Daytona lands three on postseason All-Star team
DAYTONA BEACH, Fla—Catcher Alfredo Duno was named Florida State League Most Valuable Player while infielders Carlos Sanchez and Sammy Stafura were also named to the postseason FSL All-Star team on Tuesday.
Duno was also named catcher on the postseason All-Star team and was tabbed as the circuit’s top MLB prospect. The 19-year-old native of Venezuela enjoyed a tremendous season, slashing .287/.430/.518 with 112 hits, 78 runs, 32 doubles, 18 home runs, and 81 RBI. Duno led the Florida State League in runs, doubles, home runs, RBI, on-base percentage, slugging, OPS (.948), walks (95), extra-base hits (52), and total bases (202), while finishing second in batting average and hits.
In the process, he set Tortugas single-season record in walks (95), RBI (81), on-base percentage (.430) and OPS (.948) in a season. He also earned Florida State League Player of the Week three times, a first in Tortugas history, and was FSL Player of the Month for August. The catcher also suited up in the All-Star Futures Game in Atlanta on July 12.
Duno becomes the second player in Tortugas history to earn MVP honors, joining Aristedes Aquino in 2016. In Daytona Beach baseball history, Larry Ray for the 1980 Daytona Beach Astros and Brandon Sing of the 2004 Daytona Cubs also took home the MVP award.
Not to be outdone, infielders Sanchez and Stafura were also key contributors on the left side of the infield for Daytona earlier in the season, earning their All-Star nods
Sanchez, a 20-year-old native of the Dominican Republic, completely transformed himself after a difficult 2024 campaign, slashing .308/.429/.449 in 60 games, stroking 10 doubles, 4 triples, 4 home runs, and 33 RBI, while also stealing 13 bases. Sanchez was also named FSL Player of the Week twice in a three-week span early in the season. He was promoted to High-A Dayton on June 24.
Stafura, a 20-year-old from Cortlandt, New York, played his second year in Daytona after a strong 2024 season. He built off that effort by slashing .261/.392/.410 with 18 doubles, 9 triples, 4 home runs, 48 RBI, and 28 stolen bases. Stafura was still with Daytona when he was traded to the Pittsburgh Pirates on July 30 for Ke’Bryan Hayes.
This season is the second in a row that Daytona had a major award winner, as Nestor Lorant was named FSL Pitcher of the Year in 2024. This year also joins 2023 (three selections) and 2018 (six selections) as the only years in Tortugas history with three or more postseason All-Stars.
Duno and the rest of the Tortugas still have one more opportunity to add one more honor this season: a Florida State League championship.
The Tortugas, currently trailing 1-0 against Lakeland in the best-of-three Florida State League Championship Series, resume the series tonight, needing two wins on the road to earn the first FSL crown in Tortugas history.
First pitch tonight will be at 6:30 p.m. with pregame coverage on the Tortuga Radio Network with the Voice of the Tortugas, Brennan Mense, beginning at 6:20.
ABOUT THE DAYTONA TORTUGAS
The Daytona Tortugas are in their tenth season as the Single-A Affiliate of the Cincinnati Reds and a member of Minor League Baseball’s Florida State League. The Tortugas play at historic Jackie Robinson Ballpark in Daytona Beach, Florida that was recently designated a National Commemorative Site. Jackie Robinson Ballpark also plays host to Bethune-Cookman University, the Jackie Robinson Ballpark Museum, and many community events and initiatives of all sizes throughout the year.
