The PBL Players of the Week awards recognize players who stood out and led their respective teams to success over the course of the past week. Each week, the PBL will select two position players and two pitchers for recognition – one from each division.
PBL Players of the Week (Week of 8-28-23)
North Division Pitcher of the Week: Alfredo Villa, Missoula
Alfredo Villa had another stellar performance this week, granting him his third North Division Pitcher of the Week award this season. The North Division Pitcher of the Month for June threw seven innings (a shortened complete game) against Great Falls in a 9-2 win on August 30th at home. On 104 pitches, 71 of those strikes, he conceded five hits, one earned run and a walk while striking out seven. This was Villa’s twelfth win this season for the PaddleHeads, a league-leading number.
North Division Batter of the Week: Kingston Liniak, OF, Glacier
Glacier went 7-1 this week, amassing seven straight wins after dropping the first game of the week at Idaho Falls, but later winning that series and sweeping Great Falls. Kingston Liniak played a significant role for the Range Riders. He recorded hits in every game of the winning streak, with multi-hits games in all but one of his outings. Liniak finished the week with 15 hits, 10 of those for extra bases, six homers, five of those coming in a 24-hour window, 20 RBIs and 15 runs scored, four walks, and a massive 38 total bases, averaging .484, with a .514 on base percentage and slugging a monstrous 1.226. He scored a run almost 80% of the times he got on base this week. This is the first time this season that Liniak has won North Division Batter of the Week honors.
South Division Pitcher of the Week: Mark Tindall, Northern Colorado
Mark Tindall had a very balanced performance against the Rocky Mountain Vibes this week, throwing 68 strikes on 116 total pitches in a 6-2 win on September 2nd, recording his seventh win of the season over 15 starts. Tindall struck out six Vibes players with no earned runs, while giving away four hits and three walks to cap off an important win as the Owlz make a final push for the South Division title and a spot in the playoffs. This is the first time this season that Tindall has won this award.
South Division Batter of the Week: Jackson Coutts, 1B, Northern Colorado
Northern Colorado is still surviving in the South Division and the consequent playoff race, in large part due to a home series 4-2 win throughout the week over the division leading Vibes. First baseman/designated hitter Jackson Coutts was the engine at the heart of the Owlz lineup that kept their postseason hopes alive, with decisive performances. Coutts had 10 hits over the week, six of those for extra bases, with three home runs, 12 RBI, six runs and 22 total bases, plus two walks. His batting average was a solid .400, with .464 on base percentage and slugging .880. Coutts’ best game came on August 30th on an 18-18 tie that the Owlz would later win in the Knockout round, with three homers, two of them in the bottom of the second inning and the third one a grand slam in the bottom of the fourth, totaling eight RBIs for him on the day. He also contributed to narrow wins with clutch RBIs both on August 28th and September 1st. This is the first Batter of the Week award for Coutts this season.