Pelicans pitching trio given all-star nod

The Myrtle Beach Pelicans will be well represented when the best of the California and Carolina leagues convene upon Lake Elsinore, Calif., later this month.

Right-handed pitchers Trevor Clifton, Zach Hedges and Jake Stinnett were selected Wednesday to take part in this year’s edition of the California-Carolina League All-Star Game. The trio will join Pelicans pitching coach Anderson Tavarez and athletic trainer Toby Williams in the all-star festivities, scheduled to take place Tuesday, June 21.

Following a month in which he went 3-1 with an ERA of 1.29, Clifton was recently named the Chicago Cubs’ Minor League Pitcher of the Month for May. During the span, he finished second in the Carolina League in ERA and strikeouts (35), and third in wins.

Through 10 starts this season, Clifton is 4-3 with a 2.08 ERA.

Not far behind is fellow Pelican righty Hedges, who has notched a 2.39 ERA thus far in the 2016 baseball campaign. In 10 starts, he has allowed more than two runs twice, while racking up a 5-4 record.

Stinnett, on the other hand, has proven to be quite difficult for Carolina League hitters to figure out this season. He has held opposing batters to a .223 batting average, striking out 40 while yielding 19 free passes.

The all-star trio has been tutored this season by Tavarez, who is in his 16th year in the Cubs organization. A season after helping Short Season Class A Eugene to the Northwest League’s second-best staff ERA (3.55), Tavarez has helped the Pelicans to the Carolina League’s best mark at 3.42.

Myrtle Beach starters have ceded three earned runs or less in 41 of their last 52 starts, while posting a 3.12 ERA in that span.

The 2016 California-Carolina League All-Star Game will take place at The Diamond, home to the Lake Elsinore (Calif.) Storm.

This story was originally published June 8, 2016 at 4:12 PM with the headline "Pelicans pitching trio given all-star nod."