CHAPEL HILL, N.C. -- The Appalachian League announced the rosters for the third Appy League All-Star Game. The rosters will feature 44 of the league's top players from the East and West Divisions, as nominated and voted on by the league's managers. The All-Star Game, hosted by the Kingsport Axmen and presented by Visit Kingsport, will be held at Hunter Wright Stadium in Kingsport, Tenn., on July 25 at 7 p.m. ET. The game will be streamed live on MLB.com and MLB.tv.
The hosting Kingsport Axmen coaching staff will lead the West All-Stars. Mike Guinn, who led the Axmen to a 2022 Appy League title, will manage the club, with pitching coach Josh Warner, hitting coach Aaron Guinn, fourth coach Ty’Relle Harris, athletic trainer Ciara Celestino and data coordinator Tyler DeJong rounding out his staff.
The Bluefield Ridge Runners coaching staff will lead the East All-Stars. John McLaren will manage and be joined by pitching coach Garrett Schilling, hitting coach Jerry Greeley, fourth coach Chris Allen, trainer Tommy Craig and data coordinator Jack Harmon.
Both rosters feature 10 pitchers and 12 position players. The Burlington Sock Puppets and Johnson City Doughboys lead the way this year with seven All-Star selections each, followed closely by the Bluefield Ridge Runners (six). The Elizabethton River Riders, Greeneville Flyboys, Kingsport Axmen and Princeton WhistlePigs all have four All-Star selections. The Bristol State Liners and Danville Otterbots have three All-Stars, and the Pulaski River Turtles have two.
Forty-one of the 44 selections are from or committed to Division I schools, with five players representing the ACC and Big 12, and three coming from the SEC. West Virginia University leads all college programs with five selections.
The 2023 Appalachian League All-Star Game will be a two-day event with a full slate of events. The league’s Future Stars Game and Home Run Derby will be held Monday, July 24, beginning at 5 p.m. ET, followed by the All-Star Game on Tuesday, July 25.
Tickets for the event can be found here.
Click here to view a PDF version of the East’s All-Star roster. To view the West’s, click here.
EAST ALL-STAR POSITION PLAYERS
Position; Name; Team (2023 School/2024 Commitment)
CATCHERS
Tommy Harrison, Bluefield (Miami OH) - The left-handed hitting backstop owns a .298 average and .432 OBP through 18 games.
Koby Kropf, Burlington (South Carolina - Upstate) - Kropf has racked up 23 hits, scored 15 runs and recorded 15 RBIs in 26 games with the Sock Puppets.
INFIELDERS
Carrington Aaron, Danville (Chatham HS (VA) / Virginia Tech) - A .279 hitter with a .398 OBP for Danville, Aaron has amassed 24 hits and 10 steals in 24 games.
Cade Campbell, Princeton (California - Berkeley) - Campbell has hit safely in 19 of 24 games for the WhistlePigs en route to a .303/.364/.424 batting line.
Ellis Garcia, Princeton (West Virginia) - Garcia has been a consistent presence for the WhistlePigs offense, batting .345/.429/.464 with eight extra-base hits and 17 RBIs in 21 games.
KaiKea Harrison, Bluefield (Southern California) - Harrison has produced a .790 OPS (.410 OBP) with six extra-base hits in 24 games for the Ridge Runners, scoring 16 runs while driving in another 12.
Michael Callan Moss, Danville (Seton Hall / Portal) - Moss is batting .333 with nine extra-base hits, 22 RBIs and a league-leading .496 OBP through 28 games for the Otterbots.
Sam White, Pulaski (West Virginia) - White garners All-Star honors after leading the River Turtles in a host of offensive categories, including average (.325), hits (37) and total bases (56).
OUTFIELDERS
Vince Fattore, Burlington (Duke / Elon) - Fattore has impacted games for Burlington with his power-speed combo, tallying 13 extra-base hits, including six home runs, and 15 steals in 29 games. His .949 OPS is fifth-best in the league.
Kenny Mallory Jr., Burlington (Elon) - Mallory is batting .319 with a .464 on-base percentage and leads the Appy League with 21 stolen bases (in 23 attempts) and 40 runs scored in 36 games for the Sock Puppets.
Jesse Robinson Jr., Princeton (Virginia Commonwealth / Portal) - Robinson Jr. ranks inside the top 10 in the Appy League with a .343 average (tied-6th), 30 runs scored (5th), OPS (tied-5th), 36 hits (sixth), 26 RBIs (6th) and 53 total bases (9th).
Jordan Taylor, Danville (Florida St. / Portal) - Taylor took home Hitter of the Week honors during the Appy League's opening week and has continued to hit, producing a .281/.379/.479 with 15 extra-base hits and 58 total bases (tied for third in the League) in 30 games.
EAST ALL-STAR PITCHERS
RHP Sam Brodersen, Bluefield (Wingate / Louisiana Tech) - Brodersen (2-0, SV) has made 11 relief appearances for the Ridge Runners, fanning 22 batters in 16 innings while finishing seven games.
RHP Ciaran Caughey, Bluefield (Kent St.) - Caughey (1-0) ranks third among qualified Appy League pitchers in ERA (1.74). In 20.2 innings spanning six outings (four starts), the right-hander has fanned 24 batters while limiting hitters to a .187 average.
RHP Peyton Consigli, Bluefield (Canisius) - Consigli (1-1) took home Pitcher of the Week honors during the week's opening season and currently leads the league with 37 strikeouts, a total he's amassed in just 27 innings.
RHP Andrew Cotten, Princeton (East Tennessee St.) - Cotten (3-1, 2 HLD) ranks second in appearances (12) and owns a .360 ERA through 15 innings.
RHP Will Gagnon, Burlington (Reedley JC (CA)) - Gagnon (2-0) has been a strikeout machine in his 10 Sock Puppet relief appearances, punching out 26 batters against five walks in 15.2 innings.
RHP Colby Guy, Bluefield (Jackson St. / UNC - Asheville) - Guy's 2.45 ERA ranks 11th among qualified Appy League pitchers, and he's held hitters to a .215 clip in 25.2 innings (five starts).
RHP Connor Hegan, Burlington (North Carolina) - Hegan (2-1, SV) has operated in various roles for the Sock Puppets this season, starting two games and finishing out three others en route to 10 total appearances. He's sixth among qualified hurlers with a 2.00 ERA over 18 frames.
RHP Mason Ruh, Burlington (Northern Illinois) - The 2022 Appy League Pitcher of the Year, Ruh (5-0) garnered June Pitcher of the Month honors this season in his return to the Sock Puppets rotation.
RHP Ben Sieracki, Burlington (Elon) - The Appy League's reigning Pitcher of the Week, Sieracki has pitched to a 3.54 ERA and 1.07 WHIP with 33/8 K/BB in 28 innings, making five starts.
RHP Nick Weyrich, Pulaski (Marshall) - Weyrich (3 SV) has held opposing hitters to a .185 average (tied-7th) while logging a 3.79 ERA in 10 innings (11 appearances) for the River Turtles.
WEST ALL-STAR POSITION PLAYERS
Position; Name; Team (2023 School/2024 Commitment)
CATCHERS
Dalton Bargo, Bristol (Missouri / Tennessee) - Bargo leads the Appalachian League in batting average (.385) and hits (45) and ranks second in total bases (55).
Caleb Berry, Johnson City (Milligan) - Berry has produced a .333 average over his first 26 games with Johnson City, racking up nine extra-base hits and 11 steals. Defensively, Berry has thrown out nine attempted basestealers and ranks second in the Appy League with 17 assists.
INFIELDERS
Tyler Cerny, Greeneville (Indiana) - Cerny has tallied eight multi-hit games to produce a .321 average. He leads the Flyboys in slugging (.551) and OPS (.926).
Tyrone “Trey” Fenderson, Elizabethton (Presbyterian) - A .286 hitter for the River Riders, Fenderson has also racked up 12 RBIs, 17 runs scored and 10 steals in 25 games.
Michael Mancini, Kingsport (James Madison) - Mancini sports a .743 OPS through 33 games, during which he's tallied more walks than strikeouts while going 17-for-19 on the basepaths.
Jack Mosh, Greeneville (Missouri) - Mosh is batting .293 through 29 games and sports a .441 OBP thanks to his strong on-base skills (20 BB vs. 12 K).
Deniel Ortiz, Kingsport (Walters State CC) - Ortiz's power has been on display for the All-Star Game-hosting Axmen, as he paces the Appy League in home runs (9), slugging (.625) and OPS (1.094). Also second in the league in total bases (70), he's batting .339 with a .469 on-base percentage through 35 games.
Logan Sutter, Johnson City (Folsom Lake CC / Purdue) - Sutter sits atop the Appy League leaderboard in RBI (39) and total bases (72) and ranks second in average (..373), hits (44), home runs (tied-7) and OPS (1.049).
OUTFIELDERS
Jordan Austin, Bristol (Indiana State) - Austin is batting .297 with 30 hits and 13 stolen bases through 27 games.
Colby Backus, Johnson City (Tennessee) - The Appy League's June Hitter of the Month is second in the circuit in home runs (tied-7), third in total bases (tied-58) and fourth in RBIs (28) this season through 31 games for the Doughboys.
Nick Barone, Greeneville (West Virginia) - Barone is slashing .283/.355/.505 with 12 extra-base hits (4 HR) and 22 RBIs through 26 games.
Joel Dragoo, Greeneville (Presbyterian) - Dragoo, a .302 hitter, leads the Flyboys with 35 hits, 14 extra-base hits, 55 total bases and 34 RBIs, the latter ranking second across the entire Appy League.
WEST ALL-STAR PITCHERS
LHP Will Bollinger, Elizabethton (Johnson County CC / Saint Louis) - In nine outings spanning 14 innings, Bollinger (1-0) has held hitters to a .133 average while posting a 0.84 WHIP -- the first and second-best marks among qualified Appy League pitchers.
RHP Hayden Cooper, Johnson City (SIU-Edwardsville / West Virginia) - Cooper (3-1) has been a staple in the Doughboys' rotation, posting a 3.00 ERA and 1.15 ERA across six outings (five starts). The right-hander has compiled 29 strikeouts against six walks in 27 innings.
LHP Trey Cruz, Johnson City (Northern Colorado) - Cruz (1-0, SV) leads all qualified Appy League pitchers with a 0.00 ERA, having yet to allow an earned run in 19 innings over six appearances (one start) for Johnson City. He's also second in WHIP (0.84) and third in opponents’ average (.156).
RHP Brandon Decker, Bristol (Oakland) - Decker (2-0) has a 3.52 ERA over nine appearances (four starts) and ranks fourth in the league with 30.3 innings pitched.
RHP Hollis Fanning, Kingsport (Tennessee / NC State) - Since his first start for the Axmen on June 27, Fanning, a 6-foot-8 right-hander who recently committed to NC State, has pitched to a 2.12 ERA and 1.00 WHIP in four starts, totaling 21 strikeouts against three walks in 17 innings.
LHP Cole Fehrman, Johnson City (West Virginia) - Fehrman (1-0, SV) has finished out the game for Johnson City in four of six relief appearances. He ranks second in opponents' average (.146), fifth in ERA (1.88) and 10th in WHIP (1.10).
LHP Justin Guiliano, Johnson City (Canisius) - Guillano (1-0) has registered a 2.36 ERA and league-best 0.83 WHIP in six starts spanning 26.2 innings. He's tied for second in the league in both strikeouts (34) and opponents' average (.156).
RHP Ricky Reeth, Kingsport (Notre Dame) - Reeth (1-2, SV) is second in the Appy League in appearances (12) this season, having worked 24.2 frames. In addition to registering a 2.55 ERA, he is also ninth in WHIP (1.09) and 11th in strikeouts (30).
RHP Turner Swistak, Elizabethton (Tennessee / Louisiana Tech) - Swistak leads all Appy All-Star Game pitchers with 31 innings this season. He's racked up 34 strikeouts, good for a share of second in the league.
RHP Pablo Torres, Elizabethton (Bethune-Cookman) - The first-ever active Appy player invited to the USA Collegiate National Team's Training Camp, Torres (2-0, 2 SV) owns a 1.86 ERA through seven appearances, during which he's fanned 19 batters in 9.2 innings.
For more information about the Appalachian League, visit appyleague.com or follow @appyleague & @appyleaguedata on Twitter, and @appyleague on Instagram.
