Indy Ball Island

With all the negative news surrounding the start-up Empire League, it’s nice to see a new league that is thriving.

The United Shore Professional Baseball League (USPBL) has announced that they have had their fifth player signed to a major league organization. The USPBL, which has had sold-out crowds all season long at Jimmy John’s field, is proving to be a great stepping stone for young players looking to get into affiliated baseball.

UNITED SHORE PROFESSIONAL BASEBALL LEAGUE SENDS FIFTH PLAYER THIS SEASON TO A MAJOR LEAGUE ORGANIZATION

Eastside Diamond Hoppers First Baseman Dalton DiNatale signed by Los Angeles Dodgers

(Photo provided by the United Shore Professional Baseball League)

ROCHESTER, Mich. July 24, 2016—The United Shore Professional Baseball League (USPBL) today announced that Dalton DiNatale, a first baseman for the Eastside Diamond Hoppers, has been signed by the Los Angeles Dodgers. He will report immediately to the Dodgers organization.

The signing marks the fifth time in the 2016 season that a USPBL player has been signed by a Major League Baseball organization.  Earlier this year, Birmingham Bloomfield Beavers pitcher Ross Vance was signed by the St. Louis Cardinals while Beavers infielder Aaron Bossi was signed by the New York Yankees, and Eastside Diamond Hoppers pitcher Chris McDonald and Utica Unicorns pitcher Evan Piechota were both signed by the Pittsburgh Pirates organization.

Dalton DiNatale played college baseball at Arizona State University, and he was drafted in 2015 but released after 1 year in the minors.  The 6’4” left-handed hitting first baseman was snapped up by the USPBL earlier this year, and DiNatale worked extensively on his hitting during his time with the USPBL this season.

“I knew that I needed to make great strides with my swing to get another shot at affiliated baseball. The USPBL offered a great hitting program with top notch instructors so it was a natural fit. Forcehitting.com, the USPBL hitting program, really helped me understand my swing. I also was playing for managers in Jim Essian and Paul Noce with MLB experience, so it was the perfect combination to help me get back to the MiLB. I just want to give it my best shot, and the good Lord willing, things will work out,” said DiNatale when he received news that he was being signed by the Dodgers.

“Whether it’s a college kid passed over or an exceptional young man like Dalton who needs just a little bit of help, that’s our goal. We are a finishing school for these young men and we take great pride in making every player better,” said Andy Appleby, Commissioner and Founder of the USPBL.

About United Shore Professional Baseball League

Rochester Hills, MI-based General Sports and Entertainment founded the United Shore Professional Baseball League (USPBL), an independent professional baseball league, in Metro Detroit in 2015.  The league plays in the brand new, state-of-the-art $15 million ballpark named Jimmy John’s Field located in downtown Utica, Mich.  First of its kind for the region, the USPBL provides a fun and exciting family atmosphere while showcasing top baseball talent to fans of all ages. The inaugural season, which began on Memorial Day 2016, features three teams—the Utica Unicorns, the Eastside Diamond Hoppers and the Birmingham Bloomfield Beavers. Additional teams and ballparks will be added in future years.

Here’s a look at how the other four players are doing after signing:

Ross Vance (Johnson City Cardinals – Rookie) 7 games, 8.1 IP, 12 K, 4.32 ERA
Aaron Bossi (GCL Yankees East – Rookie) 11 games, 23 AB, .304 avg
Chris McDonald (GCL Pirates – Rookie) 4 games, 10.1 IP, 2-1 record, 6.10 ERA
Evan Piechota (GCL Pirates – Rookie) 3 games, 4.2 IP, 1-0 record, 0.00 ERA

(All stats courtesy of MiLB.com)

CWL

In March, the California Winter League (CWL) released a list of all players that were signed during or after the CWL season.

The list, which was updated after the season on February 27th, included 69 players who had signed at least a spring training contract for various independent leagues and major league organizations.

Since all the leagues are now mid-way through their seasons, we have decided to do an update to see how many CWL players are still on active rosters around the country.

Here is a look at how those players have done:

Major League Baseball

Evan Crower Philadelphia Phillies (Released by the Phillies and Windy City Thunderbolts before playing any games.)
*Steven Pollakov Chicago White Sox (Playing for the Great Falls Voyagers (Rookie) with a .250 avg in 8 games.)
*Kevin Lenik Texas Rangers (Playing for the Spokane Indians (Short Season) with a 0-1 record and 9.00 ERA in 8 games.)
Kade Andrus Arizona Diamondbacks (Released by the DBacks. Spent 3 games with Joplin Blasters (.167 avg) before being released.)
Connor Hoffman Arizona Diamondbacks (Released by the DBacks. Spent 3 games with Sussex County Miners (.125 avg) and 4 games with Traverse City Beach Bums (.083) and currently on DL.)
*Tanner Kiest Texas Rangers (Released by the Rangers. Played 2 games with Sussex County Miners (9.50 ERA), 2 games with Lincoln Saltdogs (0.00 ERA), and currently playing with Florence Freedom (12.00 ERA in 4 games.))
Jarrett Martin Texas Rangers (Released by the Rangers. Played 2 games with Ottawa (0-1, 7.11 ERA), 2 games with Sussex (0-1, 7.11 ERA) and 7 games with Rockland (0-2, 5.12 ERA.))

Frontier League

John Cruz Florence Freedom (Sent to Gary. Released. Signed to Schaumburg and released.)
Clayton Crum Florence Freedom (Released without playing a game.)
*Josh Wright Florence Freedom (Released, but signed by River City. Has a 2-1 record and 4.50 ERA.)
Darius Washington Florence Freedom (Released without playing a game.)
*Matt Pobereyko Florence Freedom (0-2 with 1.33 ERA before signing with the Arizona Diamondbacks. Currently has a 0.00 ERA in 5 games in the Arizona Rookie League.)
*Kenneth Frosch Evansville Otters (Playing with a 4-2 record with 1.33 ERA in 25 games.)
Victor Barron Evansville Otters (Released. Signed with Normal. Released after batting .167 in 8 games.)
Buddy Elgin Evansville Otters (Released without playing a game.)
*Kenny Knudsen Schaumburg Boomers (Playing with a 0-1 record and 6.09 ERA in 15 games.)
Scott Ward Schaumburg Boomers (Released without playing a game.)
Pete Leonello Southern Illinois Miners (Released without playing a game.)
Carl Jameson Southern Illinois Miners (Released without playing a game.)
Brandon Boyle Windy City ThunderBolts (Released after playing in 9 games with a 4-1 record and 8.25 ERA.)
Kevin Barker Windy City ThunderBolts (Released after playing in 23 games with a .158 average.)
Ryan Strombom Windy City ThunderBolts (Released after playing in 9 games with a 3-4 record and 5.71 ERA)
Alex Miden Windy City ThunderBolts (Released without playing a game.)
*Andrew Lowe Windy City ThunderBolts (Playing with a 1-0 record and 3.50 ERA in 17 games.)
Quintin Alexander Windy City ThunderBolts (Released without playing a game.)
*Brady Muller Windy City ThunderBolts (Playing with a 2-6 record with a 3.44 ERA in 10 games.)
*Luke Barker Traverse City Beach Bums (Playing with a 0-3 record and 1.88 ERA in 29 games.)
Wes Wallace Traverse City Beach Bums (Released after playing in 14 games with a .050 avg.)
Matt Burns Traverse City Beach Bums (Released after having a .192 avg in 9 games.)
Brian McKenna Traverse City Beach Bums (Released without playing a game.)
Lucas Hunter River City Rascals (Traded to Pittsburg Diamonds. Released without playing a game.)
*Mike Jurgella River City Rascals (Playing with a .265 avg in 41 games.)
Josh Eatherly River City Rascals (Released without playing a game.)
Alec Saikal River City Rascals (Released without playing a game.)
*Ben Allison Normal Cornbelters (Released. Currently signed with Florence. Has a 1-0 record and 4.50 ERA in 3 games.)
Kaleb Barlow Normal Cornbelters (Released without playing a game.)
Max Ayoub Gateway Grizzlies (Released without playing a game.)
Derek Hasenbeck Gateway Grizzlies (Released without playing a game.)
Andrew Wellwerts Lake Erie Crushers (Released without playing a game.)
*Parker Norris Lake Erie Crushers (Playing with a .209 avg in 42 games.)
Nate Antone Lake Erie Crushers (Released without playing a game.)
Tom Nagy Lake Erie Crushers (Released without playing a game.)
Dakota Freese Joliet Slammers (Released without playing a game.)
*Casey Fletcher Joliet Slammers (Playing with a .234 avg in 28 games.)
Alex Simone Washington Wild Things (Released without playing a game.)
*Brian O’Keefe Washington Wild Things (Playing with a 2.10 ERA in 13 games.)
Alex Williams Washington Wild Things (Released without playing a game.)
Tyler Garkow Washington Wild Thing (Released after having a 11.04 ERA and 0-2 record in 3 games.)

Atlantic League

Colin Moberly New Britain Bees (Released after 3 games with a 0-2 record and 27.00 ERA.)
*Nick Murphy New Britain Bees (Playing with a .153 avg in 22 games.)

American Association

Will Soto Joplin Blasters (Released after having a .266 avg in 26 games.)
*Mason Morioka Joplin Blasters (Released. Currently playing with Sonoma Stompers with a .287 avg in 39 games.)
Brandon Landanger Lincoln Saltdogs (Released without playing a game.)
Kaz Nezu Lincoln Saltdogs (Released without playing a game.)

Can-Am League

Jalen Harris Sussex Miners (Traded to Trois-Rivieres Aigels. Released after 11 games with a .211 avg.)
*Michael Tamburino Sussex Miners (Playing with a 1-2 record and 5.04 ERA in 11 games.)
*Alex DeBellis Rockland Boulders (Played 33 games with Rockland with a .208 avg. Traded to Sussex Miners and has a .254 avg.
Max Schonfeld Trois-Rivieres Aigles (Released after pitching in 6 games with a 0-3 record and 11.63 ERA.)

Pacific Association

*Kyle Adie San Rafael Pacifics (Playing with a .292 avg in 28 games.)
*Julian Esquibel San Rafael Pacifics (Playing with a 2-0 record and 4.34 ERA in 19 games.)
*Mark Lindsay San Rafael Pacifics (Playing with a .167 avg in 15 games.)
Trent Zaks Pittsburg Diamonds (Released without playing a game.)
Iszac Valdez Pittsburg Diamonds (Released after 10 games with a .250 avg.)
*Ian Hagenmiller Pittsburg Diamonds (Playing with a .159 avg in 14 games.)
Ethan Szabo Sonoma Stompers (Released after hitting .293 in 25 games.)
Landon Hunt Sonoma Stompers (Did not attend spring training.)
Masahiro Miyadera Sonoma Stompers (Did not attend spring training.)
*Marcus Blackmon Sonoma Stompers (Playing after 14 games with a .182 avg.)
*Eddie Mora -Loera Sonoma Stompers (Playing with a .252 avg in 36 games.)

*Currently on an active roster.
Only 25 of the 69 players are currently on an active roster as we hit the halfway mark of the baseball season.

(All independent league statistics/transactions courtesy of pointstreak.com. All MiLB stats courtesy of MiLB.com)