Wild Things’ Harris, Dorminy win FL’s top awards
Holly Tonini/Observer-Reporter
Holly Tonini/Observer-Reporter
Washington center fielder James Harris, right, was the Frontier League’s Most Valuable Player last season. he has been traded by the Wild Things to Winnipeg of the American Association.
Celeste Van Kirk/Observer-Reporter
Washington’s Thomas Dorminy is hoping to lead the Wild Things to a Frontier League title. He will start Game 1 against Joliet tonight.
For the first time in its 17-year history, the Washington Wild Things have both the Frontier League’s Most Valuable Player and its Pitcher of the Year.
Washington center fielder James Harris, who leads the league in four offensive categories and is among the leaders in almost all others, was named the Most Valuable Player when the league announced its end-of-season awards Thursday. Harris will receive the Morgan Burkhart Award.
Lefthander Thomas Dorminy, who leads the league with a 2.14 ERA, was named the Pitcher of the Year and will receive the Brian Tollberg Award.
Harris and Dorminy are the only Wild Things on the all-league team. Joliet’s Jeff Isom was named Manager of the Year and Lake Erie second baseman Aaron Hill the Rookie of the Year. Ben Moore, a catcher for Southern Illinois, was named the recipient of the Citizen of the Year (Fran Riordan Award) and Lake Erie’s Emmanuel Quiles was named the Coach of the Year.
Harris, a former first-round draft pick of the Tampa Bay Rays, is in his second year with Washington. He entered Thursday leading the league in runs (74), extra-base hits (46), total bases (200) and triples (8). He is second in the league with 114 hits and 26 stolen bases.
A native of Oakland, Calif., Harris is batting .308 with 16 home runs and 64 RBI as the Wild Things’ leadoff hitter.
He is the second Washington player to win the MVP award. The first was Josh Loggins, a catcher-outfielder, in 2003.
“We stated back in the offseason that we felt James was the most impactful addition to our 2017 roster. This season was his platform to show his ability to dominate,” said assistant general manager of baseball operations Tony Buccilli. “He certainly embraced the challenge of being a leader in Washington and his production has been so consistent. We are extremely proud to have James take home the League MVP award and grateful to have him as part of our Wild Things family.”
Dorminy, who is from Spring Hill, Fla., has been the ace of the Wild Things’ pitching staff. He has a 9-4 record and is second in the league 131 1/3 innings pitched and third with 108 strikeouts. Opponents are batting only .222 against Dorminy, a former 10th-round draft pick who spent four seasons in the San Diego Padres’ farm system before signing with the Wild Things last offseason.
Dorminy is the third Washington player to be named Pitcher of the Year, joining Aaron Ledbetter (2007) and Jared Howton (2002).
“Dorminy was brought in to show he could be an ace. He asked for a platform to compete and an opportunity to win games,” Buccilli said. “We appreciate how much he invests to his starts and his demeanor to simply hunt wins. This has been a very special year for him. He deserves this honor, posting one of the best pitching campaigns in Wild Things history.”
The Wild Things became the first Frontier League team to clinch a playoff berth when they defeated Schaumburg Wednesday night.
Only three players from the East Division were named to the all-league team. Joining Harris and Dorminy was Schaumburg second baseman Jack Parenty.
The Normal CornBelters had the most selections with four. They were first baseman Chris Iriart, shortstop Santiago Chirino, outfielders Derrick Loveless and Andrew Godbold. River City had two selections in designated hitter Paul Kronenfeld and relief pitcher Cody Mincey. Third baseman Ryan Long was named from Evansville along with Florence catcher Skyler Ewing.
The Frontier League’s regular season ends Sunday with the best-of-5 first round starting Tuesday. Games 1 and 2 will be at the home of the two wild-card teams while the two division champions will host Games 3, 4 and 5 Sept. 7-9.