Pair of Spartans Join Former Player as Members of Florida League All-Decade Team
ORLANDO, Fla. - With 10 years of baseball in the books, the Florida League recently had the fans, coaches and league staff vote online for an All-Decade team. Among the selections for the summer league were current UT student-athletes Michael Danner and Jacob Tillotson along with former Spartan slugger Lee Cruz.
With more than 235 players drafted in the 10-year history of the league, there was certainly no shortage of talent at each position.
Tillotson, a senior for the Spartans, enjoyed a phenomenal summer with the Leesburg Lightning in 2011. He set an all-time league record with 66 hits, and also led the league in runs scored. His .351 average was good for 2nd in the league. Tillotson won a national championship with the University of Tampa last year, and will be playing his final collegiate season with the Spartans in 2014.
Danner, a senior left fielder for UT, has enjoyed three seasons with the Winter Park Diamond Dawgs, and set multiple records along the way. He is the Florida League's all-time leader in games played, RBI and home runs. He was named to the all-star team three times, won the home run derby in 2012 and was named the 2012 League MVP. He also won a league championship with the Dawgs in 2013. He won a national championship at Tampa in 2013, and will finish his collegiate career in 2014.
Cruz, a standout on Tampa's 2006 national championship team, was one of the league's first stars, earning all-star selections in each of the first two years of the league. His 2005 season was ridiculous. He earned the league's only triple-crown award by leading the league in average, home runs and RBI (and hits for good measure). To top it all off, he led the Zephyrhills Snappers to the 2005 championship. He was a 10th round draft pick of the White Sox in 2006 and played five years in the minors, reaching the AAA level before retiring from baseball.
Florida League All-Decade Team
Catcher - Jonathan Lucroy, Louisiana-Lafayette
First Base - LB Dantzler, South Carolina
Second Base - Tyler Palmer, Seminole State
Third Base - Mark Nelson, Florida Atlantic
Shortstop - Jacob Tillotson, Tampa
Outfield - Michael Danner, Tampa
Outfield - Lee Cruz, Tampa
Outfield - Ted Blackman, Coastal Carolina
Two-Way Player - Anthony Figiolia, Rollins
Pitcher - Evan Incinelli, North Florida
Pitcher - Drew Shetrone, Seminole State
Pitcher - Bo O'Dell, Florida State
Pitcher - Emilio Ogando, St. Thomas
Pitcher - Bobby Bolling, Radford
Pitcher - Ethan Bader, Armstrong Atlantic
Pitcher - Jimmy Nelson, Alabama
Pitcher - Josh Strawn, Southern Polytechnic
Closer - Josh Glick, Southeastern