Thursday, February 22, 2024
Fargo, ND – The Fargo-Moorhead RedHawks continue to strengthen their roster heading into the 2024 season by re-signing three players and adding three more pro baseball veterans. Versatile infielder/catcher Manny Boscan, pitcher Alex DuBord, and infielder Peter Brookshaw are all returning to the RedHawks. Meanwhile the team has also signed former big league infielder/outfielder Dilson Herrera and corner infielder Juan Fernandez.
This will be Manny Boscan’s fourth season with Fargo-Moorhead. The switch-hitting Boscan has spent time at both first base and second base for the RedHawks while also assuming catching duties when called upon. The now 30-year-old Boscan has become a fan favorite since coming over from the Milwaukee Milkmen (American Association) in a trade to begin the 2021 season.
Boscan was a key contributor during the RedHawks championship season in 2022, batting .292 with 16 homers and 68 RBI. His best season was in 2021 when he hit .344 in 91 games. A native of Maracaibo, Venezuela, Boscan was originally signed by the Cleveland Indians organization in 2010, playing in the Dominican Summer League, the Arizona Rookie League, and with Mahoning Valley (Class A) in the New York-Penn League. Boscan also played seasons in the Venezuelan Winter League, the Mexican Pacific Winter League, and most recently in the Colombian Winter League following the RedHawks 2023 season.
Relief pitcher Alex DuBord returns to his hometown Fargo-Moorhead RedHawks for a fourth season. DuBord is a Fargo (ND) South high school product who played collegiately at Neosho County Community College (Chanute, KS) and Faulkner University (Montgomery, AL). He was selected in the 10th round of the MLB June Amateur Draft by the San Francisco Giants out of Faulkner. The righthander spent the 2018 and 2019 seasons with the Giants’ affiliates in Salem-Keizer, OR (Class A Northwest League) and Giants Orange (Arizona Rookie League).
DuBord looks to be a stalwart again in the team’s bullpen. Since signing with the RedHawks, DuBord has been a closer and setup man, posting a career mark of 9-4 with a 2.92 ERA, tossing 126 inning and collecting 36 saves in a Fargo-Moorhead uniform, 4th on the team’s all-time saves list. He’s struck out 147 and walked 61, averaging 10.5 strikeouts per nine innings of work. His best season with the RedHawks was 2022 when he collected 23 saves and posted an ERA of 2.83 with 50 K’s in 41.1 innings of work. DuBord was an American Association All-Star selection in 2022.
Another local product, infielder Peter Brookshaw signed with the RedHawks in July of 2023 following an outstanding college career at North Dakota State University (Fargo, ND). Brookshaw owns the NDSU school record for starts, starting all 219 games he played in over his five seasons. His best season was his final season, batting .308 with 13 homers and 40 RBI.
The left-handed-hitting Brookshaw appeared in 16 games for the RedHawks last season, collecting two doubles, two home runs and eight RBI in limited duty, mostly at second base. Brookshaw is a native of Prescott, WI. In between his college seasons, Brookshaw played for the Mankato (MN) MoonDogs, Minnesota Mud Puppies, and Eau Claire (WI) Express of the collegiate Northwoods League.
Second baseman/outfielder Dilson Herrera comes to the RedHawks after spending parts of four seasons in Major League Baseball. Herrera appeared in a total of 49 games with the New York Mets in 2014-2015, hitting just .215, but hitting six home runs and driving in 17 over 169 plate appearances. He was with the Cincinnati Reds in 2018, playing 53 games and collecting five doubles, five home runs, and 11 RBI in 97 trips to the plate. His last major league stop was with the Baltimore Orioles in 2020, appearing in just three games.
Herrera was signed as a 17-year-old by the Pittsburgh Pirates organization in 2011 reaching as high as Class A with the West Virgina Power (Charleston, WV) in the South Atlantic League. He went to the New York Mets organization partway through the 2013 season reaching the Class AA level with the Binghamton (NY) Mets in 2014, batting .340 with ten home runs and 48 RBI in just 61 games. Those numbers led to a call-up to the big league club where he appeared in 18 games with the Mets. Assigned to the Class AAA Las Vegas 51’s (Pacific Coast League) in 2015, Herrera hit at a .327 clip with 11 homers and 50 RBI over 81 games.
He went to the Cincinnati Reds late in the 2016 season and put together solid seasons in 2016 and 2017 with the International League’s Class AAA Louisville (KY) Bats. In 2018 Herrera split time between Louisville and the Daytona Tortugas (Daytona Beach, FL) of the Class A Florida State League, as well as earning a 51-game call-up with the Reds. He was back with the Mets organization in 2019, hitting 24 homers and driving in 64 over 117 games at Class AAA Syracuse (NY) of the International League. He played sparingly with the Baltimore Orioles in 2020, then moved onto the Toronto Blue Jays’ Triple A affiliate in Buffalo in 2021 hitting ten homers with 27 RBI. Herrera spent the 2022 season, playing 81 games with the independent Staten Island (NY) FerryHawks of the Atlantic League. The last two seasons have been in the Colombian Winter League and Mexican League.
The 29-year-old Herrera is a native of Cartagena, Colombia. He adds another righthanded bat and versatility to the RedHawks lineup. He is also a solid fielder, sporting a .982 fielding percentage while splitting major league time almost evenly between second base and all three outfield positions.
Corner infielder and catcher Juan Fernandez comes to the RedHawks after spending 2016-2023 in the San Diego Padres organization, working his way as high as Class AAA El Paso (TX). He also made stops in the Dominican Summer League and Arizona Rookie League with the Padres, Fort Wayne (IN) of the Class A Midwest League, and with the San Antonio (TX) Missions of the Class AA Texas League. Fernandez played with LaGuaira of the Venezuelan Winter League from 2021-2024.
The 24-year-old Fernandez is a native of Valencia, Venezuela. A righthanded hitter, Fernandez is a career .264 hitter over seven affiliated-minor league seasons. Over 472 games, he collected 431 hits, 76 doubles, nine triples, and 24 home runs while driving in 219 runs. He also stole 29 bases. Fernandez hit seven homers with 45 RBI last season at Class AA San Antonio.
Fargo-Moorhead now has 24 players under contract for the upcoming season. The RedHawks open the 2024 American Association season at home Friday, May 10th against the Lincoln Saltdogs, part of a six-game homestand. The full 2024 RedHawks schedule is available here. Ticket information is also available here or by calling 701-235-6161.
