The Windy City ThunderBolts of the Frontier League have announced the signing of former 8th round draft pick by the Chicago White Sox, Kent Gerst. Gerst is a huge addition to the outfield, as he will likely handle the centerfield duties for much of the 2010 season.
Kent Gerst is a left-handed outfielder from O’Fallon, MO, home of the ThunderBolts’ rival, the River City Rascals. Although Kent is only 22 years old, he brings an abundance of affiliated baseball experience to the ThunderBolts organization. He began his professional career in 2006 with the Bristol White Sox of the rookie class, Appalachian League. In his two years spent there, he batted .258, with 31 RBI and 21 stolen bases.
Gerst had his best year in the White Sox minor league system in 2008 for the Great Falls Voyagers. He had a .275 batting average, with 19 extra base hits and 26 RBI. He also had an on base percentage of .361, and stole 15 bases. Last year, he spent the majority of the year with the Advanced A ball club in Winston-Salem. He played in 49 games, and had a batting average of .239 with 16 RBI. The highest level Gerst reached was Triple A, which occurred last season with the Charlotte Knights. He only played in 8 games, and batted .148 with 1 homer.
Kent Gerst is known for his speed and ability to steal bases. He is a perfect match for the Windy City ThunderBolts because, for two of the last three seasons, the ThunderBolts led the Frontier league in the stolen base department. Also, in the six year history of the ballclub, there was only one year the team was not first or second in steals. Gerst brings 234 games of affiliated experience to Crestwood, and he will look to tear up the base paths this summer.
The ThunderBolts home opener is scheduled for Thursday, May 20th at Standard Bank Stadium in Crestwood, Illinois at 7:05 p.m. against the Kalamazoo Kings. Individual game tickets will go on sale at 10:00 a.m. on Saturday, May 1st. For more information, call the ThunderBolts box office at 708-489-2255 or visit us on the web at
www.wcthunderbolts.com.
