FORMER COUGAR RYAN CASTEEL NAMED CATCHER OF THE YEAR IN CALIFORNIA LEAGUE
Ryan Casteel, a member of the 2010 Cougar baseball squad, was named Catcher of the Year in the California League. He spent the season with the Modesto Nuts, a Class A team of the Colrado Rockies farm system.
He started the season as the backup catcher for the Nuts as he had only 36 plate appearances in the month of April. However, an organizational move by Colorado allowed him to move into the starting role. For the season, he finished in the top 5 of every major offensive category on the team.
He finished with 22 home runs (top on the team), 76 RBIs, 30 doubles, and a .270 batting average. He led the team with a slugging percentage of .522 and committed only one error behind the plate in 108 games.
Modesto qualified for the California League playoffs, but were eliminated in the first round of the playoffs.
