Craig Massoni gets a hit during a recent game with the Southern Illinois Miners. | www.southernillinoisminers.com
Craig Massoni gets a hit during a recent game with the Southern Illinois Miners. | www.southernillinoisminers.com
The Southern Illinois Miners can see the silver lining.
Jason Guerette, the media relations contact for the Miners, told the South East Illinois News that despite the team's 25-38 record this season, there have been a number of positives.
For example, they pulled off an impressive win over the Schaumburg Boomers, the top-ranked team in the Frontier League, and recently recorded their 600th franchise victory.
“It’s been a challenging season on the field,” Guerette said. “But the team is still in good spirits and things off the field are good. It’s been a pretty successful summer overall.”
Against the Boomers, the Miners jumped out to an early lead and fought off several comeback attempts to claim a 6-5 victory.
“ We played a very close ball game that lasted three and a half hours,” Guerette said. “It really felt like a playoff game, and we were able to beat the first-place team in Schaumburg. That was a big highlight of the season for us.”
In June, Southern Illinois swept the Normal CornBelters, including one game in which the Miners put up 15 runs in one inning on their way to a 21-4 victory.
The Miners also saw two of their players selected for the Frontier League All-Star game in early July: closer John Werner and infielder Craig Massey. Massey currently has a .292 batting average and 26 RBIs, while Werner has 13 saves on the season.
“We’ve also had a few newcomers do well this season,” Guerette said. “In particular, London Lindley, our centerfielder, has had a real good year. We just picked up a rookie named Romeo Cortina, and he is on a roll.”
Cortina has racked up 14 hits, two home runs and 10 RBIs in 12 games for the Miners this year, and at the time of publication had a .304 batting average. Lindley had a .294 batting average, and has tallied 53 hits, six doubles and 19 stolen bases on the year.
The Miners have some big games toward the end of the season, including several against rivals. They will also host a second-annual Stand Up for Blue Night, a law enforcement appreciation night. That game, scheduled for early August, has a lot of word-of-mouth after a good turnout last year, Guerette said.
The Miners schedule and tickets are available at www.southernillinoisminers.com.
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