The Southern Illinois Miners are pleased to announce that reigning Frontier League Pitcher of the Year Matt Bywater has been selected to start on the mound for the East Division at the 2015 Frontier League All-Star Game on Thursday, July 15th at Boomers Stadium in Schaumburg.
Having been chosen for the honor by East Division manager Dan Rohn of Traverse City, he becomes the third Miner to start the game this season after Frank Martinez and Niko Vasquez at second base and shortstop, respectively, and also becomes the third Miners pitcher to start in the all-star game after Chris Little (2008) and Joe Augustine (2010).
The left-hander has had a stellar season so far at the top of the Miners’ rotation, owning a 6-2 record with a 2.40 ERA in 11 starts. Over 71 innings this season, he has also given up only 57 hits, with 24 walks and 84 strikeouts, with the strikeout total leading the rest of the league by 15. He also provided the most-memorable moment of the year so far for the Miners, throwing the second no-hitter (and first of nine innings in length) in Miners history on Friday, June 12th against the Evansville Otters with 10 strikeouts. That night was part of a stretch for the Thousand Oaks, Calif. native that saw him win five consecutive starts with a 1.07 ERA from May 26th through June 17th, striking out 46 in 42 innings while allowing only 20 hits and walking only 10 in that span.
The All-Star Game will begin at 6:30 p.m. on Wednesday night in Schaumburg. The Miners enter the all-star break at 32-19, one game back of first place in the East Division, and will return home after the break on Friday, July 17th at 7:05 p.m., resuming play against the Windy City ThunderBolts.
Jason Guerette is the Grizzlies' Director of Broadcasting and Media Relations and the "Voice of the Grizzlies." 2023 will be his second season with the organization, handling lead broadcasting duties on the Grizzlies Media Network as well as being in charge of all team press releases and game-day media materials.
2023 will also be Jason's ninth season in the Frontier League after spending 2014-21 in the same role with the Southern Illinois Miners. Overall, he has broadcasted close to 800 games in the league, including playoffs. During the baseball offseason, he serves as a play-by-play broadcaster for Manhattan College and the New Jersey Institute of Technology, with games being seen on ESPN+ among other platforms.
In addition to broadcasting, Jason works as a public address announcer for Seton Hall University women's basketball as well as Columbia University men's and women's basketball. He also spent nine years working "behind the scenes" as a freelance board operator and highlight editor at Westwood One for their coverage of the NFL, NCAA football, and NCAA basketball.
Jason graduated from Seton Hall in 2012 with B.A. in Communication Studies and a minor in Broadcasting & Visual Media.
