Liriano named Midwest's top prospect
Liriano was named the circuit's Most Valuable Player and Prospect of the Year on Monday as the league announced its 2011 Postseason All-Star team. Lansing's Mike Redmond earned Manager of the Year honors as well.
For Liriano, Fort Wayne's right fielder, the two awards come after hitting .319 with 11 homers and 57 RBIs in 108 games for the TinCaps. His 62 stolen bases ranked second in the circuit, but weren't even close to the league leader, Dayton's Billy Hamilton, who earned All-Star honors at shortstop with 92 steals.
Liriano, briefly promoted to the Class A Advanced California League, ranked fifth with 135 hits, third with eight triples and tied for seventh with 27 doubles. He also made nine errors.
Lansing's Michael Crouse and Jake Marisnick joined Liriano as the All-Star outfielders. Marisnick, Toronto's third-round pick in 2009, put up some pretty strong numbers himself, hitting .323 with 13 homers, 76 RBIs, 141 hits and 35 stolen bases. His .364 average with runners in scoring position was nearly 100 points higher than Liriano's.
West Michigan's infield -- second baseman Hernan Perez, catcher Rob Brantly and third baseman Nick Castellanos -- anchored the All-Star infield, which also includes Lake County first baseman Jesus Aguilar and Hamtilton at short.
Burlington's Josh Whitaker was voted the top designated hitter.
A pair of Bowling Green hurlers were recognized among the top pitchers: C.J. Riefenhauser was chosen as the top left-handed starter, while Chris Rearick was named the best southpaw reliever. Kane County's Greg Billo and Dayton's Drew Hayes also made the squad.
Redmond earned top managerial honors -- the Lugnuts are 33-29 and headed to the playoffs.
The team was selected by the field managers of the 16 Midwest League member clubs. The full roster is below:
2011 Midwest League Postseason All-Star Team |
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Position Players |
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POS | PLAYER | TEAM | AFFILIATE |
C | Rob Brantly | West Michigan | Detroit |
1B | Jesus Aguilar | Lake County | Cleveland |
2B | Hernan Perez | West Michigan | Detroit |
3B | Nick Castellanos | West Michigan | Detroit |
SS | Billy Hamilton | Dayton | Cincinnati |
OF | Michael Crouse | Lansing | Toronto |
OF | Rymer Liriano | Fort Wayne | San Diego |
OF | Jake Marisnick | Lansing | Toronto |
DH | Josh Whitaker | Burlington | Oakland |
Starting Pitchers |
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POS | PLAYER | TEAM | AFFILIATE |
RHP | Greg Billo | Kane County | Kansas City |
LHP | C.J. Riefenhauser | Bowling Green | Tampa Bay |
Relief Pitchers |
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POS | PLAYER | TEAM | AFFILIATE |
RHP | Drew Hayes | Dayton | Cincinnati |
LHP | Chris Rearick | Bowling Green | Tampa Bay |
Most Valuable Player: Rymer Liriano, Fort Wayne
Prospect of the Year: Rymer Liriano, Fort Wayne
Manager of the Year: Mike Redmond, Lansing
Danny Wild is an editor for MLB.com.