Zac Gallen, Jacob Stallings, J.B. Bukauskas representing Diamond Heels in MLB Postseason
The UNC baseball program has churned out some star-level MLB talent in the last couple decades, headlined by former All-Star Andrew Miller, who took the Diamond Heels to the 2006 and 2007 College World Series finals.
The current MLB postseason holds a ton of that star-level talent, with former Tar Heels Zac Gallen, Jacob Stallings and J.B. Bukauskas all trying to help their teams advance to the ALDS.
As of Wednesday, Oct. 4, Gallen and the Arizona Diamondbacks had a 1-0 lead over the Milwaukee Brewers in the Wild Card Series. Arizona actually turned to their ace Wednesday night, in hopes of finishing Milwaukee off and vaulting it into the NLDS for the first time since 2017.
Bukauskas, a relief pitcher for the Milwaukee Brewers, is trying to stave off elimination. He recently landed on the 15-day injured list, making it unlikely he pitches in the postseason, but carried a 2-2 win-loss record, 5.92 ERA and 21 batters struck out, across 24.1 innings pitched in 27 appearances.
Stallings is splitting the Miami Marlins catcher duties with Nick Fortes, though neither has much to show for offensively. Stallings has 46 hits in 241 at-bats, 22 runs scored and 20 RBIs. He’s more known for his defensive abilities, though, as he won the National League’s 2021 Gold Glove Award for catchers.
Stallings and his Marlins teammates need to battle back from a 1-0 deficit against the Philadelphia Phillies in their NL Wild Card Series. He appeared as a defensive replacement for Fortes on Tuesday, Oct. 3 and could possibly appear for Miami as the starter in Game 2.
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