Five Pelicans earn All-Star honors
MYRTLE BEACH, S.C. (June 12, 2017) - Pitchers Adbert Alzolay and Justin Steele , outfielders Eloy Jiménez and Daniel Spingola and infielder Bryant Flete will join Myrtle Beach's coaching staff in representing the Pelicans at the 2017 All-Star Classic, the Carolina League office announced Monday. The 7:05 p.m. game on Tuesday,
MYRTLE BEACH, S.C. (June 12, 2017) - Pitchers
Alzolay, Myrtle Beach's Opening Day starter, ranks fifth in the Carolina League in WHIP (1.05). The native of San Felix in Venezuela has held opponents to a .214 average, a mark that places him fifth among starters in the circuit. Alzolay's 3.14 ERA also sits eighth in the league. The right-hander has yielded just 50 hits in 63.0 innings, and has walked only 16 batters against his 61 punchouts.
Originally signed by the Cubs as a non-drafted free agent in 2012, Alzolay ranks sixth in the league in K-BB% (17.7%), 10th in FIP (3.93) and 11th in xFIP (3.86). The right-hander's line drive rate is the 13th-lowest in the circuit at 20.0 percent, and his swinging strike rate (12.1%) is 16th. Over his last 10 starts, Alzolay has posted a 2.85 ERA, whiffing 54 against 11 walks in 53.2 frames.
Steele leads the Pelicans in ERA at 2.51, a mark that places him third in the league. The southpaw has registered a 4-3 mark in 12 starts, ceding just 63 hits in 61.0 innings. A native of Lucedale, Miss., Steele has fanned 50 against 22 free passes. Steele's 51.4 percent ground ball rate is the eighth-highest in the league. His 17.4 percent line drive rate is the fifth-lowest, and his 31.5 percent fly ball mark is 15th.
The No. 24 prospect in the Cubs' organization according to Baseball America, Steele has gone seven starts in a row with no more than two earned runs allowed. Over that span, the Chicago Cubs' fifth-round pick in 2014 out of George County High School (Miss.) has compiled a 1.83 ERA, striking out 34 against just nine walks in 39.1 innings.
Jimenez, the Southern Division's designated hitter, has played in fewest games of any All-Star position player. Ranked as the consensus top prospect in the Chicago Cubs' organization and by MLB.com as the No. 8 prospect in all of baseball, Jimenez is batting .293/.398/.560 with six home runs and 20 RBIs in 22 games. If he had enough plate appearances to qualify, his 161 wRC+ would be second in the circuit.
The native of Santo Domingo in the Dominican Republic hit Myrtle Beach's only grand slam of the season and collected five RBIs, all coming in the first inning, on May 25 against Winston-Salem. He drew a walk-off free pass in the 14th inning that beat Lynchburg on May 14. Jimenez also tied the game against Down East on June 2 with an RBI double in the ninth inning to cap a four-run comeback in a contest the Birds would win 7-6 in 10 frames.
Spingola, who hit just .231/.322/.327 in 49 games with Myrtle Beach a year ago, has upped his batting line to .308/.388/.477 in 56 contests with the Birds in 2017. Spingola has ripped 15 doubles, six triples and two home runs while driving in 26 runs.
A 31st-round pick by Chicago in 2015, Spingola's .308 batting average rates ninth in the Carolina League while his six triples rate in a tie for third in the circuit. His 139 wRC+ is 11th-best in the league. The former Georgia Tech Yellow Jacket has reached base in nine of his last 11 games, posting a .349/.417/.419 line over that time frame.
Flete is slashing .298/.346/.435 over 49 games this season. The native of Cumairebo, Venezuela has also bashed 12 doubles and five homers to drive in 26 RBIs.
Originally signed by the Cubs as a non-drafted free agent in 2011, Flete is batting .337/.370/.474 with seven doubles, two home runs and 15 RBIs in his last 23 games. Over that stretch, he has helped the Pelicans post a 16-7 record.
The quintet will join Myrtle Beach's coaching staff of manager Buddy Bailey, pitching coach Anderson Tavarez, hitting coach Guillermo Martinez and athletic trainer Toby Williams in representing the Southern Division. The 2017 All-Star Classic is the first Midsummer Classic in Pelicans history involving a Southern Division squad pitted against All-Stars from the Northern Division. The previous 20 All-Star games were played between the Carolina and California Leagues.
The Carolina League selected its All-Stars via a voting process that involved its managers and general managers, along with one media vote per market. Myrtle Beach has now had at least three players represent the Pelicans in the Midsummer Classic for the past seven seasons, dating back to 2011. Infielder
The 2017 season is the 19th season for the Pelicans franchise and third as the Class A-Advanced affiliate of the Chicago Cubs. For information on tickets to see the Pelicans in 2017, please call (843) 918-6000, e-mail [email protected], or visit www.MyrtleBeachPelicans.com.
ABOUT THE PELICANS: The Myrtle Beach Pelicans are the Class A-Advanced affiliate of the Chicago Cubs and play their home games at TicketReturn.Com Field at Pelicans Ballpark in Myrtle Beach, South Carolina. The park has ranked in the top eight in all of Minor League Baseball by Stadium Journey in each of the last six seasons. The same publication also placed the Pelicans in the Top 100 Stadium Experiences in all of sports in each of the last six years and the best in the Carolina League for six straight seasons as well. In May 2015, TicketReturn.Com Field at Pelicans Ballpark won the 2015 TripAdvisor.com Certificate of Excellence award. The Pelicans are the two-time defending Mills Cup Champions, winning the title in 2015 and 2016 as well as 2000 and co-Mills Cup championship honors in the inaugural 1999 season. The Pelicans have made ten postseason appearances behind 12 half-season Southern Division championships, including the first half of the 2015 season and second half of 2016. For more information on the Myrtle Beach Pelicans, please contact the Pelicans at (843) 918-6000 or emailing [email protected].