ValleyCats Build Roster Nearly Two Months Away from the Season

Sports stats



FL Tri-City ValleyCats

ValleyCats Build Roster Nearly Two Months Away from the Season

March 7, 2025 - Frontier League (FL)
Tri-City ValleyCats News Release


TROY, NY - The Tri-City ValleyCats announced on Friday a series of roster moves in their latest Building the Roster Update presented by Curtis Lumber.

Tri-City acquired RHP Luke Trueman and a PTBNL from the Billings Mustangs of the Pioneer Baseball League (PBL) for INF Robbie Merced. Additionally, INF Cooper Weiss and OF Bobby Peirce were sent to the ValleyCats from the Cleburne Railroaders of the American Association for RHP Zeke Wood. The 'Cats added four more players in free agency: RHP Hollis Fanning, LHP Liu Fuenmayor, RHP Mikell Manzano, and RHP Brenton Thiels.

Trueman worked mostly as a starter with the Mustangs. He pitched in 24 games (19 starts) across 111.2 innings, picking up six wins. The McCandless, Pa. native spent five seasons at Slippery Rock University. The 6-foot-1 righty is top-10 in program history in innings pitched, strikeouts, starts, and wins.

In the first three years of Weiss' collegiate career, he was at Coastal Carolina University. Afterward, he spent a year at Miami University, and then played at Auburn University as a Graduate Student. The Providence, RI product filled up the statsheet, putting together 26 homers, 52 stolen bases, and 119 walks across 196 collegiate games.

Peirce spent two years at South Mountain Community College before joining Auburn in 2021, and was teammates last year with Weiss. The 24-year-old more than held his own against Southeastern Conference pitching, mashing 20 homers and swiping 45 bags, while batting .290 in 137 games played.

Fanning played his first three years of college ball in his hometown state at the University of Tennessee. He transferred to NC State for his senior campaign, and delivered 10 scoreless outings across his 15 appearances. The 6-foot-8 right-hander is one of several pitchers on the 'Cats roster born in 2002.

Fuenmayor signed with the Arizona Diamondbacks out of Venezuela as an 18-year old, and made his professional debut in 2017. He reached as high as Double-A Amarillo in 2022. Through 110 Minor League games, he compiled a 17-11 record with eight saves and a 3.47 ERA over 181.2 innings. In 2023, he pitched for the Missoula Paddleheads (PBL) alongside RHP Austin Dill.

Manzano signed as a free agent with the San Francisco Giants out of Venezuela at the age of 16. The right-hander first saw action in the Dominican Summer League in 2021, and went as far as High-A Eugene in 2024. Over four years in the Minors, Manzano had a 12-10 record along with a 4.24 ERA in 193.1 innings with a whopping 223 strikeouts.

Thiels is listed at seven feet tall, and was mostly utilized as a reliever in college. He started out at Barton Community College before playing at West Alabama University followed by Louisiana State University-Eunice. Last year, he debuted in the MLB Draft League with the West Virginia Black Bears, earning three wins across six starts to the tune of 4.41 ERA.

Frontier League teams are able to carry 34 players during the offseason with the active roster then trimmed down to 25 players for Opening Day on May 9 th. The ValleyCats roster will continue to take shape during the hot stove season with additional transactions updated at www.tcvalleycats.com and through the team's social media channels.

Ticket plans and group outings are available to purchase for the ValleyCats All-Star Season! Individual game tickets on sale on Thursday, March 27 th. Our Box Office can be reached at 518-629-CATS (2287), and is open from 9 AM to 5 PM from Monday to Friday. Due to a recent flood in our office, some of our staff members are in temporary accommodations at the suite level. The front office directory can be accessed by clicking the link here. Thank you for your patience as we work through these challenges.

Check out the Tri-City ValleyCats Statistics

• Discuss this story on the Frontier League message board...

Frontier League Stories from March 7, 2025


The opinions expressed in this release are those of the organization issuing it, and do not necessarily reflect the thoughts or opinions of OurSports Central or its staff.

Other Recent Tri-City ValleyCats Stories



Sports Statistics from the Stats Crew
OurSports Central