ROSWELL, N.M. - - Matt Umba, a 2011 graduate and alumni of the Wilmington University baseball team, signed a professional contract to continue playing baseball with the Roswell Invaders of the newly formed independent league Pecos Leagues of Professional Baseball Clubs earlier this Spring.
The Invaders are the 2011 Pecos League Champions in the league's inaugural season after holding the best overall regular season record. With their lime green and navy uniforms, the Invaders also led the league in merchandise sales and attendance.
Playing in Joe Bauman Park, the Invaders are 10-9 overall and sit in second place as of June 4, 2012. At the time of release, Umba has played in 11 games and has collected five hits, including one double, in 21 at-bats. He is hitting .238 with six runs scored and four walks as an outfielder.
Other teams in the league include the Alpine Cowboys, Las Cruces Vaqueros, Sante Fe Fuego, Trinidad Triggers, and the White Sands Pupfish. The Pecos League will offer a 70 game regular season. The top 4 teams will make the playoffs. Spring Training began May 1, 2012. The Playoffs will be concluded on or before August 15.
According to the leagues website, Pecos' teams play in cities that do not have Major or Minor League Baseball teams and are not affiliated with either. The Pecos League is where the Land of Enchantment meets the Lone Star State. The league's high power offenses are fueled by high altitudes and smaller ballparks. The Pecos League is home to high altitude baseball where our average elevation is 4870. Our players come from all over the US and all over the world and are a combination of rising stars, falling stars, shooting stars and athletes with stars in their eyes. Our communities take tremendous pride in their teams. The Pecos League has promoted 63 players to higher independent and affiliated teams in the summer of 2011 and off season of 2011-2012.
Umba, a senior utility player in 2011, was tabbed a Daktronics Honorable Mention All-American as well as a First Team American Baseball Coaches Association (ABCA) and NCAA All-Region selection and also earned Second Team National Collegiate Baseball Writers Association (NCBWA) honors. He was also a First Team All-Central Atlantic Collegiate Conference (CACC) award winner. Umba led the Wildcats in hitting with a .368 average, while also topping the squad in hits (64). He was second on the team in RBIs (35), stolen bases (20), total bases (86), and slugging percentage (.448), while finishing third in runs (40) and doubles (12).
As a senior in 2011 Umba helped lead Wilmington to a 37-12 overall record, including a 15-5 mark in the CACC. The Wildcats won the CACC Championship, and earned a berth to the NCAA East Regional Tournament.