Sheboygan A’s bring back two big names

The Sheboygan A’s expect to bring back two of last season’s star players.

Harry Steldt, the team’s MVP last year, and Mitch Gardner, a pitcher with a knack for throwing no-hitters, both have signed on to play for the local semipro baseball club again this summer, the team announced this week.

Bryce Taylor, a right-handed Australian import who’s currently pitching at Marian College, also will join the A’s lineup, according to a team press release.

Steldt hit .386 in the Northeastern Wisconsin Baseball League, and .337 overall last summer, according to the A’s. His teammates elected him the A’s MVP after he led the club in a number of categories, including runs scored, hits and doubles. He was named to the first All-NEW team and the second All-Wisconsin State League team.

The 6-foot-1, 220-pound college junior is currently an infielder at the University of Wisconsin-Stevens Point, where Steldt has averaged .417 at the Pointers’ plate so far this season. In his two seasons with the A’s, Steldt has hit .314 in 79 games, with 43 runs batted in, 14 doubles, a triple and a pair of home runs.

This will be the sixth season Gardner has played with the A’s, a career that’s seen him notch a 16-10 record with four shutouts — and two no-hitters, according to the team’s press release. He’s the only A’s pitcher to ever throw two no-hitters; he has a career 3.43 ERA.

Gardner, a former Sheboygan North player, was 3-3 with a 3.94 ERA in 15 games last year. His best seasons were in 2009 (when he finished 5-2 and with a 3.00 ERA) and 2011 (6-3, 2.86).

Taylor, a sophomore for the Sabres this season and a native of Melbourne, Australia, has a 2.25 ERA in 16 innings pitched so far this season at Marian. He’s gone 3-0 in three starts so far this year.

Story by: The Sheboygan Press