The Arizona Fall League is a league built for some of the top prospects in the MLB to extend their season, hoping for the chance to grow against top competition. A familiar name to Augustana finds his name on a roster this season: Carter Howell. Six teams play a 30-game mini-season before a four-team playoff helps decide a champion. Each MLB team selects seven prospects to play in the league. The player pool in the league on a year-to-year basis speaks for itself; nearly 50 percent of 2022 MLB All-Stars were AFL alums, including 60 percent of starting lineups. 

"This is an awesome opportunity for Carter," said head baseball coach Tim Huber. "For an undrafted free agent signee to get the opportunity is even more rare. It speaks to the talent Carter has; he should have been a draft pick and certainly a mid-round or higher type guy.

"We are certainly keeping an eye on how he is doing and it's pretty cool to see him continue to have success, even against the top talent in the minor leagues."

Howell, a four-year member of the Viking baseball team, earned a spot on the Scottsdale Scorpions after a standout season in the San Francisco Giants farm system. In 119 games between Single-A San Jose and High-A Eugene, Howell hit .294 (144 for 489) with 26 doubles, eight triples, and 10 home runs, scoring 94 runs and driving in 59. He was named the California League Player of the Month in May, and was the Northwest League Player of the Week on Sept. 3.

His hot season has carried into the fall, where he is hitting .280 (7 for 25) with a triple, two home runs, and nine runs scored in eight games for the Scorpions. He ranks in the top 15 of the league with a .957 on base plus slugging percentage. His signature moment came in just his second game, where he went 3 for 4 with two singles, a triple, and two runs scored on Oct. 4. 


So far for Howell, the fall has been about repetition. 

"A normal day is waking up and getting breakfast, going to lift in the mornings then heading to the field for lunch," Howell said "After lunch, there's treatment, open cages, and early work before batting practice. After batting practice, there's a pregame meal and then the game before heading back to my apartment after the game."

He followed his breakout game on Oct. 6, shooting an outside pitch over the right field fence in the fourth inning for his first home run of the fall. He also scored three times after reaching on an error in the second inning and drawing a walk in the sixth inning. 


On Oct. 12, Howell slammed his second home run of the fall, sending a 1-1 breaking ball to left-center as part of a 2 for 4 game. 

The opportunity also allows Howell access to professional experience. Of the five Scottsdale coaches, three played in the MLB, while all five played minor league baseball, combining for 40 seasons of affiliated baseball. 

Through this experience, Howell is hoping to see steps of growth. 

"The (Arizona) Fall League has helped me, as a player, realize what I need to do to improve myself," said Howell. "It's the highest level I've played at so far and I'm learning what adjustments I need to make to continue to be the best player that I can be."

Howell also gives a lot of credit to Augustana for helping him prepare for the mental side of the AFL. 

"The professors, Coach Huber, Coach Collison and the staff do a great job preparing us for adversity," he said. "Playing against higher competition means failure is inevitable. I'm grateful for how they have taught me to recognize failure and to learn from it. This has helped me be better prepared for it in the future. I'm very grateful for my time at Augie. I wouldn't be the person and player I am today without it."

With 15 games to play on the Scottsdale Scorpions' schedule, Howell can continue to impress, but his performance to this point makes one thing clear: Carter Howell stacks up with the best. 

For all information regarding the Arizona Fall League, head to www.mlb.com/arizona-fall-league