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Tracking former Southern Arizona & Arizona Wildcats baseball players in pros (7/13) | ALLSPORTSTUCSON.com

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Tracking former Southern Arizona & Arizona Wildcats baseball players in pros (7/13) | ALLSPORTSTUCSON.com


NOTE: This is a compilation of stats involving players from Southern Arizona and the Arizona Wildcats’ program in MLB-sanctioned leagues (MLB and minor leagues). The list does not include players in foreign leagues or independent leagues in the US.

RECENT TRANSACTIONS (LAST 14 DAYS)

Former Arizona second baseman Kobe Kato is back with a major-league organization with the Seattle Mariners after playing in the Houston Astros organization from 2021 to the early part of this season (York Revolution photo)

Friday, July 12
Kobe Kato – Assigned to ACL Mariners (Rk) (Seattle Mariners)
Kobe Kato – Signed to minor league contract (Seattle Mariners)

Wednesday, July 10
Matthew Dyer- IL-60 Injured (undisclosed) (Tampa Bay Rays)

Wednesday, July 3
Matthew Dyer- IL-7 Injured (undisclosed) (Tampa Bay Rays)

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Sunday, June 30
Tylor Megill – Assigned to Syracuse Mets (AAA) (New York Mets)

Former Arizona second baseman Kobe Kato — who was playing independent baseball for York (Pa.) of the Atlantic League of Professional Baseball Clubs — was signed Friday to a minor-league contract by the Seattle Mariners and was assigned the Mariners’ Arizona Complex League for rookies in Phoenix, it was announced today by club officials.

The Hawaii native signed with York before the start of spring training after beginning his third pro season in the Houston Astros organization at Double-A Corpus Christi. The left-handed hitter was originally a 13th-round draft pick of the Astros in 2021 following a standout career at Arizona.

Kato 25, batted .255 with seven home runs, 14 doubles, two triples, and 27 RBIs in 64 games with York this season. He ranked fourth in the league with 46 walks contributing to a .385 on-base percentage. He was also among league leaders in stolen bases, going a franchise-record 27 consecutive stolen base attempts without being caught.

He had an early-season 21-game on-base streak and he reached safely in each of his final 32 home games at WellSpan Park while batting .339 with a .497 on-base percentage on that stretch.

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Defensively, Kato posted a .974 fielding percentage in 64 starts at second base.

LOCAL BASEBALL PLAYERS IN THE PROS

Listing of local baseball players either from high school or Arizona currently playing in pro baseball.
*Barraza, Sahuarita graduate
*Romero, CDO graduate
*Salazar, Sahuaro graduate

Player Pos Sch Yrs Team Lvl Org
Nate Baez 1B IRHS 16-19 Cedar Rapids A+ MIN
Christopher Barraza P UA* 21-23 Inland Empire A LAA
Branden Boissiere 1B UA 19-21 Wilmington A+ WAS
Tony Bullard 3B UA 20-23 Beloit A+ MIA
Alex Bustamante P CDO 16-18 Tampa A NYY
Demetrio Crisantes SS Nogales 19-22 Visalia A ARI
Bobby Dalbec 1B UA 14-16 Boston AAA BOS
Chase Davis OF UA 21-23 Palm Beach A STL
Jose Dicochea P Sahuarita 16-19 Stockton A OAK
Matthew Dyer C UA 19-20 Montgomery AA TB
German Fajardo P Nogales 16-19 Modesto A SEA
Michael Flynn P UA 16-18 Oklahoma City AAA LAD
Matt Fraizer OF UA 17-19 Indianapolis AAA PIT
Kevin Ginkel P UA 16 Arizona MLB ARI
Nick Gonzales INF Cienega 14-17 Pittsburgh MLB PIT
Darick Hall 1B Buena 11-13 Lehigh Valley AAA PHI
Garrett Irvin P UA 20-22 Lansing A+ OAK
Kobe Kato 2B UA 19-21 ACL Mariners RK SEA
Scott Kingery 2B UA 13-15 Lehigh Valley AAA PHI
Randy Labaut P UA 17-19 Columbus AAA CLE
Gil Luna P UA 18-21 Birmingham AA CHW
Nik McClaughry 2B UA 20-23 Fort Wayne A+ SD
Tylor Megill P UA 17-19 NY Mets AAA NYM
Ian Mejia P Sahuarita 16-19 Mississippi AA ATL
Andrew Nardi P UA 19 Miami MLB MIA
Kevin Newman SS UA 13-15 Arizona MLB ARI
Jared Oliva OF UA 15-17 Arkansas AA SEA
Tanner O’Tremba OF UA 21-22 Eugene A+ SF
Spencer Packard OF CDO 13-16 Tacoma AAA SEA
Rob Refsnyder OF UA 10-12 Boston MLB BOS
Alfonso Rivas 1B UA 16-18 Memphis AAA STL
Kiko Romero 1B UA* 23 Hudson Valley A+ NYY
Milo Rushford CF WGHS 19-22 ACL Royals RK KC
César Salazar C UA* 16-18 Houston MLB HOU
Chase Silseth P UA 21 Salt Lake AAA LAA
Austin Smith P UA 21 Mississippi AA ATL
Kevin Stevens P Cienega 13-16 Somerset AA NYY
Cal Stevenson OF UA 17-18 Lehigh Valley AAA PHI
Daniel Susac C UA 21-22 Midland AA OAK
Alex Verdugo OF Sahuaro 11-14 NY Yankees MLB NYY
Avery Weems P UA 18-19 Frisco AA TEX
Austin Wells C UA 19-20 NY Yankees MLB NYY
Donta’ Williams OF UA 18-21 Bowie AA BAL

LOCAL BATTERS IN THE PROS

Through games of July 12
*Injuries
Boissiere (60-day/arm)
Oliva (7-day/leg)
Dyer (60-day/undisclosed)

Player Team Lvl G AB R H 2B 3B HR RBI SB AVG
Baez MIN A+ 51 166 28 42 5 2 10 24 0 .253
*Boissiere WAS A+ 33 112 11 24 4 0 2 15 0 .214
Bullard MIA A+ 27 88 8 26 6 0 1 11 3 .295
Crisantes ARI A 21 84 20 35 5 0 3 15 6 .417
Dalbec BOS AAA 41 162 28 42 8 0 11 37 5 .259
Davis STL A 66 231 33 51 17 0 7 41 5 .221
*Dyer TB AA 39 118 17 25 6 2 1 9 5 .212
Fraizer PIT AAA 37 118 18 31 9 1 2 17 4 .263
Gonzales PIT MLB 55 206 25 56 12 1 5 33 3 .272
Hall PHI AAA 66 257 28 63 8 0 9 42 1 .245
Kato SEA RK
Kingery PHI AAA 75 266 44 67 8 2 17 45 15 .251
McClaughry SD A+ 55 165 20 28 9 2 0 10 4 .170
Newman ARI MLB 68 191 28 54 13 1 2 21 3 .283
O’Tremba SF A+ 52 170 32 35 8 1 4 24 10 .206
*Oliva SEA AA 42 113 23 24 3 0 5 15 18 .212
Packard SEA AAA 19 71 13 24 7 0 2 13 0 .338
Refsnyder BOS MLB 54 157 19 48 12 1 4 21 1 .303
Rivas STL AAA 57 190 29 43 11 2 1 20 0 .226
Romero NYY A+ 45 139 18 31 8 0 5 16 5 .223
Rushford KC RK 10 34 5 6 0 2 0 1 2 .176
Salazar HOU MLB 9 22 5 7 2 0 0 8 0 .318
Stevenson PHI AAA 76 233 47 70 18 4 5 32 22 .300
Susac OAK AA 53 207 27 62 14 1 6 28 5 .300
Verdugo NYY MLB 92 348 42 83 19 1 10 45 1 .239
Wells NYY MLB 59 160 23 35 9 0 5 17 1 .219
Williams BAL AA 38 109 9 19 7 0 0 5 9 .174

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FRIDAY’S HOME RUN

C Nate Baez (Ironwood Ridge), Twins A+, solo HR (10th HR at Single-A+ and overall this season)

FRIDAY’S STANDOUTS

1B Bobby Dalbec (Arizona), Red Sox AAA, 2-4, 3 RBIs, stolen base

RF-CF Matt Fraizer (Arizona), Pirates AAA, 2-3, run, double, RBI

1B Darick Hall (Buena), Phillies AAA, 2-3, RBI

CF-RF Cal Stevenson (Arizona), Phillies AAA, 2-4

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C Daniel Susac (Arizona), Athletics AA, 2-4, run, double

C Nate Baez (Ironwood Ridge), Twins A+, 1-3, run, HR, RBI

3B Tony Bullard (Arizona), Marlins A+, 1-1, run, RBI

2B Nick Gonzales (Cienega), Pirates MLB, 1-4, run, double, RBI

2B Scott Kingery (Arizona), Phillies AAA, 1-4, 2 stolen bases

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SS-3B Kevin Newman (Arizona), Diamondbacks MLB, 1-3, run, double, RBI

LF-1B Spencer Packard (CDO), Mariners AAA, 1-4, run, 2 RBIs

LOCAL PITCHERS IN THE PROS

Through games of July 12
*Injuries:
Bustamante (60-day/arm)
Weems (7-day/arm)

Player Team Lvl W-L G GS SV IP H R ER BB SO ERA
Barraza LAA A 1-2 24 0 1 31 24 11 9 22 30 2.61
*Bustamante NYY A 0-0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0.00
Dicochea OAK A 1-5 13 9 0 43.1 45 32 26 19 50 5.40
Fajardo SEA A 2-1 21 0 0 42.2 31 22 15 26 53 3.16
Flynn LAD AAA 1-1 25 0 3 33.1 25 22 20 15 47 5.40
Ginkel ARI MLB 6-1 40 0 5 40 36 16 11 7 40 2.48
Irvin OAK A+ 1-2 20 0 1 23.2 26 22 18 16 29 6.85
Labaut CLE AAA 2-6 23 3 1 37.2 34 27 21 27 35 5.02
Luna CHW AA 3-1 27 0 2 28.2 19 11 7 26 32 2.20
Megill NYM AAA 1-0 4 4 0 17.2 16 6 6 8 26 3.06
Mejia ATL AA 7-1 15 15 0 76.2 58 23 22 29 85 2.40
Nardi MIA MLB 1-1 43 0 0 34.2 32 19 18 11 43 4.67
Silseth LAA AAA 0-3 4 4 0 18 29 20 19 13 10 9.50
Smith ATL AA 0-1 10 0 0 9.1 16 13 13 9 12 12.54
Stevens NYY AA 3-0 25 0 5 30 26 10 10 11 45 3.00
*Weems TEX AA 0-0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0.00

FRIDAY’S STANDOUT

LHP Gil Luna (Arizona), White Sox AA, 1 IP, 1H, 1R, 1ER, 1BB, 2K (no decision)

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ALLSPORTSTUCSON.com publisher, writer and editor Javier Morales is a former Arizona Press Club award winner. He is a former Arizona Daily Star beat reporter for the Arizona basketball team, including when the Wildcats won the 1996-97 NCAA title. He has also written articles for CollegeAD.com, Bleacher Report, Lindy’s Sports, TucsonCitizen.com, The Arizona Republic, Sporting News and Baseball America, among many other publications. He has also authored the book “The Highest Form of Living”, which is available at Amazon. He became an educator five years ago and is presently a special education teacher at Sunnyside High School in the Sunnyside Unified School District.

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Diamondbacks Fans Can Now Vote for Arizona’s All-Stars

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Diamondbacks Fans Can Now Vote for Arizona’s All-Stars


Believe it or not, the 2026 All-Star Game voting process has already begun, as of Wednesday. Fans who want to see their favorite members of the Arizona Diamondbacks take the field in the midsummer classic this season can begin voting for their stars.

There are certainly some deserving players on this Diamondbacks club, which is currently 32-28 and occupying the third Wild Card sport in the National League.

Here’s how and where you can vote for your hometown heroes:

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How to vote for Diamondbacks players to make All-Star Game

Arizona Diamondbacks batter Ketel Marte (4) rounds the bases after his 2-run home run against the Los Angeles Dodgers at Chase Field in Phoenix on June 1, 2026. | Joe Rondone/The Republic / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images
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Fans can utilize the following link to vote for members of their team on dbacks.com. Fans are permitted to fill out and submit as many as five ballots per day, selecting as many or as few players as they choose.

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This period of the fan vote constitutes Phase 1 of All-Star voting, which will run from Wednesday, June 3 through Thursday, June 25 at 9:00 a.m. Arizona time (12:00 p.m. Eastern time).

Following Phase 1, the two overall top vote-getters will receive automatic berths into the All-Star lineups. If those two are not Shohei Ohtani and Aaron Judge once again, that would be an upset.

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When and where is the 2026 All-Star Game?

Fans at Citizens Bank Park before the gates open on their NLCS game against the Arizona Diamondbacks at Citizens Bank Park in Philadelphia on Oct. 16, 2023. | Joe Rondone/The Republic / USA TODAY NETWORK

The 2026 All-Star Game will take place at Citizens Bank Park, home of the Phillies in Philadelphia. All-Star week begins on June 10, with a full slate of activities, before the game is played on Tuesday, July 14 at 8:00 p.m. Eastern time (5:00 p.m. Arizona time).

The full schedule of events are as follows:

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  • Friday, July 10: HBCU Swingman Classic
  • Saturday, July 11: 2026 MLB Draft
  • Sunday, July 12: All-Star Sunday, MLB Futures Game, MLBx All-Star 3-on-3
  • Monday, July 13: T-Mobile Home Run Derby (8:00 p.m. ET)
  • Tuesday, July 14: All-Star Red Carpet, All-Star Game

Which Diamondbacks are deserving All-Stars?

Jun 1, 2026; Phoenix, Arizona, USA; Arizona Diamondbacks third baseman Nolan Arenado celebrates with teammates after hitting a solo home run against the Los Angeles Dodgers in the seventh inning at Chase Field. Mandatory Credit: Mark J. Rebilas-Imagn Images
| Mark J. Rebilas-Imagn Images

So, who should Diamondbacks fans vote for? Obviously, you may fill out the ballot however you choose. That can include a full roster of Diamondbacks, regardless of their stats or notoriety this season.

Still, here are some of the top performing D-backs who might have a leg up on an All-Star berth:

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OF Corbin Carroll

Corbin Carroll is having another All-Star worthy season. He’s hitting .289/.380/.545 with a .925 OPS and eight home runs, while playing good right field defense. He has the eighth-most bWAR (2.7) among position players, fifth-most in the National League, and third-most among all pure outfielders.

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2B Ketel Marte

If Marte wins the NL second base fan vote, it will be his third straight season starting the All-Star game. Despite such a slow start to the year, that feels possible again. Marte is hitting .259/.315/.456 with 10 homers and is playing the best defense of his career.

3B Nolan Arenado

Nolan Arenado is quietly putting together one of his better seasons of the 2020s, slashing .269/.351/.467 with eight homers and flashing his elite third base glove at nearly as good a pace as ever. His name still carries a lot of weight in third base conversations; he’ll get some votes, no matter what.

1B Ildemaro Vargas

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Vargas’ bat has cooled down quite a bit since his historic start to 2026. He’s still hitting a sturdy .290/.318/.454, but feels more likely to be considered as a reserve selection than a leading vote-getter.

Honorable Mention: LHP Eduardo Rodriguez

Pitchers are not selected by the fan vote. They are selected by player ballots and the All-Star Game managers. The National League’s manager will be Dave Roberts of the Dodgers, again.

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The National League has quite a few talented pitchers, but Eduardo Rodriguez currently holds the fifth-best starting pitcher ERA (2.24) among NL hurlers. It’s going to be difficult to dethrone Christopher Sanchez or Jacob Misiorowski, but Rodriguez could find his way into the pitching pool, especially after his WBC heroics for Team Venezuela.

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Arizona State Adds Alabama Assistant Michael White To Coaching Staff

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Arizona State Adds Alabama Assistant Michael White To Coaching Staff


Arizona State has added Michael White to its coaching staff for the upcoming 2026-2027 season. White will join the program as an assistant coach and recruiting coordinator.

“I am incredibly honored to return to my home state and join this elite program,” White said. “I’m proud to say that I am coming home. I can’t thank Coach Herbie enough for the opportunity to join his incredible staff and help these young athletes grow and develop into the best individuals they can be. There are so many friends and mentors who have left their mark on this program, and I’m excited for the opportunity to leave mine and help take this program to new heights. Go Devils!” 

White arrives with the Sun Devils after most recently spending the last three seasons with Alabama as an assistant. The Alabama women finished 11th at the 2026 NCAA Championships while the men were 24th.

Prior to arriving at Alabama, White spent the 2022-2023 season as a volunteer assistant at Wisconsin. He primarily coached the freestyle, breaststroke and distance groups for the Badgers. In addition to coaching the Badgers, he also was an assistant senior coach with the Madison Aquatics Club for the year. He began his coaching career at Juniata College in Pennsylvania as a volunteer assistant from 2019-2021. 

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White spent his collegiate career at St. Bonaventure in New York. There he was a 7x individual Atlantic-10 champion and swam to three school records as a senior with a 1:47.30 200 IM, 3:52.18 400 IM, and a 1:47.70 200 fly. He also was team captain for two season and helped the team capture the 2014 A-10 team title.

The Scottsdale, Arizona native will return to his home state. He was a 2012 AIA Division I state champion in the 100 breast and 200 IM as a senior for Dobson High School.

White joins the coaching staff led by head coach Herbie Behm, who is already known to be an innovative coach. Behm spoke of White’s innovation as well saying, “Mike is one of the best young coaches in the NCAA. His interview blew me away with the innovative ideas he presented. I can’t wait to start implementing those ideas and continue our growth at ASU.”

Arizona State swept the 2026 Big 12 team titles, and the men went on to finish 4th at 2026 NCAAs while the women were 37th. Rising senior Ilya Kharun captured the NCAA title in the 200 fly with a 1:37.66.





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Racial equality in education: Arizona ranked 18th – KTAR.com

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Racial equality in education: Arizona ranked 18th – KTAR.com


Arizona is ranked 18th in the nation when it comes to racial equality in the classroom, according to WalletHub.

The personal finance website compiled its 2026 list of Best States for Racial Equality in Education by looking at differences between Black and white students when it comes to test scores, college attainment and high school graduation rates.

The rankings are based on a weighted average of six metrics, but did WalletHub not provide a breakdown of each category.

However, statistics from the Center for the Future of Arizona support the idea that Arizona has work to do when it comes to racial equality. African American students in Arizona have an average college attainment rate of 38%, while white students have an average rate of 54%.

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That difference is also evident in other education areas, with a gap of 11 percentage points between Black and white high schoolers in graduation rate.

WalletHub analyst Chip Lupo called the high school graduation rate the most “alarming” data set for the Arizona. He said if the study included the state’s large Hispanic population, the results might have been different.

“It would be interesting, if those numbers were included, where the gaps would be. Again, Arizona has a high Hispanic population, as [does] New Mexico, and New Mexico was at number three. So maybe Arizona could take a look at what their neighbors are doing there to kind of bridge those gaps,” he said.

How can Arizona increase racial equality in the classroom?

Lupo said Arizona can boost its ranking and improve racial equality in schools by increasing the representation and funding for public education.

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“One thing [to] do is to build more diversity within the school system. More Black administrators and more Black teachers kind of create more of a familiarity for Black students and more mentors. … Increased funding and a more concerted effort to increase diversity among the school systems, I think, would go a long way in bridging that gap,” he said.

WalletHub ranked Wyoming, West Virginia and New Mexico as the best states for racial equality in the classroom, with New Jersey, Connecticut and Wisconsin at the bottom of the list.

Funding for this journalism is made possible by the Arizona Local News Foundation.

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