The Windy City ThunderBolts professional baseball team, 2007 Frontier League champions, have announced the signing of catcher Ben Barrone to a contract for the 2008 season. Barrone was the NCAA Division II Player of the Year while playing for Winona State University last spring.
Barrone led all D-II hitters with 27 home runs and a 1.089 batting average in 2007, to go along with a .449 batting average (sixth in the country) and 64 RBI (third in the country). In 2006, he finished with a .372 batting average, 16 home runs (fifth in the country), and 46 RBI (46th in the country). He led the Warriors to a second place finish in the Northern Sun Intercollegiate Conference last season and a berth in the NCAA Tournament.
Barrone was a 44th round draft pick by the Oakland Athletics in 2007. He appeared in 25 games for their Arizona Rookie League affiliate, finishing with a .244 batting average, three home runs, and 18 RBI.
“Barrone will have a huge impact on our team this season,” commented ThunderBolts’ field manager Brian Nelson. “He put up tremendous numbers in his two seasons at Winona State and will be a major force in the middle of our lineup.”
