PBL Players of the Month - June

PBL Players of the Month (June 2023)

The PBL Players of the Month awards recognize players who stood out and led their respective teams to success over the course of the month. Each month, the PBL will select two position players and two pitchers for recognition – one from each division. For the month of June, our honorees are all from the league’s first-place clubs: outfielders Keaton Greenwalt of Missoula and Reese Alexiades of Ogden, and pitchers Alfredo Villa of Missoula and Brock Gilliam of Ogden.

North Division Batter of the Month: Keaton Greenwalt, OF, Missoula PaddleHeads

With the reigning League MVP out of the lineup, Missoula outfielder Keaton Greenwalt was a force in the middle of the PaddleHeads lineup in the month of June. The 25-year-old batted a strong .375/.484/.625 with five homers, 14 extra-base hits, eight steals, and 31 RBIs in 128 plate appearances. Greenwalt also displayed an impressive eye at the plate, drawing 17 walks against just seven strikeouts. His month included an 11-game hitting streak from June 13-24 and six games in which he recorded multiple RBIs. Greenwalt currently ranks third in the league in RBIs and is tied for ninth in home runs.

North Division Pitcher of the Month: Alfredo Villa, Missoula PaddleHeads

The PaddleHeads went a dominant 21-5 in the month of June, and Alfredo Villa led the charge for them on the mound. Villa won four of his five starts on the mound, pitching to a 3.77 ERA while racking up 40 strikeouts against just 10 walks and allowing just one home run in 31 innings. Villa was particularly great in his last three starts of the month, giving up just four runs with 31 strikeouts in 21 innings. He tossed seven innings of one-run ball against the Range Riders on June 14, allowing just six hits and no walks with eight strikeouts. He dodged traffic in his next start against Idaho Falls, allowing nine hits in six innings but held the Chukars to just two runs thanks to 12 punchouts. Villa saved his best start for last though, as he held Idaho Falls to just one run on two hits with 11 strikeouts in eight innings on June 25. The 25-year-old currently leads the PBL in strikeouts and innings pitched, while ranking second in ERA.

South Division Batter of the Month: Reese Alexiades, OF, Ogden Raptors

In his third season since getting drafted by the Ogden Raptors, Reese Alexiades had his finest month as a pro in June. The outfielder hit a scalding .443/.508/.896 with a whopping 11 homers and 15 doubles in 126 plate appearances, stealing nine bases without getting caught, and driving in 37 runs. Alexiades homered in at least three games in a row twice in the month, including a four-game stretch from June 24-27 in which he hit five homers and drove in 13 runs. He had an eight-game hitting streak from June 10-17, and is currently riding a 13-game hitting streak that began on June 20 – recording multiple hits in 10 of those 13 games. All told, Alexiades had 17 multi-hit games in the month, including nine consecutive contests from June 20-30. He also recorded at least one extra-base hit in each of the last six games of the month. The Pepperdine alum currently leads the PBL in home runs and extra base hits while ranking second in doubles, fourth in batting average, and fifth in RBIs.

South Division Pitcher of the Month: Brock Gilliam, Ogden Raptors

Brock Gilliam was rock solid on the mound for the Raptors in June, helping lead the team to the top of the South Division. He won three of his four starts, striking out 26 batters against just five walks while allowing just one home run in 23 1/3 innings. Gillliam allowed three or fewer runs and pitched at least six innings in each of his last three starts in the month. His best outing came on June 14 against Boise, when he allowed just one run on five hits with eight strikeouts in 6 1/3 innings. He followed that up with another strong outing against Rocky Mountain on June 20, limiting the Vibes to just one run and seven hits and stranding six runners in six innings. He finished off the month with a quality start against the Hawks, allowing three runs on six hits with five punchouts in six innings. Gilliam currently ranks third in the league in strikeouts, second in wins, and fourth in ERA, while allowing the fewest home runs among qualified pitchers.