MWL1 Fort Wayne TinCaps

Vote Delabar for AL All-Star Final Vote

July 8, 2013 - Midwest League (MWL1)
Fort Wayne TinCaps News Release


Fort Wayne, IN - Former Fort Wayne Wizards pitcher Steve Delabar needs the support of Fort Wayne fans to help vote him into the 2013 Major League Baseball All-Star Game. Delabar, a reliever with the Toronto Blue Jays, is one of five players on the ballot for the American League's "Final Vote." The player with the most votes by Thursday, July 11 at 4:00 p.m. will be added to the AL's roster.

Fans can vote for Delabar online here, by texting "VOTE" to 89269 and replying accordingly with a vote for Delabar, or by using the hashtag "#RaiseTheBar" on Twitter during the final six hours of voting Thursday. Fans who participate in the Final Vote are eligible to receive a 14-day free trial of MLB.TV or receive a 15% discount to the MLB.com Shop. Voting is unlimited.

Delabar pitched for the Wizards for parts of 2006, 2007, and 2008. During his Summit City days, the Fort Knox, KY, native won 12 games while working as both a starter and a reliever. In the Midwest League, Delabar struck out 178 batters in 226 and 2/3 innings.

"We're so proud of Stevie and his career," TinCaps President Mike Nutter said. "He was a great pitcher in Fort Wayne and is remembered as a guy whose character was of equal caliber. The resiliency he's shown in his career is reminiscent of Jim Morris in the movie The Rookie. We hope fans in Fort Wayne and around baseball help Stevie out by voting him into the All-Star Game because no one deserves that honor more than him."

After seven minor league seasons, Delabar's baseball career appeared to be over in 2009. While pitching in the independent Can-Am league for the Brockton Rox, Delabar fractured his right elbow. Following the injury, Delabar moved home to Kentucky and began taking classes at the University of Louisville to finish his teaching degree. The former 29th-round Draft pick by the Padres in 2003 was working as a substitute teacher and coaching locally.

Delabar wasn't even considering a baseball comeback until he began working out using a weighted-ball to increase shoulder strength. Suddenly, Delabar realized he could thrower harder than ever. The Seattle Mariners took notice and signed the right-hander in 2011.

"It's definitely a long journey, but all of the time I've said I can't worry about what I've done; I have to worry about what I'm going to do," Delabar told MLB.com. "If I get into the game, I have to worry about pitch by pitch and not worry about getting the third out already."

This season with Toronto, Delabar has a 5-1 record and a 1.58 ERA through 40.0 innings in 35 appearances. His 57 strikeouts are tied for the AL lead among relievers.

As of Monday morning, Delabar was in second place behind Detroit's Joaquin Benoit, and ahead of New York's Dave Robertson, Texas' Tanner Scheppers, and Boston's Koji Uehara. If Delabar wins the Final Vote, he'll join two other Fort Wayne alums in the All-Star Game: Detroit's Torii Hunter (1994) and Colorado's Michael Cuddyer (1998). The 2013 All-Star game takes place Tuesday, July 16 at Citi Field, home of the New York Mets.

Check out the Fort Wayne TinCaps Statistics



Midwest League Stories from July 8, 2013


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.

OurSports Central