Nick Madrigal To Play For Team USA

CORVALLIS, Ore. – Oregon State sophomore infielder Nick Madrigal has accepted an invitation to play for the USA Baseball Collegiate National Team this summer.

"It means everything to me," Madrigal said of the chance to play for the club. "Ever since I was younger, I've watched Team USA play on TV and it was always a dream of mine to wear USA across my chest. I've been thankful to wear it a couple times already but every time I put it on the same feelings are there. It has a special place in my heart."

Madrigal is having an exceptional start to the 2017 season, batting .426 over the team's first 18 games. He has 29 hits, 21 runs, five doubles, three triples and 11 runs batted in.

Madrigal has come to the plate 80 times, recording 11 walks, one hit by pitch and only one strikeout.

The native of Elk Grove, Calif., is a veteran of Team USA, previously competing for the program's 14U, 15U and 18U clubs, in 2011, 2012 and 2014, respectively. In those three years, he played in 23 games, collecting a .397 batting average (31-for-78) with one double, one triple, two home runs and 16 runs batted in.

His 2011 14U club earned the COPABE Pan Am 14U Championship gold medal in Venezuela.

Madrigal's selection to the team continues what has become a proud tradition of Oregon State players competing for the Collegiate National Team. At least one Oregon State player has competed for the team every year since 2011.

Jonah Nickerson and Kevin Gunderson were the first Beavers to compete for Team USA, doing so in 2005. Darwin Barney followed them in 2006, with Kevin Rhoderick in 2008. Matt Boyd began the string of now seven consecutive seasons in 2011, followed by Michael Conforto (2012 and 2013), Dan Child (2012), Andrew Moore (2014), Drew Rasmussen (2015) and KJ Harrison (2015 and 2016).

Additionally, Brian Barden competed for Team USA at the 2008 Olympics. Carter Bell and Jordan Lennerton have also worn their country's colors, with both playing for Team Canada.

About Team USA
The 2017 Collegiate National Team will train at the USA Baseball National Training Complex in Cary, North Carolina, and compete in a series of games with teams from the Coastal Plains League from June 20-25. The U.S. will then host international friendship series against Chinese Taipei and Cuba from June 27 – July 7, in Cary, Charlotte and Durham, North Carolina. Both series will be streamed live on USABaseball.com. Follow @USABaseball and @USABaseballCNT on Twitter for all of the latest news on USA Baseball and the Collegiate National Team.

Next Up
Top-ranked Oregon State hosts No. 9 Arizona in a three-game series that starts Friday at Goss Stadium at Coleman Field. First pitch Friday is slated for 7:05 p.m. PT. Tickets remain for the series and can be purchased by visiting BeaverTickets.com/Baseball.

Follow Us On Social
For more information on the Oregon State baseball team, follow the club's official Twitter account at Twitter.com/BeaverBaseball, by Facebook at Facebook.com/OregonStateBaseball or on Instagram at Instagram.com/BeaverBaseball.

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Players Mentioned

KJ Harrison

Nick Madrigal

Drew Rasmussen

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