Ernie Banks Jr.

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Ernie Banks Jr.

BR Minors page

Biographical Information[edit]

Minor league 1B Ernie Banks Jr. is no relation to hall-of-famer Ernie Banks (though his father was named for Banks).

Banks hit .310/.379/.372 for Norfolk State in 2005 then improved to .373/.433/.526 in 2006. He was third in the Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference in average and 4th in OBP and made All-MEAC. As a junior, he was just as productive - .362/.475/.506. He was third in the MEAC in OBP and 4th in walks (34) and again was All-Conference. The Florida Marlins took him in the 44th round of the 2007 amateur draft.

Banks had a fine pro debut for the GCL Marlins, producing at a .324/.383/.378 clip in 22 games. He hit .300/.377/.436 with 51 RBI in 67 games for the 2008 Jamestown Jammers. He was third in the New York-Penn League in RBI behind Cody Overbeck and Phil Disher. Despite that performance, the Marlins let him go after that season.

Banks then moved on to the independent leagues. In 2009, he had a huge year with the Washington Wild Things and River City Rascals (.353/.437/.668, 24 HR, 65 R, 75 RBI in 77 G). He led the Frontier League in slugging and OPS, made the top 5 in average and OBP, was 8th in RBI and tied Grant Psomas for 5th in home runs. He was named the league's All-Star first baseman while Joey Metropoulos took home MVP honors.

In 2010, Ernie bounced between the Southern Illinois Miners (.246/.312/.412, 23 RBI in 29 G), Sioux City Explorers (.338/.416/.455 in 23 G) and Grand Prairie AirHogs (.358/.414/.566, 14 RBI in 13 G). He opened 2011 in the site of his 2009 stardom but struggled with Washington (.207/.289/.303 in 42 G, only 2 home runs) and moved on to the Southern Illinois Miners, where he hit .285/.331/.511 in 36 games. He started 2012 well with the Laredo Lemurs (.343/.393/.474 in 39 G) before joining the Normal CornBelters.

Related Sites[edit]

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