Trio Representing 'Cats at Frontier League All-Star Game
SAUGET, Ill – Frontier League Professional Baseball is pleased to announce the rosters for the 2022 All-Star Game as hosted by the Washington Wild Things at Wild Things Park located in Washington, PA on Wednesday July 20 at 7:05 pm.
The Tri-City ValleyCats are represented by three players: infielders Pavin Parks and Brad Zunica, and outfielder Brantley Bell. Bell tops the 'Cats in batting average (.343), on-base percentage (.411) and doubles (17). He also leads the team with 47 runs scored and 16 stolen bases. Parks is batting .291 with 28 RBI, eight home runs and 35 runs scored, while Zunica is hitting .297 with nine home runs, ten doubles, and 26 RBI.
Bell earns his first Frontier League All-Star selection in his first year in the league. He began his professional career in 2015 when he was selected in the 11th round, 325th overall, in the 2015 MLB Draft by the Cincinnati Reds. Following six seasons in the Reds organization, reaching as high as Triple-A Louisville, 2022 marks Brantley’s first season of independent professional baseball. Bell quickly became a staple of the ValleyCats lineup with his hot bat, speed, and versatility. Brantley has appeared in every defensive position but shortstop, catcher, and pitcher for the ValleyCats this season. Entering Monday (July 11th), his .343 batting average was 7th overall in the Frontier League.
Parks, who earns his first Frontier League All-Star selection, was acquired during the offseason via a trade after a dominant year in the Pioneer League with the Ogden Raptors. Prior to his time in the Pioneer League, Parks played collegiate baseball for Kent State University before being selected in the 36th round of the 2019 MLB Draft by the Detroit Tigers. Parks has become the everyday shortstop in Tri-City and has provided a consistent bat at the top of the lineup.
Infielder Brad Zunica earns his second Frontier League All-Star selection. Brad was honored as an all-star last year, but no game was held, making this his first trip. After a dominant first year in independent professional baseball in 2021, Brad has continued his success at the plate in 2022. The former Miami Hurricane was selected 447th overall in the 15th round of the 2015 MLB Draft by the San Diego Padres. After six seasons in the Padres organization, Zunica joined the ValleyCats in June of 2021 and became an integral part of the Tri-City lineup.
The 2022 Frontier League All-Star Game will be available to watch on the ValleyCat Network through our streaming partner FloSports | FloBaseball.
During the game, the Frontier League all-stars will don the jerseys of Negro League teams from their team's regions as part of a celebration of the 50th Anniversary of Josh Gibson's induction into the baseball Hall of Fame. The jerseys will be auctioned off during the game on the Wild Things' auction partner M@C's platform so that fans from all over the league can bid on and try to win their piece of history with proceeds benefitting the Josh Gibson Foundation.
Tickets for the All-Star Game are available now at bit.ly/FLASG22TIX. It will cost $10 to sit in the lower seating bowl of Wild Things Park and $5 for tickets in the bleacher sections (the 200 level) of the stadium. More information is available at washingtonwildthings.com as well as frontierleague.com.
The Frontier League of Professional Baseball is an official Partner League of Major League Baseball and the largest of its kind in professional baseball. The Frontier League features 16 teams and has moved over 1,000 players to MLB (Major League Baseball) Teams in its 29-year history.