected by the league's managers, coaches, general managers, broadcasters and veteran players. Despite posting the best record in the league in the regular season, the RailCats had as many representatives on the All-Star Team as last-place Joliet and the fourth-ranked T-Bones, while the Winnipeg Goldeyes had three honorees and five Fargo-Moorhead RedHawks were recognized.

Cogan, 32, is enjoying arguably the best season of his nine-year professional career in 2009 when he's been the unquestioned ace of the RailCats staff since drawing his second straight Opening Night start. Cogan led the league in strikeouts with a career-best 105 during the regular season, and made more starts (22) while throwing more innings (150.0) than any other pitcher in the league. The Highland Park, Illinois native went 8-7 with a 3.60 ERA that ranked fourth among all Northern League hurlers.

After struggling a bit early in the season, Cogan settled down to earn a spot in the Northern League's All-Star Game for the second time in his career and responded with a dynamite second half of the season. Cogan's ERA at the break was 5.05 but during his second half - 11 starts - the Stanford grad went 5-2 with a 2.40 ERA, allowing only 63 hits in 82.1 IP and striking out 61.

Cogan's second half also included a franchise-record 28.2 inning scoreless streak from July 10-22, spanning four starts and earning the southpaw back-to-back Northern League Pitcher of the Week awards and the league's Pitcher of the Month honor for July. Cogan threw the first complete game shutout of his career July 14 at U. S. Steel Yard then did it again in his last start of the regular season, blanking the Schaumburg Flyers August 27.

A College World Series participant at Stanford, Cogan was a 12th round draft choice of the Kansas City Royals in 1999 and rose quickly through the Royals system, making his Major League debut at Yankee Stadium in 2001. Cogan had his career sidetracked by injury in 2002 before resurfacing with the Sioux Falls Canaries (then of the Northern League) in 2005. Cogan signed with the RailCats before the start of the 2007 season and set a club record with 25 saves for a team that went on to win the league title. As a starter last season, Cogan led all Northern League starting pitchers with a 2.08 ERA despite missing nearly two months with an oblique injury.

This is Cogan's first selection to the Full Season All-Star Team but is the third year in a row the squad's left-handed pitcher has been a RailCat. Jeremy Plexico was the choice in 2008 en route to the league's Pitcher of the Year award and Josh Habel was honored in 2007. Cogan is the seventh RailCats player selected as a Full Season All-Star since Greg Tagert took over as manager in 2005 and just the eighth in team history.

The Northern League will announce the remainder of their post-season awards during the coming weeks, including Player of the Year, Pitcher of the Year, Manager of the Year, Organization of the Year and others.

The RailCats and T-Bones continue their best-of-five postseason series tonight at 7:05 p.m. at CommunityAmerica Ballpark. Garret Holleran will make the start for the RailCats opposite Kansas City left-hander Ryan Knippschild. The game will be broadcast only as a live internet stream on www.railcatsbaseball.com and www.thelakeshorefm.com.

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