Bravehearts

Nine Bravehearts Named to Futures League All-Star Game

Class Headlined by Grafton-Native Tyler Nielson and Leominster-Native Dylan Vigue

Worcester, MA - The Worcester Bravehearts will be well-represented at the Futures League All-Star Game this season, as nine members of the team will be playing at the showcase in Burlington, Vermont on July 25th.

The All-Star class includes Bravehearts Pitchers Dylan Vigue (Michigan), Tyler Nielsen (UMaine) and Clay Robbins (Southern Maine), and hitters Marc Willi (Michigan), Kobe Stenson (Sienna), Dan Bucciero (Fordham), AJ Guindon (Wheaton), Tyler Bastunas (Drury) and Andrew Chronister (Shippensburg)

Vigue, who was selected to the All-Star Game as a pitcher, is also the Bravehearts top Home Run Derby Hitter, an important role in the Futures League, who ends a game after 10 innings with a home run derby tie-breaker. Vigue is undefeated in Home Run Derbies in 2023, and will be competing in the All-Star Home Run Derby the night before the All-Star Game. As a pitcher, Vigue holds a 2.55 ERA with 34 strikeouts in 31 innings pitched. 

A returner from the 2021 season, Nielsen bounced back in a big way this Summer, leading the Bravehearts bullpen with a 2.54 ERA on the season with 26 strikeouts in 17 innings pitched. The lefty Robbins rounds out the All-Star Selections for pitchers. Robbins has started eight games for the Bravehearts, going at least five innings without allowing a run in half of them.

For the hitters, Bastunas leads the way for the Bravehearts. The middle-infielder is currently third in league with a .375 average, and has already broken the Bravehearts single season record for stolen bases, with 34. He also leads the league with 36 runs scored, 8 more than the next highest. Chronister comes in second in the league in average at .385, and currently holds a six game hit streak. 

Stenson leads the way in the power department as the team leader in home runs, while Bucciero comes in with a .340 average and a team-leading 27 RBI, good for fourth in the Futures League. Willi, a Weston, MA-native, follows shortly behind with 25 RBI.

The team’s final all-star, Guindon, is second in the league in runs scored with 26 and holds a .283 average with 13 stolen bases. 

The Futures League also hosts a fan vote, with one player selected per team that will have a chance to be voted into the big game. Worcester’s selection is Designated Hitter Vinny Eramo (Fitchburg St). Bravehearts fans can vote using the link here to get Eramo into the all-star game.