The Great Lakes Summer Collegiate League announced their 2023 All Star Team. The North and South Divisions will go head-to-head on Tuesday, July 18th at 7:05 p.m. at Prasco Park in Mason, Ohio. Major League Baseball scouts will be on hand viewing the action that includes five Royal Oak Leprechaun players selected for the North Division Team.
Brandon Mann (Michigan) and Caden Duryea (Northwood) were chosen as reserves for the game and Collin Overholt (Ashland), AJ Kostic (Central Michigan) and Josh Getz (Northwood) were picked as prospects. The All-Star Game will be broadcast live through Meridix.com.
Out of Northville, Michigan, Brandon Mann earned his spot in the All-Star Game through his high-velocity fastball that has led to a lot of strikeouts. In sixteen total innings pitched across six appearances for the Leprechauns, he has struck out nineteen and walked only seven. In games where Mann has come out of the bullpen for Royal Oak, his ERA has sat at 1.50. He has held the opposing side scoreless in four out of his six games as well, throwing at least one inning each time.
Caden Duryea, the second reserve for the Leprechauns, has been one of the steadiest hitters for the team all season. Duryea has four home runs on the season, including two recently on July 15th against the Lima Locos. That number is good for a tie for first among Leprechauns and a tie for second in the entire league. Along with that, Duryea leads the team with 19 RBIs and 30 hits on the year, all while sporting a .291 batting average and a .837 OPS. When asked what it was like to be selected to the game, Duryea responded, “It feels good to be an All-Star. I put in countless hours to better my game and it is good to see my work pay off.”
Collin Overholt is another player that has had some big-time hits for Royal Oak this season. He is the other Leprechaun with four home runs on the season, one of them coming in Royal Oak’s most recent game against Lima. One other big asset for Overholt has been his ability to draw walks. He has 23 on the year – eight more than the closest Leprechaun, John Orberson. This gives Overholt an OBP of .389 and OPS of .848.
Overholt says that being an All-Star “feels rewarding! Being selected among all of the other players is an honor. There is a lot of great talent in this league and I am appreciative of being chosen!” and that “I am very blessed to have great teammates, coaches, and support to help me get to this step in my journey. It’s a validation of the hard work that ultimately contributes back to the team.”
Central Michigan Chippewa AJ Kostic, a man that has contributed as both a hitter and a pitcher, was also selected. At the plate, Kostic has three home runs on the year, a total that omits two that he hit in a preseason game, along with a .359 OBP and .744 OPS. He has been a hitter that head coach Jonathan Vance has consistently placed in the big parts of the batting lineup, often hitting third or in the cleanup spot. He is also a big threat on the base paths, leading Royal Oak with ten stolen bags on the year.
Josh Getz was also chosen as a prospect in the All-Star Game for the Leprechauns. An everyday leadoff man prior to suffering an injury, Getz was a standout player for Royal Oak this season. The Northwood Timberwolf has a batting average of .324 and an OBP of .414. Even though he has not played in a week and a half, Getz is still second on the team in total hits, behind Caden Duryea. Josh was also a very solid shortstop for the Leprechauns, committing just two errors in 118 innings played.
These five Leprechaun standouts will get the chance to go against some of the other best talent around the league in the ten-inning contest on Tuesday. After that, they will return to the team to play the remaining six games on the schedule for Royal Oak. Three of those games will be at the Lucky Corner, marking the last chance to see the Leprechauns at home in the 2023 season. The home games will all be in a three-day stretch, with the first two games against the Sandusky Ice Haulers, who sport nine total players on the All-Star roster. Those games will be on July 20th and 21st, prior to the home finale against the Jet Box on the 22nd, who have three All-Stars.