SAN DIEGO (Dec. 6, 2019) – Last week at the MLB Winter Meetings, President Ron Porterfield of the Professional Baseball Athletic Trainers Society (PBATS) announced the winners of the PBATS Major League Baseball Athletic Training Staff of the Year, among other awards, including PBATS Hall of Fame inductions and more.
The PBATS awards ceremony, which was held on December 5, 2019, included the honors below:
- Baseball Assistance Team Donation: On behalf of Mark Letendre, PBATS Alum
- 2019 Past President’s Award: Mark O’Neal, former Chicago Cubs Medical Director
- 2019 President’s Distinguished Service Award: Ken Crenshaw, Arizona Diamondbacks
- 2019 20-Year Service Award: George Poulis, Atlanta Braves
- Minor League Athletic Trainer of the Year: Chris McDonald, Detroit Tigers
- Major League Athletic Training Staff of the Year: Oakland Athletics (Nick Paparesta, Brian Schulman, Jeff Collins)
- PBATS Hall of Fame Inductee: Dr. James Andrews (Tampa Bay Rays, Andrews Institute)
- PBATS Hall of Fame Inductee: Mr. Gene Gieselmann (St. Louis Cardinals)
About the awards, Porterfield said, “I’m happy to announce PBATS’ 2019 PBATS awards. From the service awards to the Minor League and Major League awards, and of course the Hall of Fame inductees, we were able to honor an incredible group of past and present athletic trainers.”
Porterfield added, “To win an award voted on by your peers is a true honor for any athletic trainer in the game of baseball. These talented individuals are the leaders in baseball athletic training and they should be extremely proud of their accomplishments and the future to come for many.”
For more information or any press inquiries, please contact: sam@theromanogroup.com
ABOUT PBATS: The mission of the Professional Baseball Athletic Trainers Society (PBATS) is to serve as an educational resource for the Major League and Minor League Baseball athletic trainers. For more information, please visit www.pbats.com