Diaz Named MVP as Curve Hand out Season Awards

Catcher along with Sampson, Kasparek, Maggi, and Garcia all recognized during pregame ceremony on Thursday

By Mike Baggerman

August 28, 2014

CURVE, Pa. - The Altoona Curve handed out their annual season-ending awards prior to Thursday's game with catcher Elias Diaz taking home the team's MVP award for the 2014 season. The catcher was promoted to Triple-A along with Adrian Sampson, who was named the Altoona Curve Pitcher of the Year while reliever Kenn Kasparek took home the Fireman of the Year award. Drew Maggi earned the Unsung Hero award for his all-around efforts this season while outfielder Willy Garcia was selected as the team's Iron Man award winner.

Elias Diaz - Team MVP - Diaz was one of the best catchers in the history of the Altoona Curve. The native of Venezuela hit .328 which was the highest among qualifying batters on the Curve and it also ranked third in the Eastern League. Diaz had a big moment during Altoona's first month of the season on April 23. With the Curve trailing the Harrisburg Senators 9-6 in the ninth inning, Altoona rallied back to tie it and the Curve catcher hit a pinch hit walkoff sacrifice fly to propel the Curve to a win over the 'Sens. The 23-year-old was selected as a mid-season and season-ending All-Star for the first time in his professional career after his solid campaign with Altoona. Prior to his promotion to the Indianapolis Indians, Diaz was in the midst of a 16-game hit streak, which was the longest in his professional career, and also in the midst of an 18-game on base streak. At the time of his promotion, Diaz has the best batting average among all catchers in Double-A, Triple-A, and High-A, who appeared in at least 80 games.

Adrian Sampson - Pitcher of the Year - Sampson put together a marvelous 2014 with the Curve where he went 10-5 with 2.55 ERA. His ERA ranks second in the Eastern League and he owns the second-best ERA among Pirates farmhands who have logged at least 100 innings pitched. The right hander was named an All-Star for the first time in just his third professional season, but was unable to compete in the mid-summer classic at Peoples Natural Gas Field. However, all fans who came to Sampson's first start after the break were treated to one of the greatest outings in Curve history. The 22-year-old came within two outs of throwing the first complete game, nine-inning no-hitter in franchise history but settled for the first ever one-hitter. Sampson is still among the league leaders in several categories including innings pitched (148.0, 3^rd), WHIP (1.05, 2^nd), and BAA (.229, 4^th).

Kenn Kasparek - Fireman of the Year - Kasparek has been a rock at the back end of the Curve bullpen this season. The Texas native owns a 2.41 ERA in 29 outings and converted a team-high 12 saves. The right hander had an incredible stretch with the Curve where he allowed only one run over a span of 18 outings from June 20 to August 8. The submariner was named to the Eastern League All-Star Team and earned the save in the mid-summer classic at Peoples Natural Gas Field. The 6-foot-10-inch reliever baffled hitters in Double-A and has limted opponents to a .207 average.

Drew Maggi - Unsung Hero - Maggi played six of the nine positions on defense for Altoona and wasn't afraid to sacrifice his body to make a play in the field. The former Arizona State Sun Devil was also fantastic at the plate over the course of the year for the Curve. Maggi really got things going on offense during May where he hit .313 and held a .429 on-base percentage. The utility player was consistently able to get on base in the middle parts of the season and owned the ninth-best on-base percentage in all of Double-A from May 1 to July 31. One of the most memorable moments during Maggi's season came on July 7 when the Curve battled the Erie SeaWolves at home. While playing left field in that game, Maggi chased after a ball hit towards the SeaWolves bullpen in left. Though he wasn't able to make the catch, Maggi was running at full speed and flipped into Erie's 'pen. The utility player remained in the game and with the Curve trailing late, they rallied for a run in the ninth inning when down to their last strike. In the tenth, Maggi delivered a walkoff single against Erie's All-Star closer Jose Valdez.

Willy Garcia - Iron Man - Garcia's Iron Man award comes in two forms, his incredible arm and bat. He entered this season rated by Baseball America as the owning the "Best Outfield Arm" and he lived up to that honor. The outfielder racked up 19 outfield assists to set a franchise record previously held by Starling Marte, who had 18 in 2011. That total was by far the most in the Eastern League and he was named by Baseball America as owning the "Best Outfield Arm" in the Eastern League in a survey of managers at the end of the season. Garcia was also one of the best hitters on offense for Altoona. The right handed hitter is hitting .279 with 18 home runs and a team-best 63 RBIs. The 21-year-old (who turns 22 on September 4) has one of the best OPS (.809) among all Curve hitters and owns a .494 slugging percentage. On April 8, Garcia brought home Altoona's first walkoff of the season. With the Curve and Akron RubberDucks tied at three in the ninth inning, the right hander picked up his first career hit in Double-A, a walkoff home run off Akron closer Tyler Sturdevant.