ABL adds all-star game, home run derby

PALMER — Alaska Baseball League fans having something extra to cheer about this weekend.

The league has added an all-star game and home run derby, which is scheduled for Sunday at Mulcahy Stadium in Anchorage.

“It’s something for the fans. Everybody will have fun with it,” Mat-Su Miners general manager Pete Christopher said of the events, which are slated to start at 2 p.m., Sunday.

The new events follow the league’s annual ABL Major League Baseball Showcase, which starts today at continues through Saturday at Mulcahy. The Showcase was designed to give MLB scouts AN opportunity to see all of the league’s teams in one venue over a single weekend. The all-star game and home run derby are now an added bonus for the long weekend.

Christopher said league general managers have tossed around the idea of creating an all-star game for years. Three or four years ago, Christopher and Anchorage Glacier Pilots general manager Jon Dyson began to put together a plan. Dyson worked this year to organize the event.

The home run derby, which will feature a minimum of two players from each of the five ABL teams, will start at 2 p.m. There will be a total of 14 hitters in the contest. The top four players with the most home runs in ABL action as of Friday are automatically entered. The remainder of the field will be chosen during a coaches meeting tonight.

The derby, patterned after MLB’s famous home run hitting contest, will give all 14 hitters 10 outs to hit as many dingers as possible. The top four hitters from the first round will advance to the semifinals, and the top two will compete in the finals.

Each hitter will choose a member of his coaching staff to be his pitcher for the derby.

A pair of all-star teams will also be chosen during the coaches meeting in Anchorage tonight. The teams will be selected by league coaches and general managers. Each ABL team will have at least four representatives in the game.

Each all-star team will consist of 20 players, 10 pitchers and 10 position players. No ABL team may have more than 10 all-stars, according to league rules.

See the Sunday edition of the Mat-Su Valley Frontiersman for the all-star rosters and home run derby field.

The Miners begin Showcase play today at 7 p.m. against the Anchorage Glacier Pilots. Mat-Su meets the Anchorage Bucs Saturday at 7 p.m.

Contact Mat-Su Valley Frontiersman sports editor Jeremiah Bartz at sports@frontiersman.com and follow him on Twitter at twitter.com/matsu_sports.