July 13, 2009

Swenson Appears on PGCrossChecker's Summer Top 25 Performers List

    Youngstown -- Youngstown State senior-to-be pitcher Aaron Swenson is ranked by a prestigious scouting bureau as having the ninth-most significant summer season in the country.

    PGCrossChecker.com, a division of Perfect Game USA, identified Swenson as the seventh pitcher on its list of top summer performers to date. At the story's posting time, Swenson was 4-0 with a 0.96 ERA and 33 strikeouts in five starts for the Staunton Braves of the Valley Baseball League.

    Swenson has already been named the Valley League's Pitcher of the Week twice this summer, and he continues to lead the circuit in ERA, strikeouts, innings pitched and complete games. Three of the players ahead of him on the list are members of Team USA, and three others are playing in the highly-regarded Cape Cod Baseball League.

    "I'm excited for Aaron not only because of receiving this huge honor, but also because the success he's had so far this summer," Youngstown State head coach Rich Pasquale said. "It's a credit to his hard work. I hope this opens up even more eyes of Major League organizations as Aaron heads into his senior year."

    Swenson has also led the Braves to a No. 12 national ranking by PGCrossChecker.

    The purpose of the top 25 list is to highlight players with prospect value who have performed at a high level during the summer, according to PGCrossChecker.com's Allan Simpson.

    Swenson has assembled an impressive collegiate resume to go along with his success in the summer. As a sophomore in 2008, the Twinsburg, Ohio, native was voted the Horizon League Pitcher of the Year. He went 6-1 in seven starts against Horizon League opponents and struck out a league-high 65 batters. Overall, Swenson was 6-3 with a 3.55 ERA in 99 innings. In 2009, Swenson picked up three more victories in league play and upped his strikeout rate to 70 in 90 innings.