Former Baseball Standout Jerry Sands Promoted to AA, David Thomas to Play on MLB Network

Former Catawba baseball standout Jerry Sands has been promoted to the Chattanooga Lookouts, the AA Southern League affiliate of the Los Angeles Dodgers.  Sands enjoyed a stellar first half at Great Lakes, where he was named league player of the week three times and grabbed MVP honors at the Midwest League All-Star Game.

There will be a chance to see former Indian David Thomas play on Tuesday, June 29 as the game between his Stockton Ports and the Bakersfield Blaze will be carried on the MLB Network.  First pitch is set for 2 p.m. EST.  Thomas returned from a shoulder injury last week that kept him out of action for a month.  He went 2-for-3 in his return for the Ports.

Sands hit .333 over the first half of the season at Great Lakes.  He swatted 18 home runs and collected 46 RBI.  He has homered in three of his first four games with Chattanooga, going 7-for-15.  Sands will return to North Carolina in mid-July as the Lookouts invade Zebulon to take on the Carolina Mudcats from July 17-20.

Recent draftees, Wade Moore and Craige Lyerly, have had ups and downs in the single A New York-Penn League.  Moore homered in his first game with Vermont, while Lyerly recently delivered a walk-off, game-winning double for Hudson Valley.  The two will face each other as the teams meet for a series in late July.  Ryan Query homered in his first game with the GCL Braves and Chris Ahearn is on the roster of the AZL Padres.  Tim Smith is 4-2 with the independent Washington (PA) Wild Things.