SCHAUMBURG RELEASE
SCHAUMBURG, Ill. – Former Augustana baseball standouts
Nate Baumann and
Drew Heithoff have signed with the Schaumburg Boomers of the Frontier League.
The Boomers, managed by Jamie Bennett, replace the defunct Schaumburg Flyers in the 14-team Frontier League and will play their first game in May 2012. An independent professional baseball organization, the Frontier League began competition in June 1993 with eight teams.
Baumann and Heithoff played their final seasons for Augustana in 2011.
An outfielder from Marshall, Minn., Baumann was named to four All-America teams as a college player. Honors earned in 2011 included All-Northern Sun Intercollegiate Conference first team, NSIC All-Tournament team, Daktronics All-Central Region first team, Rawlings/ABCA All- Central Region first team, NSIC Player of the Week (Feb. 22), National Collegiate Baseball Writers Association Central Region Player of the Week (Feb. 25), and CoSIDA Academic All-District second team. He was also on the Tino Martinez Award watch list.
Baumann batted .389 for the Vikings in 2011 with a team-high 13 home runs and 53 RBIs. His career records with the Vikings include slugging percentage (.712), runs scored (205), hits (269), doubles (49), home runs (49), RBIs (192) and total bases (481).
Heithoff, an infielder from Yankton, S.D., batted .314 for his collegiate career. He appeared in 204 games with the Vikings and started 200. He collected 219 hits, belted 33 doubles, drove in 107 runs and stole a school-record 89 bases.
In the summer of 2010, Heithoff played for the Eau Claire Express of the Northwoods League. He led the league in batting (.389) and helped the Express to the league championship. Baumann also played for Eau Claire in 2010. With key contributions from the two Vikings, Eau Claire's 52 wins were the most by any summer team in 2010.
"This is a great opportunity for these guys, and it's well deserved," said
Tim Huber, head baseball coach at Augustana. "Both of them have worked very hard to get a chance at professional baseball, and I think both of them will do well."
Baumann and Heithoff are one of three Vikings from the class of 2011 who are playing with professional teams. Right-handed pitcher
Bret Severtson, Augustana's all-time saves leader, is a member of the American Association's Saint Paul Saints.
Augustana rolled to a 64-46 record for the past two seasons. The Vikings set a school record for wins in 2010 (34) and followed with 30 wins and the program's first trip to the NCAA tournament in 2011. The back-to-back 30-wins seasons are a first for the Augustana baseball program.
