Aug. 7, 2008

By Jeff Honza
www.SIUSalukis.com

CARBONDALE, Ill. - Several Southern Illinois University baseball players recently completed summer league play. Here are some notables from the offseason. Also, check out the latest updates about former Salukis in the professional ranks.

OF Chris Murphy (Harrisonburg Turks)
Ranked fourth on the team in batting average for a Turks team that went 20-27 overall...Started 36 of 38 games, hitting .240 with 15 runs, 36 hits, six doubles, four home runs and 15 RBI...Was among the team's top-five leaders in all of those categories -- t4th in runs, 4th in hits, t4th in doubles, 4th in home runs, 5th in RBI...Also boasted a second-best .974 fielding percentage...Harrisonburg is a member of the Shenandoah Valley Baseball League.

OF Aaron Roberts (Anchorage Bucs)
Played in 25 games, making 20 starts for Anchorage, an affiliate of the Alaska Baseball League...Hit .267 with eight runs, eight RBI, six walks and four stolen bases...Went error free in all of his games...The Bucs finished the summer at 21-24.

RHP Andrew Dunn, DH/C Tyler Bullock (Chillicothe Mudcats)
Dunn pitched in eight games, while making seven starts...Led the Mudcats with seven wins, finishing the summer at a near-perfect 7-1 with a 1.47 ERA...Tossed three complete games...Recorded a team-high 54 strikeouts, gave up only eight earned runs and walked 10 in 49 innings of work...Bullock joined Chillicothe late this summer and hit .321 with eight runs scored, four doubles, a home run and 17 RBI in 15 games...The Mudcats finished third in the MINK League with an overall 31-16 record, including a 23-11 mark in conference play.

Two other Salukis . . . including RHP Adam Curynski and RHP Kevin Cover played on summer league teams, as well. Curynski played for the Webster Yankees (New York) and Cover played with the Pueblo Toyota Collegians (Colorado). Final statistics were not available for either of these teams.

Former Salukis in the Professional Ranks . . .

INF Jerry Hairston, Jr. (Cincinnati Reds) was activated from 15-day disabled list on Aug. 1...Owns a .344 batting average with 34 runs scored, 17 doubles, two triples and two home runs in 58 games with the Reds this season.

RHP Jason Frasor (Toronto Bluejays) is 1-1 with a 3.67 ERA in 37 relief appearances for the Bluejays this season...He has struck out 35 in 34.1 innings of work.

LHP Tyler Norrick (Palm Beach Cardinals/Single A Affiliate of St. Louis) is currently on the 7-day disabled list...Is 1-2 with 22 strikeouts in 18.1 innings through five starts.

OF Grant Gerrard (Bakersfield Blaze/Single A Affiliate of Texas) is hitting .276 with 44 runs, 25 doubles, two triples, eight home runs and 50 RBI through 85 games...Ranks third on the team in doubles, homers and runs batted in.

RHP Jordan Powell (Salem Avalanche/Single A Affiliate of Houston) was recently promoted to Single A...He has pitched in three games and struck out three in only 3.1 innings since the move.

RHP Cody Adams (Helena Brewers/Rookie Affiliate of Milwaukee) is 3-2 with a 3.97 ERA through eight appearances and one start...Adams recorded 12 strikeouts in 22.2 innings.

LHP Shawn Joy (Gulf Coast League Yankees/Rookie Affiliate of New York) currently sits at 0-1 with seven strikeouts in 13 innings through nine relief appearances.

OF Kevin Koski (Southern Illinois Miners/Independent Frontier League) is the Miners' starting centerfielder, who has seen action in 41 games...He is hitting .275 with 31 runs, three doubles, three triples, one home run and 15 RBI.

RHP P.J. Finigan recently underwent surgery and is still with the Detroit Tigers organization.

INF Tyler Lairson was released by the Southern Illinois Miners earlier this week.