Peña and Bolts Coaches added to All-Star Roster

CRESTWOOD, IL – The Frontier League has announced the coaching staff and additional player selections for next week’s All-Star Game and the Windy City ThunderBolts are once again well-represented. Manager Tom Carcione and pitching coach Tino Novis have been added to the Midwest Conference coaching staff and outfielder Carlos Peña has been added as a reserve all-star.

Peña’s selection brings the total number of ThunderBolts players on the roster up to five, the Bolts’ most all-stars since 2023. In 47 games this year, the second-year outfielder out of Indiana State University has hit .301 with a team-leading ten home runs. He also leads the team with a .566 slugging percentage and has driven in 37 runs.

Carcione will serve as an assistant coach on the staff that is led by Toby Hall, who served as Windy City’s interim manager last year and is now the manager of the Florence Y’alls, who are hosting this year’s All-Star Game. Carcione is in his first year with the ThunderBolts and has guided the team into first place at the season’s midpoint. Under Carcione, the Bolts had their first winning record through 50 games since 2017 and are in first place at their latest point in any season since 2012.

Novis is also in his first year with the ThunderBolts. The southern California native spent last year on the staff of the Ottawa Titans. Now, in his first season as a Frontier League pitching coach, he has kept the ThunderBolts in the top half of the Frontier League in team ERA throughout the first half. Entering the final weekend before the all-star break, the Bolts were nearly a half run lower than the league average.

The Frontier League All-Star Game will be played at the Florence Y’alls’ Thomas More Stadium on Wednesday, July 15, with the league’s Home Run Derby scheduled for July 14. Tickets and more information on the festivities are available at florenceyalls.com.