Nine Selected to Represent Foresters at All-Star Game

Amid a dominant regular season campaign, the Foresters sit atop the CCL South at 17-3. In the midst of it, Santa Barbara will celebrate Independence Day in Reno at the CCL All-Star Game. Nine ‘Sters were selected, the most of any team in the league.

Zane Becker, Catcher

Becker is in his second season with the Foresters, providing a valuable veteran presence behind the dish. He plays his college ball at Texas A&M and has been a force defensively for Santa Barbara. He has a .980 fielding percentage on the year while catching 46.7% of runners stealing on him. On the offensive side of the ball, he’s slashing .242/.405/.394 with two doubles, a homerun, and six RBIs.

Carter Rutenbar, Catcher

Rutenbar has been excellent for Santa Barbara this summer, continuing on the monster freshman season he had at Arkansas. As a true freshman, he appeared in 51 games, hitting .286 with an OPS over .800. In the 12 games he’s played as a Forester, it has been more of the same. While he maintains that same .286 average, his OPS is well above .850, adding two doubles, a triple, and 11 walks.

Chris Newstrom, Infield

After two years with the Tennessee Volunteers, Newstrom has recently committed to playing locally at UC Santa Barbara. He has been a middle-of-the-order threat for Bill Pintard all season, spotting up at multiple infield positions. In his 10 games, he has only failed to record a hit once, having 13 total while slashing .361/.425/.417 with four stolen bases.

Kurt Ippolito, Outfield

Ippolito has done it all for Santa Barbara this summer, following up two seasons at Central Christian. He has recorded multi-hit games nine times, bringing his average to a ridiculous .407. His OPS sits above 1.000 from his five extra-base hits. He has also stolen six bases and added nine RBIs while failing to commit an error in 31 chances.

Caleb Hoover, DH/RHP

Another returning Forester, Hoover is taking his talents to Nebraska as a two-way threat after spending last season with South Carolina. He is a huge power threat for Santa Barbara, hitting .500 with an OPS over 1.300 thanks to two home runs and 11 RBIs. On the mound, he has thrown in six innings, striking out eight, all while not giving up a single earned run.

Luke Cornelison, RHP

After appearing in four games for Arkansas in his freshman season, Cornelison has been virtually unhitable in Santa Barbara. He has struck out 17 hitters in just nine innings of work, pitching to a WHIP barely over 1.00. He has also added value at the plate for the Foresters, driving in four with a triple.

Grady Westphal, RHP

Westphal comes to Santa Barbara after redshirting his freshman year at Texas. He has been carving up CCL opponents so far, helped by his league-topping spin rate at almost 3500 RPMs. In his seven innings on the bump, he has 15 strikeouts while only giving up six hits, pitching to a 3.86 ERA.

Jack Fowler, LHP

Fowler spent his freshman season at Pepperdine, featuring in 38 innings as a long reliever, striking out 33. As a Forester, he has garnered the nickname “Ohtani” from his teammates. While he is still looking for his first at-bat, he has started in four games, pitching to a mere 2.30 ERA. He has thrown 15.2 innings, striking out 15 with only eight hits against 63 batters.

Kaleb Rogers, RHP

Rogers only appeared in two games his freshman year at Texas, yet both were against high-quality opponents in Missouri and Arkansas. After only recently arriving in Santa Barbara, he was overpowering in his first Forester appearance, topping out at 95 mph while striking out three over his two innings.