DURHAM, N.C. – The Colorado Mesa baseball team will be represented in the new era of the Appalachian League this summer as four players have been selected to play in the former MiLB Rookie Level league.
The Appalachian League is one of the longest standing baseball leagues in U.S. history and will have teams in 10 cities in the Appalachia Region of the country. The new era of the league will transition to a collegiate summer league and will work in conjunction with Major League Baseball (MLB) and USA Baseball Prospect Development Pipeline (PDP).
The league will serve as an integral part for the identification and development process for the USA Baseball Collegiate National Team, as well as other future national teams.
Caleb Farmer is the lone position player selected to the league from Colorado Mesa. Farmer is currently hitting .405 with nine doubles, a triple and two home runs in 25 games played this season.
Andrew Morris is the Mavericks staff ace and will be joining the league when the college season ends. Morris, the three-time RMAC Pitcher of the Week and NCBWA South Central Region Pitcher of the Week, is 5-0 with a 2.49 ERA. He has pitched 43.1 innings and struck out a RMAC best 74 batters.
Maverick lefthander
Ryan Day was one of the players selected for the league. Day is currently 5-0 on the season with a 3.60 ERA in 40 innings. He has 49 strikeouts against just eight walks from the No. 2 slot in the Mavericks rotation.
Jared Ure is a stopper out of the bullpen and a spot starter for the Mavericks this season. Ure is 2-1 with a 3.71 ERA in 17 innings pitched. He has 22 strikeouts against seven walks and opponents have batted just .261 against him.
The four will be placed on one of the ten teams in the coming weeks. The teams are the Bluefield Ridge Runners, Bristol State Liners, Burlington Sock Puppets, Danville Otterbots, Elizabethton River Riders, Greeneville Flyboys, Johnson City Doughboys, Kingsport Axmen, Princeton Whistlepigs, and the Pulaski River Turtles.
Opening Day is scheduled for June 2, 2021 and will feature 54-games, a midseason All-Star Game and a championship game slated for August 10, 2021.
More information about the Appalachian League, visit mlb.com/Appalachian-League.
