Todd Hollandsworth was a star in the big leagues — his son Tugg, an outfielder at Illinois State, carries bloodlines and that potential to Serauxmen Stadium this summer.
Tugg Hollandsworth and pitcher Lawson Minshew, both playing for Coach Steve Holm at Illinois State, highlight the latest addition to Head Coach Greg Frady’s squad for the 2024 West Coast League season.
Six players announced today are:
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OF Tugg Hollandsworth, Illinois State, 6-0/180, Parkland FL
RHP Lawson Minshew, Illinois State, 6-1/200, Lakeside, CA
LHP Landon Welter, Everett CC, 5-10/170, Kennewick, WA
C Ayden Hadley, Barton CC, 6-0/215, Langley, BC
IF Nevan Noonan, San Diego State, 6-0/185, San Diego
C/U Kurt Felix, Cal Poly, 6-2/200, Mesquite, NV
Todd Hollandsworth was a third round pick of the Dodgers after a stellar high school showing in the Seattle area — he would go on to win the World Series with the 2003 Florida Marlins and play 12 MLB seasons and more than 1,100 games, with the Dodgers, Indians, Marlins, Rockies, Rangers, Cubs, Braves and Reds. He was the 1996 National League rookie of the year with the Dodgers, batting .291 with 26 doubles and 21 stolen bases.
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Tugg bats and throws left like his dad, and is now a prized developing freshman at Illinois State. His teammate Minshew is a valued 90mph-plus power arm out of the bullpen who is already being used as a freshman.
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Felix, a physical player with power, is being watched closely this spring by NightOwls pitching coach Gorm Heimueller, and projects as a star catcher at the baseball factory at Cal Poly — where Heimueller was a pitcher many decades ago on a team that featured Ozzie Smith.
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Hadley is a power lefty bat, a former Langley Blaze star, who was going to join the NightOwls in 2023 until he was injured. He’s second in at-bats with Barton this spring, batting .355 with five doubles and a home run, and 16 RBIs.
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Noonan is at Grossmont College but is making the jump to SDSU, a slick shortstop who smashed eight home runs as a freshman.
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Welter, a valuable lefty for deployment out of the bullpen at Serauxmen Stadium, is filling a key role for the Trojans this spring.
