Blazek Assigned to Arizona Fall League

Blazek Assigned to Arizona Fall League

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Courtesy of Vermont Athletic Communications

BURLINGTON, Vt. -- Former University of Vermont baseball standout Chris Blazek '06, a member of the Houston Astros organization, has been assigned to pitch in the prestigious Arizona Fall League that opened play this week. Blazek's stint in the AFL, the top fall showcase for Major League Baseball prospects, wraps up a solid season for four former Catamounts in professional baseball.

In addition to Blazek, who was a midseason Texas League (AA) All-Star for the Corpus Christi Hooks, Derek Miller '05 pitched at the Double A level for the Huntsville Stars, Milwaukee's Southern League affiliate; Bryan Rembisz '07 pitched for the Rancho Cucamonga Quakes, the Angels' affiliate in the Advanced A California League, and infielder Miguel Magrass '08 was one of the top power hitters for the Midwest Sliders in the independent Frontier League.

Blazek is a left-handed reliever for the Scottsdale Scorpions in the AFL. Now in its 17th season, the Arizona Fall League has developed into the destination of choice for big league teams to send their most promising and Major League-ready prospects, both on the field and in the dugouts. Among Blazek's teammates on the Scorpions are pitcher Clay Buchholz (Boston), second baseman Emmanuel Burriss (San Francisco) and infielder Kevin Frandsen (San Francisco), three players who spent a good portion of the 2008 season in the Major Leagues.

Blazek is the first former Catamount to play in the AFL and he is the lowest draft pick among the seven Houston prospects assigned to Scottsdale. He was taken in the 23rd round of the 2005 June Draft by the Astros after earning America East All-Conference First Team honors in the spring.

A lefthander in his first season at the Double A level, Blazek pitched in relief in 47 games for the Hooks, tying for the team lead in appearances. He was 4-4 with two saves and had a 4.52 earned run average while striking out 84 hitters and walking just 28 in 69.2 innings. One of the league's top middle relievers, the Litchfield, Conn.-native earned a spot in the Texas League All-Star Game in June.

Miller split the 2008 season between Huntsville and the Brevard County Manatees of the Advanced Class A Florida State League. Also a lefthanded pitcher, he made 16 starts for the Stars recording a 6-2 record with a 4.66 ERA walking only 38 hitters in 73.1 innings before an injury at midseason. A native of Pelham, N.H. who was a 47th round draft choice of the Brewers in 2004, he finished the campaign at Brevard County on a rehab assignment with four strong appearances striking out 10 and walking only four in 12.1 innings.

A native of Clinton, Conn., Rembisz began the summer pitching for the Traverse City (Mich.) Beach Bums of the independent Frontier League before being signed by the Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim organization on June 27. He was one of the more durable relievers for Rancho Cucamonga in the second half of the season pitching in 21 games going 1-1 with two saves and a 3.44 ERA. He walked just five batters and struck out 26 in 36.2 innings holding opponents to a .245 average as the Quakes' run for the final California League playoff spot fell one game short.

After an excellent spring season helping lead the Catamounts to a spot in the America East Baseball Championship for the third time in his four seasons, Magrass signed with the Midwest Sliders on June 3. In 82 games for the Sliders, he hit .252 with 11 doubles, 11 homers and 41 runs batted in. Hitting in the middle of the order, the native of West Roxbury, Mass. was second on the team in home runs and runs scored (48), and third in RBI. Based out of Waterford, Mich., a suburb of Detroit, the Sliders played the entire 2008 season on the road while awaiting construction of a new ballpark.

Vermont has had 10 former players reach the major leagues, the last being Kirk McCaskill '83 who pitched for the Angels and White Sox in his 11-year career from 1985 to 1995. Click here for more information on the Catamounts active in professional baseball as well as all of UVM's former big leaguers.