Mat-Su skipper named coach of the year for second time

PALMER — Russell Raley is 2-for-2 in the Alaska Baseball League.

After leading the Mat-Su Miners to their second straight ABL title, Raley has been named the league’s coach of the year for the second time in as many seasons.

Mat-Su general manager Pete Christopher said Raley wanted his two assistants, Craig Ringe and Michael Hunt, to be honored as well.

“We wanted those two guys recognized for what they did,” Christopher said.

Raley, an assistant coach at the University of Oklahoma, was a late arrival to the Miners this summer. Oklahoma advanced to the College World Series, delaying Raley’s start with the Miners until late June.

Ringe and Hunt handled the coaching duties for nearly a month, with Ringe serving as the interim skipper. Ringe made such an impression on voters — league coaches and radio broadcasters — that he earned four votes for the coach of the year honor. Christopher said Raley’s ability to come in late and not disrupt the balance of a first-place team was key.

“Russell came into a tough situation,” Christopher said. “The team was playing well under Ringe and Hunt and he didn’t want to upset the apple cart.”

Raley continued what Ringe and Hunt established, and the Miners went on to win their fourth ABL title since 2004.

“He didn’t try to come in and say you’re going to do it my way,” Christopher said.

Miners hand

out team awards

Raley is not the only Miner to receive recent honors. A half-dozen Miners have received team awards.

Shortstop Bret Schwartz was named the team’s player of the year. Schwartz, who led the league in batting average (.420) and hits (66), was also named the ABL MVP in late July.

Outfielder Pablo Bermudez was named the team’s top position player after finishing third in the league with a .351 batting average and third on the team with 25 RBI.

Joe Bircher and Geoffrey Davenport each garnered most valuable pitcher honors. Bircher led the league with a 1.29 earned run average, and also led the team in wins (7), strikeouts (34) and innings pitched (49).

Davenport was 1-0 with a 1.49 era in 36 1/3 innings. He also fanned 32 hitters while walking only eight.

Catcher Wes Thigpen earned the Stan Zaborac Award, given to the player who demonstrates team leadership and spirit. Outfielder and relief pitcher Andy Mee was given the Mike Kelly Award, an honor given to a player who shows outstanding versatility and competitiveness.

Miner leads new team

Bermudez, who was picked up by the Peninsula Oilers following the 2010 ABL season, led the Oilers in hitting during their five games at the National Baseball Congress World Series in Wichita, Kan.

Bermudez collected a team-high six hits and finished with a .375 average. He also drove in two runs.

The Oilers were knocked out of the double elimination tourney with a 5-3 loss to the Sedalia (Mo.) Bombers on Sunday.

Another Miner, pitcher Matt Applegate, pitched in two innings. He allowed two hits and an earned run and fanned one.

The top team in the ABL earns the right to compete at the NBC World Series. The Miners decided before the season, regardless of finish, the team would not make the trip to Wichita due to the cost. The Oilers were the ABL’s lone representative.

Contact Frontiersman sports editor Jeremiah Bartz at sports@frontiersman.com.