Owensboro natives Brad Wilkerson, Neil Holland and Justin Marks are on a roster full of former Major League Baseball players who will play against the Owensboro RiverDawgs today in the finale of the 2nd Annual Bluegrass World Series.
The series, played at Slugger Field in Louisville, allows three summer collegiate baseball squads to see how they stack up against a team of retired MLB players. The RiverDawgs will play Louisville today at 4:30 p.m.
After winning Ohio Valley League in 2018, the RiverDawgs earned a spot in this year’s BWS. Owensboro dropped their first two games of the series to the Dubois County Bombers and Hattiesburg Black Sox.
Wilkerson was named Mr. Baseball in Kentucky as a senior at Apollo in 1995. He went on to the University of Florida and was the national player of the year as a junior outfielder in 1998. Wilkerson spent eight seasons in the MLB.
Marks and Holland each attended the University of Louisville, where they earned plenty of success on the pitching staff. Marks was the Big East Pitcher of the Year and had a three-year career in the MLB. Holland went on to spend time in the minor leagues.
The most decorated player for Louisville will be Johnny Damon, a two-time World Series champion and two-time All-Star with 2,736 career hits after stints with the Kansas City Royals, Boston Red Sox and New York Yankees.
