By Ashley Crosby, ashliz781@aol.com
Director of Social Media
August 15, 2011

COTUIT, MA– In a league filled with talented players, many on their way to the major leagues, it takes something extra to stand out and be named the Cape League’s Robert A. McNeece Outstanding ProProspect.

Victor Roache’s (Georgia Southern) poise, focus, and determination spoke louder than the quiet 6’1, 225 junior and propelled him into the leaders’ categories from his first day at the plate, where he quickly made a name for himself in a Kettleers’ uniform.

During his first game, he went 2-for-4 with 2 RBI, hitting two doubles and scoring a run.
“He’s a quiet leader,” said Cotuit manager Mike Roberts, “I’ve grown very rapidly to admire what his goals are and how he’s going about to attain them.”

Roache led each of the batting categories for a large portion of the summer, toying with becoming the Cape’s first-ever Triple Crown champion. The last major league player to win the AL Triple Crown was Boston’s Carl Yastrzemski (67), whose grandson Michael Yastrzemski (Vanderbilt) was Roache’s teammate this summer.

Despite dropping off at the plate towards the end of the season, Roache finished with a .316 average, 43 hits, 6 home runs, and 28 runs batted in. He hit over .300 in every game he played in during the regular season as a Kettleer, and was named a part of the 2011 Western Division All Star Team that traveled to Fenway Park for the July 29th game.

He was the only All Star to also be a participant of the Hood Home Run Hitting Contest, where he rocketed two home runs over the Green Monster.

Former winners of the prestigious Robert A. McNeece Award include Grant Green, Andrew Miller, Mark Teixeira, Billy Wagner, and Ron Darling.