Alex Speas honored in Rangers minor league award winners for June
FRISCO, Texas (July 13, 2023) - The Texas Rangers announced on Thursday that Alex Speas had been named the Rangers Minor League Relief Pitcher of the Month for June as part of four awards for Rangers minor league players. Speas, who made eight appearances in June for the Frisco RoughRiders
FRISCO, Texas (July 13, 2023) - The Texas Rangers announced on Thursday that Alex Speas had been named the Rangers Minor League Relief Pitcher of the Month for June as part of four awards for Rangers minor league players.
Speas, who made eight appearances in June for the Frisco RoughRiders before getting called up to Round Rock (AAA) on June 30, was named the Relief Pitcher of the Month for the second consecutive time.
The 25-year-old Speas did not allow an earned run in June in nine appearances, covering 14 innings. He held opponents to a .149 (7-for-47) batting average and fanned 22 of 51 (43.1 percent) batters faced last month, recording multiple punch outs in each of his last five outings. The Powder Springs, Ga. native is 3-0 with two saves and a 1.06 ERA over 27 relief outings this season across the Double-A and Triple-A levels, ranking fourth in ERA among affiliated minor league hurlers (min. 30.0 IP) and 10th in strikeout percentage (40.9%).
Josh Stephan won Starting Pitcher of the Month for posting a 2.16 ERA across 25 innings, all with High-A Hickory. Stephan was promoted to Frisco on July 4th to make his Double-A debut. Including his time with the RoughRiders, Stephan ranks third among Rangers minor leaguers in strikeouts with 78.
The other awards in June are:
Abimelec Ortiz, Hickory Crawdads, Player of the Month
Geisel Cepeda, Hickory Crawdads, Defender of the Month
The next Frisco home game is Tuesday, July 18th at 7:05 p.m. when the San Antonio Missions arrive at Riders Field to begin a six-game series. Get your tickets now at RidersBaseball.com or call 972.731.9200.
About the RoughRiders
The Frisco RoughRiders are the Double-A affiliate of the Texas Rangers and the 2022 Texas League champions. In 2023, the team is celebrating its 20th anniversary and has consistently finished in the top five among all Double-A franchises in attendance yearly. In August 2014, the RoughRiders were purchased by an ownership group led by Chuck Greenberg. Since then, the new ownership group, together with the City of Frisco, has spearheaded numerous major franchise enhancements, investing over $8 million in a wide array of facility upgrades and improvements, including a state-of-the-art HD video board, sound system, Bull Moose Saloon, Bullpen Bar, Riders Outpost Team Store and the world's largest water feature in a sports facility, the massive Lazy River. These enhancements earned the Riders and the City of Frisco Ballpark Digest's prestigious "Best Ballpark Renovation" award for two consecutive years (2015 and 2016). More than 185 former RoughRiders players have gone on to play Major League Baseball including current Rangers Josh Jung, Cole Ragans and Bubba Thompson. For more information on the Frisco RoughRiders, please visit RidersBaseball.com or contact [email protected].