Diamond Notes

Title	NewsDate	location	Story
Biggio elected to Hall of Fame January 9, 2015 Craig Biggio (Seton Hall, Long Island Nationals, 1985) was elected to the Baseball Hall of Fame and will be enshrined in Cooperstown on July 26 along with Randy Johnson, Pedro Martinez and John Smoltz. Biggio became the first player who played his entire career in Houston to make the Hall. Biggio was first in hit by pitches in the modern era with 281. He ranks fifth in doubles with 668 and 21st all time in hits with 3,060. The catcher turned second baseman is one of five players to have 250 home runs and 400 stolen bases in their career and ranks 15th with 1,844 runs scored. *Craig Biggio photo courtesy of the Houston Astros*
Kevin Cash named Tampa Bay manager December 12, 2014 Kevin Cash (Sussex Colonels, 1997) is the new manager of the Tampa Bay Rays. Cash played third base for the Colonels after his freshman year at Florida State and signed with the Toronto Blue Jays as a free agent in 1999. He played eight seasons in the Major Leagues as a catcher and served as Cleveland's bullpen coach for the past two seasons. The 37 year old Tampa native becomes the youngest active manager in the majors. He replaces another former ACBL player, Joe Maddon (Scranton Red Soxx, 1973-75), who joined the Chicago Cubs as their new manager in October. *Kevin Cash photo courtesy of Tampa Bay Rays*
Blazers Announce 2015 Head Coach and General Manager October 24, 2014 The Quakertown Blazers, proud members of the Atlantic Collegiate Baseball League, are excited to announce our 2015 Head Coach and General Manager Matt Hollod, currently in his 3rd season as the head coach at Wilkes University, will be the field manager of the 2015 Quakertown Blazers. Matt has extensive summer collegiate experience serving as the head baseball coach for the Willmar Stingers out of the Northwoods League from 2010 to 2013. In four years as manager for the Stingers, Hollod tallied 160 wins which puts him in the top 10 all-time in the league. His .573 winning percentage is second highest in the leagues 22 year history. Hollod had also recruited 36 players to the Stingers, and helped develop, who have gone on to play professionally. Matt is a former associate head baseball coach at DeSales University and Southern Utah University. Hollod was a four-time letter winner in baseball at the University of Washington and the University of Portland. He was an honorable mention All-West Coach Conference selection during his junior season where he was a consistent starter for the Pilots on the mound. As a hitter, Hollod led the team with a .346 average in his final season in Portland. Pat O'Connell returns to the ACBL after a 2-year hiatus from the league. O’Connell was formerly the General Manager of the Lehigh Valley Catz for ten seasons. During his tenure the Catz won three titles including the 2003 ACBL Championship and saw over 60 former Catz players play professionally including one advancing to the Major Leagues.
Vogelsong plays key role as Giants advance to NLCS October 8, 2014 Ryan Vogelsong (Kutztown University, Quakertown Blazers, 1996-1997) only allowed two hits and one run over 5 2/3 innings as the San Francisco Giants defeated the Washington Nationals 3-2 to advance to the NL Championship Series with the St. Louis Cardinals. By holding the Nats to one run over 5 2/3 innings, Vogelsong became the first pitcher in Major League history to allow no more than one run in each of his five career postseason starts. Vogelsong's previous four playoff outings came in 2012. He has now given up a total of four earned runs in 30 1/3 postseason innings for a 1.19 ERA which ranks him ninth lowest in postseason ERA with more than 30 innings pitched.
Kanzler Propels Miracle to FSL Championship September 12, 2014 Former Staten Island Tide outfielder, Jason Kanzler, hit a two run home run in the eleventh inning to propel the Fort Myers Miracle to the Florida State League Championship in a 4-2 win over the Daytona Cubs. In his first playoff game Kanzler delivered a game-tying grand slam on a six RBI night as the Twins High A affiliate defeated Brevard County. In 2013 Kanzler was drafted in the 20th round by the Twins following his senior year at the University of Buffalo. Kanzler was promoted to Fort Myers in August after hitting .286 with nine home runs, 48 RBI and 15 stolen bases for Cedar Rapids. He has been invited to the Twins fall Instructional League which runs from September 15 thru October 12, 2014.