Reklaitis, Walker, Kunz Win Major WSL Awards
Posted: September 23, 2022
The Wisconsin State League this week released the major award winners from the 2022 season, and the A’s collected plenty of hardware.
Jared Reklaitis was voted the Most Valuable Pitcher, Gus Walker the Rookie of the Year, and Blake Kunz the Rookie Pitcher of the Year.
League MVP honors went to Logan Rademan of West Allis, with his Manager Steve Elliott winning Manager of the Year.
Reklaitis was nearly perfect on the mound all summer long to win the Most Valuable Pitcher award. The UW-Milwaukee alum pitched 40.2 innings for the A’s, where he went 5-1 with a 0.89 ERA, giving up just four earned runs all season while striking out 64. DJ Hess (West Allis) finished second in Most Valuable Pitcher voting.
Walker (Marian University) appeared in all 30 Wisconsin State League games for the A’s, hitting .317 in his debut campaign to bring home Rookie Player of the Year honors. Walker scored 21 runs in the lead-off spot and stole nine bases. He beat out Elijah Frank (Greater Green Bay) and Harry Fandre (Addison) for the honor.
Kunz (South Dakota State University) is the third A to win an award as the hard-throwing righty won the Rookie Pitcher of the Year award. Kunz went 2-2 with one save in nine games for the A’s, pitching 33.1 innings and striking out 63 as he finished the year with a 2.16 ERA in WSL action. Piranio Preston (Burlington) and Tanner Alsteen (Greater Green Bay) finished as runners-up.
The trio will be recognized at the Wisconsin State League Awards and Hall of Fame Dinner on Saturday, October 29 at Blue Harbor Resort and Conference Center in Sheboygan, WI. A cash bar reception will begin at 4:30 PM, followed by dinner at 6 PM and the awards program to follow. The cost to attend is $25 per person with reservations due by October 15. Click here to register.
The Sheboygan A's are members of the Wisconsin State League and Northeastern Wisconsin Baseball League. The A's have helped develop more than 43 players that have reached professional baseball, including 2002 World Series Champion Jarrod Washburn (Anaheim Angels). All Sheboygan A's home games are played at Wildwood Baseball Park in Sheboygan. Connect with the A's on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and YouTube.
