Two Slammers Picked for League's All-Star Game

This story was provided by the Joliet Slammers:

Abel Nieves and Amalio Diaz will participate in the 2012 Frontier League All-Star Game on Wednesday, July 11 at 7:05 p.m. in Normal.

Nieves was selected as a starter in the outfield for the West Division while Diaz was named to the pitching staff.  

Nieves, 26, has played every position for the Slammers this season except for center field, catcher and pitcher. He is currently hitting a team-leading .348 with three home runs and 19 RBI. Nieves played two years of ball at Middle Georgia College before being picked by the Angels in the 50th round of the 2004 draft.

Nieves shows good patience at the plate as evidenced by the fact his career On Base Percentage in affiliated baseball (.359) is nearly 100 points higher than his career batting average (.262). Nieves’ OBP with the Slammers this season is currently .441. He played at the Triple-A level in 2010 before spending the 2011 season playing in his native Venezuela. 

Diaz, 25, has struck out 21 batters in 17.2 innings and has nine saves to his credit. The right-hander currently sports a 2.04 ERA. Diaz signed with the Angels out of Venezuela at the age of 18. Diaz reached the Double-A level at the age of 21 and got promoted to Triple-A by the Angels in 2010. His career ERA at the Double-A level is 3.87 in 62 games.

Last year the Slammers had four Frontier League All-Stars with Oak Lawn native Erik Lis winning the All-Star Game MVP Award in Avon, Ohio. ’s other All-Stars in 2011 were Joliet native Ryan Quigley (currently in the San Diego Padres’ organization), New Lenox native Josh Flores (currently working in the “real world”) and Bobby Leeper (currently working to earn a graduate degree).