Canzler, Teheran voted IL's top players
The Braves prospect was named the International League's Most Valuable Pitcher and Rookie of the Year as the league revealed its postseason All-Star team. Durham infielder Russ Canzler was named Most Valuable Player, and Columbus' Mike Sarbaugh earned Manager of the Year honors.
Teheran, also selected as the starting pitcher for the All-Star squad, leads the league with 15 wins and a 2.22 ERA in 24 appearances for Triple-A Gwinnett. He made his Major League debut this season, starting two games for Atlanta.
The right-hander ranks second with a 1.13 WHIP and has 121 strikeouts in 141 2/3 innings this year in the Minors. He was a two-time Pitcher of the Week, was selected to the mid-season All-Star team and played in the All-Star Futures Game this summer in Arizona.
Canzler finished second in the Southern League with 21 homers for Tennessee last summer but ended up signing with Tampa Bay as a free agent over the winter. He put up perhaps his best season in the Minors in 2011, hitting .312 with 18 homers and 79 RBIs through 124 games with Durham and leads the league with a .535 slugging percentage. He ranks fifth in average, fourth in RBIs and third in on-base percentage.
Columbus second baseman Jason Kipnis, promoted to Cleveland, was an easy choice for the IL infield, which also includes Indianapolis first baseman Matt Hague and a pair of Louisville sluggers, catcher Devin Mesoraco and shortstop Zack Cozart.
Indy's Alex Presley, Charlotte's Dayan Viciedo and Gwinnett's Stefan Gartrell form the All-Star outfield, while veteran first baseman Jorge Vazquez made the team at designated hitter from Scranton/Wilkes-Barre.
Pirates prospect Tim Wood was selected as the top relief pitcher, and Columbus' Luis Valbuena earned a spot as a utility player.
The full roster is below:
Most Valuable Player: Russ Canzler, Durham
Most Valuable Pitcher: Julio Teheran, Gwinnett
Rookie of the Year: Julio Teheran, Gwinnett
Manager of the Year: Mike Sarbaugh, Columbus
2011 International League Postseason All-Star Team |
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Position Players |
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POS | PLAYER | TEAM | AFFILIATE |
C | Devin Mesoraco | Louisville | Cincinnati |
1B | Matt Hague | Indianapolis | Pittsburgh |
2B | Jason Kipnis | Columbus | Cleveland |
3B | Russ Canzler | Durham | Tampa Bay |
SS | Zack Cozart | Louisville | Cincinnati |
OF | Stefan Gartrell | Gwinnett | Atlanta |
OF | Alex Presley | Indianapolis | Pittsburgh |
OF | Dayan Viciedo | Charlotte | Chicago (AL) |
DH | Jorge Vazquez | Scranton/Wilkes-Barre | New York (AL) |
UT | Luis Valbuena | Columbus | Cleveland |
Pitchers |
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POS | PLAYER | TEAM | AFFILIATE |
SP | Julio Teheran | Gwinnett | Atlanta |
RP | Tim Wood | Indianapolis | Pittsburgh |
Danny Wild is an editor for MLB.com.