Miners named All-ABL, earn major awards

PALMER — The 2014 Alaska Baseball League season produced a handful of legitimate candidates for a few of the league’s top postseason awards. But in the mind of Mat-Su Miners head coach Ben Taylor, when it came to the league’s top pitcher, there was no debate.

Mat-Su lefthander Tyler Stubblefield has been named the 2014 ABL Pitcher of the Year and ABL Top Prospect.

“I thought for a long time, that far and away he was going to be the Top Prospect,” Taylor said by cellphone from his home in Arizona Monday afternoon.

Stubblefield was one of two Miners to net major awards and five to receive all-league honors, according to the list released by the ABL Sunday. Outfielder Cameron Newell was named ABL Player of the Year. Catcher Josh Meyer, starting pitcher Ryan Hendrix and relief pitcher Vince Arobio were named all-league.

Stubblefield, who returns to Texas A&M for his sophomore season, led the ABL in both earned run average (1.06) and wins (five). He was also third in the league with 45 strikeouts. Stubblefield allowed only five earned runs during the entire regular season. The 6-foot-5 southpaw fanned a season-best 11 hitters in a game twice, notched three complete games and one complete game shutout.

“The body is right, the velocity is right, he has a three-pitch mix, he throws a ton of strikes,” Taylor said of Stubblefield.

Beyond the attributes is Stubblefield’s drive, Taylor said, noting Stubblefield’s willingness to make a defensive play after the pitch.

“What I think is awesome about Tyler, he’s an unbelievable competitor,” Taylor said. “He makes plays.”

Taylor recalled a game in Kenai. The Oilers had the bases loaded with one out. Taylor said Stubblefield dove off the mound to grab the ball and start an inning-ending double play. In a home game against Fairbanks, Mat-Su was clinging to an 1-0 lead, late, with a Panner on first base. The Goldpanners put down a bunt. Stubblefield fielded the ball and gunned down the lead runner at second base. He went on to pitch a complete game shutout an earn a win that clinched the ABL National Division title for the Miners.

“He’s not only the guy that’ll make a great pitch to help the team win, but he’ll make a play on defense or whatever it might be,” Taylor said.

But as good as Stubblefield was, Taylor said Hendrix also established himself as one of the league’s best.

“It’s a real testament to how hard Ryan Hendrix works and how much Ryan improved,” Taylor said. “I thought Ryan was really nipping at Tyler’s heels, and that was an awesome thing. Stubblefield was the best left-handed pitcher, far and away. By the end of the season, Ryan Hendrix was the best right-handed pitcher in the league.”

Hendrix, another Texas A&M incoming sophomore, finished the season 3-1 with a 3.06 ERA. He fanned 43 batters in 44 innings. The 6-3 righty enjoyed a great July. He pitched seven innings during all four of his starts in July, and was 2-1 in that stretch. Hendrix allowed only one earned run in his final 24 innings pitched of the season, and three in his final 31 innings of the summer.

Newell, the 2014 ABL Player of the Year, spent his summer as one of the most consistent hitters in the league. At points during the season, Newell held the league lead in a number of statistical categories. The UC Santa Barbara incoming senior finished the summer third in the league in batting average (.353), second in home runs (nine), and tied for second in RBIs (38).

“He was massive. We’re talking about a guy who really got on a confidence train and never got off,” Taylor said. “The best part about Cam, and I think one of the reasons why he was the player of the year, is he was so consistent in what he did before the ball game.”

In addition to getting his workouts and pregame hitting in, Newell went as far as to ask Taylor what catcher the Miners would be facing that day.

“Why is he asking me this,” Taylor said. “Because different catchers call a different game.”

Taylor said Newell told him he wanted to know how he was going to be pitched to.

“I thought that was really professional and really astute on his part,” Taylor said of Newell.

That helped translate to success Newell started the season with a nine-game hitting streak. He also had hitting streaks of eight and five games during the 40-game season. He finished with only nine strikeouts in 116 at-bats.

Newell was also clutch. He hit three grand slams, including his first career walk-off grand slam.

Meyer, a Grand Canyon University product, entered the summer in a three-horse race battling for the starting job at catcher. Meyer not only kept hold of the starting job, but he’s also the pick for the top catcher in the league. Taylor, also a scout for the Kansas City Royals, was not shy in his belief in Meyer’s potential.

“I think of all the players on the list, all the players in the league, Josh is the sleeper to be a big leaguer,” Taylor said. “The physical is there. He’s big, strong. He receives well, throws well.”

Meyer was not only Mat-Su’s everyday catcher, but also the cleanup hitter during the final chunk of the season. He hit .294 in league play, and finished the season with eight doubles and two triples. But there’s much more to Meyer, Taylor said.

“He’s intangibles are off the chart,” Taylor said of Meyer. “He made us so good with his presence behind the plate.”

Taylor said Meyer’s rapport with the pitching staff and pitching coach Brad Baker made the Miners a better team.

Arobio, an all-league relief pitcher, finished the season with a league-high seven saves overall and league-best six in ABL play.

“Talk about a guy who was automatic,” Taylor said of Arobio. “Vince was fantastic, very steady. The best compliment, he’s very steady, very consistent.”

Arobio, also 2-1, finished with 11 strikeouts and a 2.74 ERA in 23 innings. Taylor said Arobio works so fast, he didn’t have to strike batters out. Arobio (who hovers around 92 to 93 mph with his fastball, and topped out at 97) forces many hitters to make contact early in the count. It often led to easy ground ball outs for the Miners, Taylor said.

Overall, Taylor said he’s happy with the recognition his players received. It’s the second straight year two Miners have netted two of the top awards. Last season, former Mat-Su outfielder Christin Stewart was named ABL Player of the Year and former shortstop A.J. Simcox earned ABL Silver Slugger honors.

Taylor said he’d like to have seen outfielder Cameron Frost recognized. Shortstop Paul Panaccione was also a notable omission.

Frost hit .327 for the Miners. He finished with 49 hits. Of that total, 24 were for extra bases. Frost had 12 doubles, a league-high seven triples and five home runs. He was one of three Miners to hit a grand slam in 2014.

Panaccione led all ABL shortstops in putouts and assists in league play. The 5-10 right-hander also hit .290, scored 31 runs and stole nine bases as Mat-Su’s leadoff hitter.

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

All-Alaska Baseball League

ABL Player of the Year: Cameron Newell, Miners

ABL Pitcher of the Year: Tyler Stubblefield, Miners

ABL Top Prospect: Tyler Stubblefield, Miners

ABL Silver Slugger: Jacob Hayes, Panners

ABL Gold Glove: Mylz Jones, Oilers

ABL Coach of the Year: Mike Grahovac, Panners

All-ABL:

Catcher — Josh Meyer, Miners; Designated hitter — Vahn Bozoian, Panners; First base — Mark Krueger, Bucs; Second base — Clayton Taylor, Pilots; Third base — Kevin Viers, Pilots; Shortstop — Cody Nulph, Panners; Outfield — Andy Crowley, Bucs; Jacob Hayes, Panners; Scott Hurst, Panners; Starting pitcher — Trevor Lacosse, Bucs; Henri Faucheux, Pilots; Mike Benson, Panners; Ryan Hendrix, Miners; Tyler Stubblefield, Miners; Relief pitchers — Devon Stewart, Bucs; Cameron Pongs, Pilots; Miles Chambers, Panners; Vince Arobio, Miners; Chad Rieser, Oilers; Utility player — Grant Palmer, Bucs.