The Under Armour Baseball Factory National Tryout Tour makes a stop at GCS Ballpark in Sauget, Illinois on Sunday, October 11th.

Sauget is a short drive across the Mississippi River into St. Louis, Missouri, bordering the Illinois/Missouri state line. A number of players living in the surrounding areas have attended National Tryouts in Sauget in the past since the distance between the two towns are just eight short miles.

GCS Ballpark is a minor league baseball facility, home to the Gateway Grizzlies of the Frontier League. GCS Ballpark was built in 2002 and hosted the 2008 NCAA Division II Baseball Championship.

Today’s student-athletes are native to Illinois and all three have had success at different levels of their careers.

Darius Day during the Under Armour All-American Game in 2013 at Wrigley Field in Chicago, Illinois.

Darius Day – The Chicago native is a 2014 graduate from Simeon Career Academy, located on the south side of Chicago.

Day attended an Under Armour Baseball Factory National Tryout in River Forest, Illinois back in June of 2013 and just two months later, the Chicago kid played in front of what amounted to a home game at the pinnacle of high school showcases; the 2013 Under Armour All-America Game. Day turned in a nice afternoon at the plate, going 1-for-4 with an RBI single, walk, stolen base and a run scored. He also played all three outfield positions and played them well, moving and reacting well to the ball and showing off his speed, showing off his range.

Day was snagged in the 23rd round of the 2014 Draft by the Texas Rangers, and at 21 years of age, is coming along nicely in the Rangers minor league system. He’s played the entire year for the short-season Single-A Spokane Indians out of the Northwest League and the 5’11”, 175 pound outfielder has played well, hitting .261 with eight doubles, a triple, a home run, 18 RBI, 13 stolen bases and 26 runs scored in 54 games.

Jake Ring

Jake Ring – Ring is a 2013 graduate of Grant High School and is a native of Ingleside, Illinois. The speedy outfielder set a high school record with 40 stolen bases during his sophomore season in 2011. He accomplished that feat in just 16 games. He took home 2012 Team MVP honors as a junior after hitting .455 with 50 runs scored, 28 stolen bases, 14 extra-base hits, 29 RBI and 39 walks, numbers that earned him a spot on the Third Team All-State honors along with All-Area, All-County and All-Conference honors.

Ring attended a National Tryout in McCook, Illinois back in December 2010 and followed that up with an appearance at the 2012 Under Armour Team One South Showcase where his athleticism in the outfield defensively and skill set at the plate stood out during the event.

Ring just wrapped up his sophomore season at the University of Missouri, one in which he recorded a team-best 22 extra-base hits. One of the biggest breakout players in the SEC, he had a handful of career highs, including: average (.282), runs (39), doubles (15), triples (three), homers (four) and stolen bases (eight). He also recorded 17 multi-hit games.

Matthew James

Matthew James – James is from Normal, Illinois and a 2013 graduate from Normal West High School and his high school was all but “normal” when he set school records in triples (7) and ERA (0.62) and school records in wins (28), ERA (1.08) and strikeouts (288). He earned four varsity letters in baseball and led Normal West to a regional championship in 2012 as a junior.

In December of 2010, James attended a National Tryout in McCook (same event as Ring) and from there, attended the University of Illinois where as a freshman in 2014, recorded a double for his first collegiate hit and scored a run in his first start at Southern Illinois. He stepped up as a sophomore this past season, starting 24 games (playing in 38 overall) and hit .261 with four doubles, a triple, four home runs and 17 RBI for the Fighting Illini. James was named an Academic All-Big Ten in 2015.

The Under Armour Baseball Factory National Tryout Tour will be rolling into a town near you soon! Visit our tryout page to register and receive more information.