CAMBRIDGE, Mass.-- Several current and former baseball players from America East member schools will be making appearances in various all-star games this week, including former Stony Brook University standout Joe Nathan and Northeastern University alum Carlos Pena who were both chosen to represent the American League in Major League Baseball's All-Star Game. The All-Star Game will be televised tonight on Fox beginning at 8 p.m. from Busch Stadium, home of the St. Louis Cardinals.
Current America East players, outfielder Corey Taylor of Binghamton and outfielder/designated hitter Ian Leisenheimer of Maine, will represent the Cal Ripken, Sr. League in the Mid-Atlantic Classic on Wednesday against the all-stars from the Valley Baseball League. Taylor, who will also participate in the Home Run Derby preceding the all-star game, and Leisenheimer can be seen live on the MASN Network from the Regency Furniture Stadium in Waldorf, Md.
On Saturday, two more players will play in the New England Collegiate Baseball League All-Star Game at MacKenzie Stadium in Holyoke, Mass. University of Vermont's Mark Micowski, who plays with the Sanford Mainers, will represent the East Division, while Binghamton's Henry Dunn, a member of the Vermont Moutaineers, will take the field for the West Division. Both Micowski and Dunn are starters in the outfield for their respective teams.
Nathan, a relief pitcher for the Minnesota Twins, is appearing in his fourth all-star game. He ranks tied for second in the American League with 23 saves in 25 saves opportunities and currently owns a 1.31 earned run average. At Stony Brook, Nathan was a two-time Academic All-American and he was the first former Seawolf to have his number retired in 2006.
Pena, who played with former league member Northeastern from 1996-98, is making his first all-star game appearance and also participated in Monday night's Home Run Derby where he forced a bat-off with Albert Pujols and Joe Mauer in the first round. The first baseman for the Tampa Bay Rays leads the American League with 24 home runs, while accumulating 58 runs batted in and hitting at a .228 clip through the first half of the 2009 season.
Playing for the Herndon Braves, Taylor leads the Cal Ripken, Sr. League in home runs (6), triples (3) and slugging percentage (.643) and was named the league's player of the week for June 22-June 28. During that period, he hit a home run in a league-record four straight games. Taylor, a member of the 2009 America East First Team, is hitting for a .352 average and is 6-for-6 in stolen base attempts this summer.
Leisenheimer, a Louisville Slugger Freshman All-American, is batting .267 for the Rockville Express and has started 21 of 31 games. He's tied for first on the team with five doubles and is slugging .373.
Micowski leads the NECBL in runs scored (24) and triples (6), and is tied for third in hits (34) through 26 games. As a sophomore in 2009, he was named to the America East Second Team as an outfielder.
Dunn, also an outfielder, owns similar stats to Micowski, ranking fifth in runs scored (20), tied for first in hits (35) and tied for third in doubles (9). He's also stolen 12 bases, ranked third in the NECBL.