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AA St. Paul Saints

Two Saints Outfielders Honored with Post Season Awards

August 30, 2011 - American Association (AA)
St. Paul Saints News Release


ST. PAUL, MN (August 30, 2011) - The final day of the regular season could determine whether the St. Paul Saints receive their first playoff berth since 2007, but two Saints players won't have to wait that long to find out about their post season accolades. Saints outfielders Ryan Patterson and Jonathan Van Every were honored by the American Association, Patterson as a Post Season All-Star and Van Every as the Defensive Player of the Year.

The 28-year-old Patterson earned his selection by hitting .326 with 20 home runs and 87 RBI in 98 games. In 429 at bats he's scored 94 runs, has 31 doubles, two triples, 16 stolen bases, a .413 on base percentage and a .535 slugging percentage. He is currently first in the league in at bats, second in runs and total bases (235), third in extra base hits (53), tied for third in hits (140), fourth in RBI and tied for fourth in homers. He joined the Saints on August 17th from the Fort Worth Cats completing an earlier trade that send relief pitcher Robert Manuel to the Cats. Since joining the Saints, Patterson has been extremely productive hitting at a .372 clip with a home run and 10 RBI, to go with four doubles and four stolen bases. This is the third American Association team Patterson has played with this season. He began 2011 with the Wichita Wingnuts and was traded to the Cats in exchange for pitcher Derek Blacksher.

Patterson was drafted on three separate occasions. The first time was by the Kansas City Royals in the 49th round of the 2001 MLB June amateur draft. He was drafted again the next year by the Atlanta Braves in the 34th round. The final time was in 2005 by the Toronto Blue Jays in the fourth round. He spent 2005-2008 in the Blue Jays organization, spending his last three seasons at Double-A.

The 31-year-old Van Every made playing centerfield look like a walk in the park. Van Every did not commit an error, finishing the season with a 1.000 fielding percentage, 253 total chances, 246 put outs, seven assists and two double plays. He showed tremendous range, tracking down every ball hit his way in centerfield before his year ended on August 15th when he suffered a season ending injury, breaking his finger.

Van Every, originally a 29th round selection by the Cleveland Indians in the 2000 June Amateur Draft, reached the Major Leagues with the Boston Red Sox in 2008. He was signed by the Saints as a free agent in May of this year.

The 2011 American Association All Star Team was voted on by two members from each of the 14 teams in the league, one from the field manager and one from the team's media representative.

Below are the 2011 American Association Post-Season Award winners.

CATCHER

Kelley Gulledge, Fort Worth Cats -.341, 14 HR, 71 RBI, 125 Hits, 73 Runs

FIRST BASE

Trent Lockwood, Fort Worth Cats -.338, 20 HR, 90 RBI, .621 slugging percentage, 60 Extra Base Hits

SECOND BASE

Brad Boyer*, Gary SouthShore RailCats -. 348, 68 RBI, 66 Runs, 123 Hits

THIRD BASE

Juan Richardson, Wichita Wingnuts -.361, 84 RBI, 139 Hits, .453 on-base percentage

SHORTSTOP

Josh Horn, Wichita Wingnuts -.325, 75 Runs, 131 Hits, 31 Doubles

OUTFIELD

Stephen Douglas, El Paso Diablos/Grand Prairie AirHogs -. 378, 76 RBI, 160 Hits, 87 Runs

OUTFIELD

Ryan Patterson, Fort Worth Cats/Wichita Wingnuts/St. Paul Saints -.326, 20 HR, 87 RBI, 94 Runs, 140 Hits, 53 Extra Base Hits

OUTFIELD

Ray Sadler, Kansas City T-Bones* -.314, 20 HR, 96 RBI, 127 Hits, 214 Total Bases

DESIGNATED HITTER

Lee Cruz, Amarillo Sox*% -.344, 18 HR, 94 RBI, 144 Hits, 75 Runs

PITCHER OF THE YEAR

Ben Moore, Sioux Falls Pheasants *& - 13-4, 2.92 ERA, 145 Innings Pitched, 144 SO, .229 opponents batting average, 3 Complete Games

RELIEF PITCHER OF THE YEAR

Jon Hunton, Grand Prairie AirHogs - 7-2, 1.77 ERA, 51 Innings Pitched, 25 Saves, 20 BB, .207 opponents batting average

DEFENSIVE PLAYER OF THE YEAR

Jonathan Van Every, St. Paul Saints - 84 Games, 253 Total Chances, 246 Putouts, 7 Assists, 0 Errors, 2 Double Plays, 1.000 Fielding Percentage

Check out the St. Paul Saints Statistics

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