QUÉBEC NATIVES GLADU, PELLETIER JOINING TROIS-RIVIERES
The Trois-Rivières Aigles announce the return of Raphael Gladu for the 2022 season. Following an excellent first season in 2019, the Trifluvien was dominant with Équipe Québec last summer with a batting average of 0.375 and 38 RBIs in 176 batting appearances.
Gladu, a 26-year-old local and the 2017 New York Mets' 16th round pick, will return for a second season with the Aigles. On his independent debut in 2019, he maintained a .302 batting average and slammed 21 doubles. He also led the team's RBI column with 64 in just 69 games.
Last summer, for personal reasons, he made the decision not to start the season with Équipe Québec. However, when the training was cleared to return home, Gladu jumped in and was a key part of the training.
"Raphael's case was one of the priorities for us this fall. It is a privilege to bet on a local player with so much talent who will be able to rally all the other players behind him towards the achievement of our objectives. In addition, he perfectly embodies the values of our organization and understands that his role is as important in the field as it is in the community, "said General Manager Simon Laliberté.
The Trois-Rivières Aigles also initialed an agreement with Louis-Philippe Pelletier. The outfielder dominated Équipe Québec's success regular hitters last summer in batting average (.328), doubles (27), triples (7), runs (85) and stolen goals (40) .
The 25-year-old, 38th round pick by the San Diego Padres in 2014 and 20th round in 2016 by the Houston Astros, has established himself as one of the main players in Équipe Québec's success. Despite four seasons of absence in the professional ranks, he quickly picked up the pace.
"We knew he was an excellent baseball player and he responded very well with an extraordinary season with Équipe Québec. The more the season progressed, the more he stood out from the crowd with his work ethic and speed while playing with a few injuries, said Aigles manager Matthew Rusch. He's definitely the type of player we need to develop a winning culture in our locker room," Rusch added.
In addition to being a leader on the field and in the locker room, Pelletier quickly became a crowd favorite last summer. Fans of the team will be able to identify with this very charismatic and spectacular Québec player.
