Synek signs with Pittsburgh Pirates organization

After joining the Lake Erie Crushers of the Frontier League following an impressive senior campaign for the University of Evansville baseball team, Boomer Synek will be on the move once again as the Northbrook, Ill., native signed a minor league deal with the Pittsburgh Pirates organization on Friday.

“I’m really excited for the opportunity that I was given,” Synek said. “I wouldn’t be here without the love and support that I’ve gotten from my family, friends, teammates and coaches. I’m hoping that I can come in and help make a difference in the Pirates organization and continue to compete on a daily basis playing the game that I love.”

Synek, who earned First Team All-Missouri Valley Conference honors at catcher this past spring, will be the fifth Purple Ace playing with an affiliated club this season, joining former first round pick Kyle Freeland (Colorado Rockies), Eric Stamets (Cleveland Indians), Kyle Lloyd (San Diego Padres) and Kevin Kaczmarski (New York Mets). Both Freeland and Stamets are playing on the AAA level with Albuquerque and Columbus, respectively, while Lloyd is in AA with San Antonio and Kaczmarski is in high-A with St. Lucie.

Synek will begin his affiliated career with the Gulf Coast Pirates in Bradenton, Fla.

After missing much of 2015 due to injury, Synek moved over to catcher prior to the 2016 campaign and thrived. He led the team with a .341 batting average, which included a league-best .383 clip in MVC contests. He went on to finish the season with 40 runs batted in, 38 scores, 15 doubles and six home runs. He also walked 31 times to post a team-best .439 on-base mark, and he was just as stout defensively, creating 32 outs on the bases, catching 19 runners attempting to steal and picking off 13 more.

“I’m very happy for Boomer,” UE head coach Wes Carroll said. “He worked very hard with the position change, and it’s great to see him rewarded for his efforts. It’s great to see another Ace in professional baseball, and I know he will represent our program very well.”

With Lake Erie, Synek played in just four contests before getting picked up, doubling and knocking in a pair of runs over the course of seven at-bats. He also walked four times.