Written by Jay D Haughton – Jul 11 2023
A combined six Moose Jaw Miller Express players and two coaches have been named to the Western Canadian Baseball League’s East Division All-Star team for this weekend’s All-Star game in Okotoks, Atla.
Dawson and Wyatt Tweet, along with Austin Gurney, and Dougie Delacruz get the nod for position players, while Haldon Craig and Brayan Villar will join the east division’s best on the mound.
Moose Jaw’s head coach Eric Marriott will be the bench boss for the east division roster, while Miller Express assistant coach Michael Gonzalez will join the coaching staff as well.
Dawson Tweet leads the league in batting average at .485, runs (36), hits (63), doubles (12), and triples (3).
The Russell, MB, product also has a 32-game hitting streak and recently broke the league record on July 5 in a 9-5 win over Okotoks. The previous record was 28, set back in 2015.
Out of the 32 games he has appeared in this season, 20 of them have been multi-hit games.
His younger brother Wyatt will be one of the two east division catchers. This season, Wyatt is second on the team in batting average at .403 through 17 games played. He has picked up 25 hits and three home runs along with 18 RBIs in that span.
Austin Gurney will represent the Miller Express in the infield and the Home Run Derby prior to the All-Star game on Saturday.
Gurney’s usual position is first base with occasional visits to right field. Gurney is batting .269 through 30 games, which has resulted in 28 hits, a pair of doubles and triples, and two home runs.
Left-fielder Dougie Delacruz will be the final Miller Express position player joining the East Division All-Stars. This season Delacruz has 50 putouts, along with two infield assists, and a perfect 1.000 fielding percentage. At the plate, he is fourth in team batting average (.325) and has 37 hits in 32 games this season and two home runs.
On the mound, Bryan Villar has an ERA of 2.42, along with 22 strikeouts in 22.1 innings this season. His teammate Haldon Craig is holding a 2-1 record with a 2.66 ERA, and 24 strikeouts in 20.1 innings this season.
Named the East Division’s head coach, Eric Marriott has led the Miller Express to a 23-10 record, which is first in the east, and his team is on an eight-game winning streak and is 9-1 in their last 10 games.
Also, Moose Jaw’s assistant coach Michael Gonzalez will join Marriott in the dugout for the East Division.
All Miller Express selections are first-time WCBL All-Stars.
The 2023 All-Star will be played at Seaman Stadium in Okotoks, Atla., on Saturday starting with the Home Run Derby at 5:00 p.m. and the first pitch will be at 7:05 p.m.
Moose Jaw kicks off a four-game Alberta road swing on Tuesday night starting in Okotoks at 7:05 p.m.