JONESBORO, Ark. (2/14/17) –  The Arkansas State baseball program held the 15th annual “Grand Slam Banquet” Tuesday night, Feb. 14 in front of a capacity crowd at the Convocation Center.

The event began with fans getting a chance to participate in a silent auction that featured an array of items including A-State apparel, memorabilia from current and past MLB stars, food, household items, and much more.  Fans were then treated to a fantastic meal, courtesy of Gene Vance and Bistro on the Ridge.

The function continued with the 2017 Red Wolves being introduced by classification by head coach Tommy Raffo and walking out to their respective “walk-up” song. Each player was then asked a question by Raffo to help the crowd get to know each of them a little better. Raffo then awarded the John Knight Baseball Mangers' Scholarship to Chris Dean, Lucas Williams, Hunter Schneider, and Drew Kilgore.

Master of Ceremonies and A-State baseball play-by-play announcer Matt Stolz kept the program moving along as auctioneer Joel King was introduced and conducted a live auction featuring a Bill Clinton autographed St. Louis Post-Dispatch '92 Election Day newspaper, a Cal Ripken, Jr., autographed bat, Muhammad Ali autographed boxing gloves, a Whitey Ford, Billy Martin, and Mickey Mantle autographed picture, a Howling Red Wolf statue, and two separate St. Louis Cardinals ticket packages. The first four items were donated by Phil Ford with the statue coming from Perry Winn while the ticket packages were donated by keynote speaker Al Hrabosky.

After the live auction, Raffo presented the Ed Way Heart and Hustle Award, in memory of the late Ed Way, to junior outfielder Casey Vaughan. Coach Raffo was then joined on stage by Way's wife, Dianna, and son, Phillip, for the presentation.

The night concluded with a speech by the former Major League pitcher and current St. Louis Cardinals broadcaster Hrabosky, also known as “The Mad Hungarian.” He spoke of his colorful career and offered several humorous stories. He also touched on what it meant to be able to speak at the event, the current state of baseball, and several other topics.

Hrabosky signed autographs before the event in a special reception and also stayed afterwards to sign autographs for even more fans. The A-State baseball team's seniors also thanked those in attendance and presented roses to several people including strength and conditioning coach Jen Taft and academic advisor Crimsynn Dover.

A-State opens the 2017 season in just a little over a week on Friday, Feb. 17 against the New York Institute of Technology at 4 p.m. at Tomlinson Stadium. The Red Wolves will play a four-game set versus the Bears with a doubleheader scheduled for Saturday at 1 p.m. The series finale against NYIT will take place on Sunday at 1 p.m.