The Evansville Otters will be bringing back outfielder Jeffrey Baez, infielder Gary Mattis, pitcher Logan Sawyer, and have also signed infielder Jomar Reyes, for the 2022 season.
Jeffrey Baez was a 2021 midseason acquisition for the Otters, being acquired in a trade with the Kane County Cougars of the American Association. For the Otters, Baez batted .319 with 14 runs, five doubles, two triples, seven home runs, 24 RBIs, and 10 stolen bases in 22 games played.
Earlier in 2021 with Kane County, Baez hit .296 with 41 runs, 12 doubles, four triples, 14 home runs, 49 RBIs, and eight stolen bases in 65 games played.
Originally from Venezuela, Baez spent eight years in the Chicago Cubs organization from 2011-18, reaching as high as Double-A with the Tennessee Smokies. Baez spent 2019 with Jackson, the Double-A affiliate of the Arizona Diamondbacks organization. Overall, in the minors, Baez batted .258 with 416 runs, 661 hits, 125 doubles, 26 triples, 71 home runs, 320 RBIs, and 212 stolen bases.
Gary Mattis joined the Otters for his first season of professional baseball in 2021. In 38 games with the Otters, Mattis batted .293 with 24 runs, 15 extra-bases hits, 19 RBIs, and 22 stolen bases.
Mattis journeyed to Evansville following an illustrious tenure with the Tennessee Wesleyan Bulldogs in his junior and senior seasons. In the Spring of 2021, Mattis was selected at the end of the 2021 Spring season as an NAIA Gold Glove award winner at the shortstop position and named the NAIA’s player of the year — the first in Tennessee Wesleyan baseball history.
Logan Sawyer went 3-5 with a 2.97 ERA, 48 strikeouts, and a Frontier League-leading 25 saves in 38 appearances and 36.1 innings pitched for the Otters in 2021. His 25 saves matched an Otters’ single season record with Edgar Lopez in 2015. Sawyer was named a 2021 Frontier League Postseason All-Star.
From Knoxville, Tenn., Sawyer came to the Otters with three seasons of affiliated baseball experience and four overall in professional baseball. Sawyer was drafted in the 29th round of the 2014 MLB June Amateur Draft by the Colorado Rockies out of Lincoln Memorial University.
In three seasons with the Rockies organization, Sawyer totaled a 13-9 record with a 4.87 ERA and 125 strikeouts. He pitched a total of 190.1 innings in 60 appearances and 20 starts.
Jomar Reyes, from Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic, will be in his first season with the Otters. Reyes has affiliated level experience with the Baltimore Orioles, where he was a highly touted prospect. The infielder made it as high as Double-A Bowie.
Overall, in the Orioles’ farm system, Reyes batted .269 with 225 runs, 540 hits, 117 doubles, 39 home runs, and 248 RBIs. He has also played Dominican Winter League baseball for three seasons.
