#ProPanthers Update - Summer Coming To A Close
8/15/2019 12:30:00 PM | Baseball
PITTSBURGH – With the end of summer and the 2019 season drawing near, former University of Pittsburgh baseball players are doing all that they can to stand out in their organizations and finish 2019 on the right foot.
Taking a temporary leave of absence from the Single-A Quad Cities River Bandits, pitcher RJ Freure spent the last week with Team Canada in Lima, Peru, helping them to a silver medal at the 2019 Pan Am Games. During his time in Lima, Freure totaled 5.0 innings, allowing no runs on one hit while striking out 11 batters. Canada would fall in the gold medal game to Puerto Rico, where the Burlington, Ontario native went the first 3.0 innings, surrendering only one hit and striking out seven.
Freure has been a key member of the Quad Cities pitching staff, boasting a 3.93 ERA in 66.1 innings pitched and striking out 89. The righty has taken over a starting role for the River Bandits, starting in 11 of the 16 games that he has appeared in and has been dominating hitters in the Midwest league, with batters averaging only a .205 batting average against former Panther.
With his team only 1.5 games behind in the standing, catcher Alex Kowalczyk has been on a tear at the plate in the last month to help push his team into playoff contention. In his last 10 games, Kowalczyk has averaged a .300 batting average and is in the midst of a six game hitting streak, where he has registered two multi-hit games. With the recent stretch of hot hitting, the Lansdale, Pa., native has brought up his batting average to a .261 and boasts a .305 on base mark on the 2019 season. With 26 games remaining, Kowalczyk looks to continue his approach at the plate and keep Frisco in the running for a postseason spot.
In his first season with the Dayton Dragons, pitcher Matt Pidich has been able to find his groove and become an effective pitcher over the course of the season. In 54.0 innings with the Dragons so far, Pidich boasts a 2.33 ERA, the best on the team among pitchers with at least 40.0 innings. He also has been tough for opposing batters to hit, racking up 62 strikeouts and limiting opposing batters to just a .196 batting average.
Below is a complete list of current #ProPanthers in the MLB ranks.
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Taking a temporary leave of absence from the Single-A Quad Cities River Bandits, pitcher RJ Freure spent the last week with Team Canada in Lima, Peru, helping them to a silver medal at the 2019 Pan Am Games. During his time in Lima, Freure totaled 5.0 innings, allowing no runs on one hit while striking out 11 batters. Canada would fall in the gold medal game to Puerto Rico, where the Burlington, Ontario native went the first 3.0 innings, surrendering only one hit and striking out seven.
Freure has been a key member of the Quad Cities pitching staff, boasting a 3.93 ERA in 66.1 innings pitched and striking out 89. The righty has taken over a starting role for the River Bandits, starting in 11 of the 16 games that he has appeared in and has been dominating hitters in the Midwest league, with batters averaging only a .205 batting average against former Panther.
With his team only 1.5 games behind in the standing, catcher Alex Kowalczyk has been on a tear at the plate in the last month to help push his team into playoff contention. In his last 10 games, Kowalczyk has averaged a .300 batting average and is in the midst of a six game hitting streak, where he has registered two multi-hit games. With the recent stretch of hot hitting, the Lansdale, Pa., native has brought up his batting average to a .261 and boasts a .305 on base mark on the 2019 season. With 26 games remaining, Kowalczyk looks to continue his approach at the plate and keep Frisco in the running for a postseason spot.
In his first season with the Dayton Dragons, pitcher Matt Pidich has been able to find his groove and become an effective pitcher over the course of the season. In 54.0 innings with the Dragons so far, Pidich boasts a 2.33 ERA, the best on the team among pitchers with at least 40.0 innings. He also has been tough for opposing batters to hit, racking up 62 strikeouts and limiting opposing batters to just a .196 batting average.
Below is a complete list of current #ProPanthers in the MLB ranks.
| #ProPanthers | |||
| Name | Year | Current Team/League | Notes |
| Ray Black | 2011 | San Antonio/ AAA (Brewers) | Has made 2 scoreless appearances with San Antonio |
| Yaya Chentouf | 2018 | Connecticut/ A (Tigers) | Has 3 straight scoreless appearances |
| RJ Freure | 2018 | Quad Cities/ A (Astros) | Helped Canada to a silver medal at the Pan Am Games |
| Joe Harvey | 2014 | Albuquerque/ AAA (Rockies) | Has made 2 appearances with Albuquerque since being traded |
| Dan Hammer | 2019 | Aberdeen/ A-Short (Orioles) | Went 4.0 scoreless innings on Aug. 3 against the Vermont Lake Monsters |
| Hobie Harris | 2015 | Tampa/ A Advanced (Yankees) | |
| Alex Kowalczyk | 2016 | Frisco/ AA (Rangers) | Hitting .261 with a .305 OBP this season |
| Charles Leblanc | 2016 | Frisco/ AA (Rangers) | Has a.311 OBP this season |
| Cole MacLaren | 2019 | GCL Tigers East/ Rookie (Tigers) | Is hitting .304 in 12 games this year |
| Isaac Mattson | 2017 | Mobile/ AA (Angels) | |
| Josh Mitchell | 2017 | Wilmington/ A Advanced (Royals) | |
| Manny Pazos | 2017 | West Virginia/ A (Mariners) | |
| Connor Perry | 2019 | GCL Tigers East / Rookie (Tigers) | Has a .426 OBP this season |
| Matt Pidich | 2018 | Dayton/ A (Reds) | Has a 2.33 ERA this year |
| Liam Sabino | 2018 | Johnson City/ Rookie (Cardinals) | Is hitting .438 in his last 10 games |
| Kevan Smith | 2011 | Los Angeles Angels/ MLB | |
| Matt Wotherspoon | 2014 | Norfolk/ AAA (Orioles) | |
| Nick Yarnall | 2016 | Rancho Cucamonga/ A (Advanced) | |
| Derek West | 2019 | Tri-City/ Rookie (Astros) | Pitched 3.0 scoreless innings on Aug. 7 against the Lowell Spinners |
| T.J. Zeuch | 2016 | Buffalo/ AAA (Blue Jays) | Gave up 4 runs in 7.1 innings on Aug. 8 against the Toledo Mud Hens |
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