Clarksville, Ark.-Curt Dixon and Kyle Hudson were voted to play in the 2009 Continental Baseball League All-Star Game to be held July 7 in Alexandria, Louisiana, the league office announced.
Both Dixon and Hudson starred at Ozarks as pitchers under head coach Jimmy Clark. Dixon, a starter, plays for the Big Bend Cowboys while Hudson, a reliever, is a member of the Bay Area Toros. The CBL All-Star Game will be a Texas vs. Louisiana format, with Dixon and Hudson joining together on the Texas All-Star Team. The game will be played at historic Bringhurst Field, home of the Alexandria Aces, beginning at 7:15 p.m. Gates will open at 3:30 p.m. to allow fans to watch the two teams take batting practice. At 4:30 p.m., there will be a scouting combine for all players in the CBL to showcase their talents to major league scouts. At 6:00 p.m., the Home Run Derby will begin with All-Stars hitting in a two-round format.
“This is what it’s all about, a chance for our featured players to face off against each other for one game, in front of a great crowd, and to showcase their skills,” said CBL commissioner Ron Baron.
Dixon, who is in his second professional season, has given up just 10 earned runs in his five starts. The 6-foot-4, 215-pound right-hander from McAlester, Okla., owns a 3-3 record. Opposing batters are hitting just .220 off him, and he’s averaging more than a strikeout an inning. Dixon played at Ozarks from 2005-2008 and owns career records in strikeouts (205), innings pitched (256.2) and wins (24).
Hudson is the league-leader in ERA (1.25). The 6-foot, 185-pound native of Clarksville, owns a 2-1 record in 21.2 innings of work. Hudson has struck out 22 and has given up 15 hits. Hudson, who played at Ozarks from 2004-06 and in 2008, notched a school-record 14 saves and was an All-Conference player in 2005 and 2006.
The game can be heard on the web at www.1055kbuck.com.
Continental Baseball League All-Star Game Press Release
All-Star Roster
Louisiana Roster:
Pitchers: (7)
Nathan Stewart-Alexandria (RHP)
Andy Schon-Alexandria (RHP)
Rhett Barber-Alexandria (LHP)
Aaron Kalb-Alexandria (RHP)
Joel Palacio-South Louisiana (RHP)
Carlos Castillo-South Louisiana (RHP)
Corey Bass-South Louisiana (RHP)
Catchers: (2)
Nick Enciso-Alexandria
Anselmo Vazquez-South Louisiana
Infielders: (5)
Eric Padilla-Alexandria (SS)
Louis Curcio-South Louisiana (SS)
Jamaal Jackson-Coastal (1B)
Lester Contreras-South Louisiana (3B)
Jeff Carper-Coastal (2B)
Outfielders: (6)
Kyle LaMotta-South Louisiana (OF)
Chris Vasquez-South Louisiana (OF)
Brad Turney-Alexandria (OF/LHP/1B)
Eric Weinberg-Alexandria (OF)
Johnny Klopfer-Alexandria (DH/OF)
Felix Martinez-South Louisiana (OF)
Manager: Dan Shwam, Alexandria Aces
Coaches: Nick Renault (Alexandria Aces) and Larry Van Allen (Alexandria Aces)
Texas Roster:
Pitchers: (8)
Robert “Jake” Leonhardt-Bay Area (RHP)
Kyle Hudson-Bay Area (RHP)
Judson Smith-Texarkana (RHP)
Jordan Mccavitt-Texarkana (RHP)
Mike Castrignano-Big Bend (LHP)
Curt Dixon-Big Bend (RHP)
Nick Sottung-Texarkana (RHP)
Joe Brown-Bay Area (LHP)
Catchers: (2)
Josh McLeod-Bay Area
Phil St. Amant-Texarkana
Infielders: (8)
Daniel Cox-Bay Area (3B)
Steven Yurchick-Bay Area (SS)
Joel Hartman-Bay Area (1B)
Clint Toomey-Texarkana (2B)
Justin Arminger-Texarkana (3B)
Corey O’Neill-Texarkana (1B)
Chris Dabbs-Big Bend (1B)
Beau Manning-Big Bend (2B)
Outfielders: (6)
Joe Hicks-Bay Area (CF)
Eric Brown-Bay Area (RF)
Daryl Stanfield-Texarkana (OF/DH)
Trey George-Texarkana (OF)
Eric Williams-Big Bend (OF)
Andrew Riddick-Big Bend (OF)
Manager: Jim Bolt, Bay Area Toros
Coach: Chris McKnight, Texarkana Gunslingers
All-Star Notes:
Daryl Stanfield of Texarkana leads the league in hitting at .390, followed by Eric Williams of Big Bend with .375….Other All-Stars in the Top 10 include Texarkana’s Corey O’Neill (.356), Clint Toomey (.355) and Trey George (.352), Bay Area’s Joel Hartman (.344) and Big Bend’s Andrew Riddick (.338)…Texarkana third baseman Justin Arminger leads in RBI with 31 to go along with a .327 batting mark. . .Trey George is 2nd in RBI with 28. . .First baseman Chris Dabbs of Big Bend leads the CBL with 8 homers… Bay Area first baseman Joel Hartman leads the league in stolen bases with 26 followed by teammate Joe Hicks with 25…Hicks is 25 for 27 in the SB department…Jake Leonhardt of Bay Area may be the top pitcher in the league…Leonhardt is No. 2 in ERA with a 1.67 mark and No. 1 with 50 strikeouts against just 4 walks in 43 innings of work…The ERA leader is Bay Area teammate Kyle Hudson with a 1.25 mark…Carlos Castillo, who pitched four years in the big leagues for the Chicago White Sox and one season with the Boston Red Sox, is the pitching coach/pitcher with the South Louisiana Pipeliners…Mike Castrignano of Big Bend is 4-0 and is one of four pitchers tied for the league lead in wins…Two other All-Stars also have 4 victories, Rhett Barber of Alexandria, who is 2nd in K’s with 44, and Judson Smith of Texarkana… Alexandria reliever Nathan Stewart is 2-0 with a 1.96 ERA in 13 relief appearances, with 22 Ks in 18.1 innings and throws 87-89 mph…DH Johnny Klopfer of Alexandria made his pro debut this season, batting .300 with 23 runs, 9 doubles, 2 HR and 21 RBI, along with 5 SB.
The Continental League is made up of six teams across the south, including the Alexandria Aces (Alexandria, La.), the Big Bend Cowboys (Alpine, Texas), the Coastal Kingfish (Houston, Texas), the South Louisiana Pipeliners (Morgan City, La.) the Texarkana Gunslingers (Texarkana, Texas) and the Bay Area Toros (Houston, Texas).
Topics: Athletics