SAUGET – The Gateway Grizzlies are pleased to announce that third baseman D.J. Stewart, shortstop Abdiel Diaz, and second baseman Gabe Holt have been voted to represent the organization at the 2024 Frontier League All-Star Game on July 17 in Québec City, with Stewart also selected to start the game for the West Division at third base. It is the second straight year for all three infielders to be voted into the midseason showcase as selected by the league’s general managers, field managers, coaches, broadcasters, and members of the local media. In addition, right-handed pitcher Lukas Veinbergs has been added to the West Division team as a reserve.
A St. Louis native in his second season with the Grizzlies, D.J. Stewart comes into this weekend’s series on an absolute tear, having homered in four consecutive games. He is currently batting .320 with team-leading totals of 10 home runs, 42 RBIs, and 57 hits, placing him inside the Frontier League’s top-10 in all three categories. 2024 is also the second straight season for Stewart as the West Division’s starter at the “hot corner,” having also done so in 2023.
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Now in his fourth season with the Grizzlies, Abdiel Diaz is enjoying a stellar campaign at the plate. The San Juan, Puerto Rico native is batting .309 with four home runs and 25 RBIs on the year, with 42 hits in 39 games as well as 25 runs scored, all while playing his usual fantastic defense at the important shortstop position. He has also stolen 14 bases without being caught even once, and earlier this season surpassed Jairus Richards to become the Grizzlies’ all-time leader in career steals.
A mainstay at the top of the order as one of the Frontier League’s best pure hitters, Gabe Holt has continued to produce for the Grizzlies in 2024, his second season with the club. He is currently batting .333 with 57 hits (tied with Stewart for the team lead) along with 29 runs scored, nine doubles, a pair of homers, and 22 RBIs. The Warner Robins, Georgia native has also continued to be one of if not the hardest hitter in the Frontier League to strike out, having whiffed just 15 times in 171 at-bats this season, the fewest among all players in the circuit to have seen as many at-bats on the year.
A third-year Grizzlie, Lukas Veinbergs opened the season as the Grizzlies’ closer, amassing six saves with a 1.29 ERA in his first 14 appearances along with 18 strikeouts in his first 14 innings pitched. He then moved to the starting rotation, and in his first two starts of the season, allowed just one total run in nine innings on six hits with 11 strikeouts. The Pinckney, Michigan native was a mainstay in the starting rotation in 2023 as well as down the stretch in 2022, and will be playing in his first Frontier League All-Star Game.
Coming off a big comeback victory last night, the Grizzlies’ home stand continues tonight, Friday, July 5, against the Schaumburg Boomers. Collin Sullivan will get the start against the Boomers’ Jackson Hickert in the first of 12 regular season games between the two West Division rivals at Grizzlies Ballpark, with first pitch scheduled for 6:30 p.m. CT.
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