Sonoma's Ray named MVP

It reads like an uplifting, epic-style story of a talented young man who works his way up one of life's ladders, which leads him back to his family roots and local community, where he ascends to a high level of achievement in his craft and becomes a hometown hero striving to reach the highest point of his profession.

The talented young man in this story is Jayce Ray, 24, whose family roots are in the Valley, where he grew up and eventually graduated from Sonoma Valley High School.

Ray's profession is baseball, and he delivered splendid all-around play for his employer, the Sonoma Stompers, who just concluded their inaugural Pacific Association of Professional Baseball League season with a 42-36 record and third-place finish.

Serving as the catalyst for a productive Stompers' offense, while winning the PAPB batting title with a .355 average, and playing stellar defense, which included throwing out a league-best 10 base runners, while committing just two errors, Ray was named the 2014 PAPB most valuable player.

In the voting for the league’s most prestigious award, Ray earned 23 total points, including three first-place, and two second- and third-place, votes, edging the Vallejo Admirals power-hitting first-baseman Nick Boggan by four points, followed by Vallejo centerfielder Tillman Pugh's 17.

Comprising the voting body was the league front office personnel, team managers and broadcasters, with voters selecting a first, second and third place recipient for every award.

Along with his hitting crown, Ray led the league in on-base percentage at .483; OPS (on-base plus slugging percentages) at 1.026; and being hit-by-pitches 16 times.

Ray was also second in the PAPB with 18 doubles – Stompers teammate Reid Chenworth had 20 – tied for second with 23 stolen bases, and slugging percentage at .543; third with 62 runs scored; fourth in walks with 46; tied for fifth with 83 hits; and was in the top-10 with eight homers and 44 RBIs.

With Ray in Sonoma's lineup, the Stompers were 36-27 (.571 winning percentage) compared to their 6-9 record (.400) when he wasn’t in the starting lineup.

“I want to thank my teammates and the Stompers organization for giving me the opportunity to play in my home town, and in front of my family and friends," said Ray. “I couldn’t have had this season without my team, who I really loved playing with, and our manager (Ray Serrano) for helping me along the way – this is a great honor.”

After his baseball journey intensified in high school at SVHS, where he was an all-league and All-Empire standout – leading the prep Dragons to Sonoma County League and North Coast Section titles – Ray escalated his play at both Santa Rosa Junior College and the University of Washington, where he earned All-American and PAC-12 all-conference honors, respectively.

Ray then began playing professional independent league baseball and, through a trade, returned home to play for the newly established Sonoma Stompers.

“It was an absolute pleasure watching Jayce play this game,” Stompers General Manager Theo Fightmaster said. “He always does everything the right way; whether it’s driving in a run in a clutch spot, taking an extra base - his instincts for this game are second to none. And, he’s always in the right place at the right time on the field. He’s proven to baseball, and himself, that he can play this game at the highest level. We’re going to do everything we can to make sure he gets that opportunity.”

Joining Ray in earning 2014 league honors is Stompers' teammate and starting catcher, Andrew Parker, 23, who garnered a Gold Glove Award, receiving seven of 10 possible first-place votes and beating out second place winner, San Rafael Pacifics catcher Eric Bainer, by a wide margin. Sonoma's Jaime Del Valle finished fourth in the voting.

In 42 games, Parker was second in the league in put-outs with 287 – Bainer was first with 324 – and led all catchers with 34 defensive assists, followed far behind in second by Bainer's 23.

Also, Parker’s four errors were third fewest in the league, trailing only teammate Del Valle's one, and Vallejo’s Andrew Rublacavla and Pittsburg’s Brad Shannon's two each.

Finishing second in the voting for the PAPB's best relief pitcher was the Stompers' hard-throwing southpaw Yuki Sakama, who was edged for top reliever by Colin Allen, a key component in the San Rafael Pacifics winning the championship.

The Japanese left-hander was a spring-training acquisition by the Stompers who became the team's best reliever over the course of the season, posting a 6-3 record, with a 3.17 ERA, striking out 38 batters in 34 innings pitched.

Another Stomper finishing second in league award voting was left-handed pitcher Eric Schwieger, who was the runner-up to rookie of the year Jordan  Hinshaw of Vallejo.

Schwieger had a 5-5 record over 18 games, with a 3.77 ERA, which was good for sixth-best in the league, while striking out 51, walking 22 and allowing just a .253 batting average against him.