Former Houston Cougars Wallace, Kelso And Goodnight To Play In Minor League All-Star Games

Wallace Will Participate In Home Run Derby Prior To Game

HOUSTON, TEXAS (June 22, 2011) Former University of Houston catcher Chris Wallace and shortstop Blake Kelso will play in the South Atlantic League All-Star Game at 7:30 p.m. April 21 at Arthur W. Perdue Stadium in Salisbury, Md.

In addition to playing in the All-Star game, Wallace is one of 10 players that will compete in the 2011 BB&T Home Run Derby.

Wallace, who plays for the Lexington Legends, will play for the South Division, while Kelso, of the Hagerstown Suns, willrepresent the North Division. Players are chosen through voting by managers, coaches, front office executives, media and fans.

Wallace ranks second in the league standings with 14 home runs and fourth with 49 RBIs. He opened the season with a 12-game hitting streak and went on to be named the SAL Player of the Week. He also hit three home runs with nine RBIs against Asheville on April 17.

This is the second All-Star game for Wallace since he was drafted by the Houston Astros in the 16th round of the 2010 MLB Draft. Last season, he played in the Appalachian League All-Star game with the Greenville Astros.

Wallace spent four seasons behind the plate for Houston posting a career .291 batting average. He was selected to the All-Conference USA Second Team in 2009 and led the Cougars with 10 home runs as a senior.

Kelso will start at third base in the All-Star game and ranks fifth in the league with a .404 batting average. He also has 12 doubles, one triple and two home runs.

After being drafted by the Washington Nationals in the 10th round of the 2010 MLB Draft, Kelso began his professional career with the Vermont Lake Monsters of the New York-Penn League where he was named a mid-season All-Star.

Kelso was a staple in the Cougar infield,making 181 consecutive starts at shortstop. He finished his three-year career at UH with a .319 batting average, 41 doubles, 11 triples and eight home runs. He is also the school record holder with 588 assists.

MIDWEST LEAGUE ALL-STAR GAME

In addition to Wallace and Kelso playing in the SAL All-Star Game, former pitcher Michael Goodnight will play for the Eastern Division in the Midwest League All-Star game Tuesday. The game willstart at 6 p.m. at the Quad Cities’ Modern Woodmen Park.

Goodnight leads the Lake County Captains with a 5-5 record and a 3.04 ERA. He has pitched a team high 71 innings, allowing 24 earned runs on 49 hits with 65 strikeouts. He was drafted by the Cleveland Indians in the 13th round of the 2010 MLB Draft.

A two-year letterwinner for the Cougars, Goodnight made 16 starts as a sophomore posting a 4.96 ERA with 148 strikeouts. He was named to the C-USA All-Freshman Team in 2009.