Cougars Sweep Diamondbacks Player of the Month Honors
Looking for a good reason to get to next week’s homestand at Northwestern Medicine Field? We’ll give you two: right-handed pitcher Jon Duplantier and outfielder Marcus Wilson.
The Arizona Diamondbacks announced on Monday, May 1, that Duplantier and Wilson were named the organization’s Minor League Player-and-Pitcher-of-the-Month for April.
Every month throughout the season, the Diamondbacks Player Development staff chooses the pitcher and player most deserving of the honor based on nominations from coaches at each affiliate team along with input from the Minor League coordinators.
Wilson batted .362 with six doubles, five home runs and 20 RBI over 18 games for the Cougars in April. During that time, he led the Midwest League (MWL) in slugging percentage (.696) and OPS (1.166) while ranking among the league leaders in RBI (2nd), on-base percentage (2nd, .470) and home runs (T-5th). Wilson also earned MWL Player of the Week from April 10-16. The Los Angeles, Calif. native was selected by the D-backs in the second round of the 2014 First-Year Player draft from Junipero Serra High School.
Selected by the D-backs in the third round of the 2016 First-Year Player draft out of Rice University, Duplantier went 1-0 with a 0.00 ERA including 28 strikeouts against 4 walks in 4 games for the Cougars in April. He ranks among the MWL leaders in ERA (T- 1st), opponents average (2nd, .121), WHIP (2nd, 0.59) and ground out/fly out ratio (2nd, /.210).
Short Hops
Standings as of the morning of May 3, 2017. (CREDIT: KANE COUNTY COUGARS website)
It was announced this week that left-handed pitcher Cody Reed earned MWL Pitcher of the Week honors for the period of April 24-30. Reed picked up his first win of the season in his outing last week after recording 11 strikeouts and walking just one batter in six hitless innings. He currently sits at 1-0 on the season with a 1.35, good for third best on the Cougars pitching staff.
The Cougars return to town for a six-game homestand on Monday, May 8, when they host the Great Lakes Loons and Lansing Lugnuts. Homestand highlights include half-price craft and premium beer for Micro Monday plus $1 beers, sodas and hot dogs for Thirsty Thursday, presented by Miller Lite. Each game will also feature run the bases for fans of all ages. Tickets can be purchased at kccougars.com or by calling the box office at 630-232-8811.
About the Kane County Cougars
The Cougars, Class-A Minor League affiliate of the Arizona Diamondbacks, have been at the forefront of family-friendly entertainment since 1991. In 2015, the franchise became the first Class-A team in Minor League Baseball history to welcome 11 million fans through the gates. A total of 153 former Cougars have reached the Major Leagues including Miguel Cabrera, Nelson Cruz, Josh Beckett, Adrian Gonzalez and Kyle Schwarber. Follow the Cougars on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram all year long for promotional announcements.
