Miners add 3 to roster

PALMER — The Mat-Su Miners have added three players to the 2017 roster.

Southeastern Louisiana pitchers Josh Green and Payton Robinson, and Chandler-Gilbert infielder Rainer Ausmus are now with the team.

Green, a junior, is a 6-foot-3 righthander from Baton Rouge, Louisiana. Robinson is a 6-2 sophomore lefty from Mobile, Alabama.

“They became available to us, and we took advantage of bringing two great kids up here,” Taylor said of the pitchers who helped Southeastern Louisiana reach the NCAA postseason.

Green and Robinson have both made starts for the Miners. Green pitched four innings during a 4-3 loss to Chugiak-Eagle River on Thursday. He allowed two hits and fanned five in the no decision. Robinson earned a win in his first start, an 11-1 victory over the Peninsula Oilers June 11 in Kenai. He scattered seven hits over six innings.

Ausmus is a 6-2 right-handed bat from Klein, Texas. Ausmus was among the top hitters for a Chandler-Gilbert program in which Taylor serves as the associate head coach. Ausmus batted a team-best .381 and led the squad with 15 doubles and 55 RBI.

“He’s an all-around guy,” Taylor said of Ausmus, a middle-of-the-lineup hitter who has committed to Kansas State.

After an off night on Friday, Mat-Su (7-2), returns to the field to play the Anchorage Bucs Saturday at 6 p.m. in Anchorage.

Contact Mat-Su Valley Frontiersman sports editor Jeremiah Bartz at sports@frontiersman.com.