CUTHBERT & KA'AIHUE ADVANCE IN MONIKER MADNESS

Wilmington, DE - The Wilmington Blue Rocks have held their own through the first round of the sixth annual Moniker Madness Tournament to decide the best name in all of minor league baseball. Cheslor Cuthbert and Kila Ka'aihue defeated their opponents and have moved on to the second round of the tournament.

Cuthbert, a 10-seed in the "Farmer Works" bracket took care of business against seventh-seeded Xorge Carrillo of the Savannah Sand Gnats. In the second round, the active Blue Rock will square off against 15th-seeded Scooter Gennett of the Huntsville Stars, the Double-A affiliate of the Milwaukee Brewers. The 19-year-old Wilmington third baseman is hitting .230 with six homers and a team-best 43 RBIs. Cuthbert was signed by the Kansas City Royals organization on July 2, 2009 for $1.35 million. He is the fifth-ranked prospect on the Royals' farm according to Baseball America.

Ka'aihue, the nine-seed in the 'Farmer Works" bracket, knocked off eighth-seeded Granden Goetzman of the Princeton Rays. In round two, the Blue Rocks alumnus will face a stiff challenge against top-seeded Duke von Schamann of the Great Lakes Loons, the Class-A affiliate of the Los Angeles Dodgers. Ka'aihue is currently playing for the Sacramento River Cats, the Triple-A satellite of the Oakland Athletics. He is hitting .300 with four homers and 20 RBIs in 23 games. Ka'aihue has spent parts of four different years playing at the big league level with the Kansas City Royals and Oakland Athletics. Over 126 career MLB games, he has hit .221 with 15 homers. He was with the Blue Rocks in the 2007 season and hit .251 with nine homers and 42 RBIs in 60 games.

Second round voting is from July 17-23. To vote for Cuthbert and Ka'aihue, go to http://www.milb.com/milb/fans/moniker_madness/y2012/index.jsp?redirect=monikermadness.

There is a history of success in the tournament for players associated with the Blue Crew. In 2010, after three straight Final Four appearances without a crown, Wilmington alumnus Rowdy Hardy took the title as a two-seed over a shocking Cinderella, 15-seed Seth Schwindenhammer. Schwindenhammer would go on to win the title a year later. Winners are retired from future competitions.

Be sure to come out to Frawley Stadium this season as we celebrate 20 years of Wilmington Blue Rocks baseball. The Blue Rocks begin a four-game set with the Frederick Keys on Monday, July 23 at 7:05 p.m. For ticket information, please call 302-888-BLUE or visit bluerocks.com.

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