GASTONIA, N.C. – Jake Gatewood was named to the 2024 Drake All-Defensive Team, as announced by the Atlantic League on Tuesday.
Gatewood played 115 games in the field this season, spending 78 games at third base and 37 at shortstop. He recorded a .976 fielding percentage with a 2.56 range factor per game while manning the hot corner. At short, Gatewood excelled with a .981 fielding percentage and a 4.14 range factor. He only committed eight errors and helped turn 30 double plays.
The Clovis, California native is one of nine Atlantic League players to be named to the All-Defensive Team this season.
Gatewood was drafted in the first round of the 2014 MLB Draft by the Milwaukee Brewers. He reached Triple-A with the Los Angeles Angels organization in 2021 and 2022.
In addition to his defensive prowess, Gatewood had a banner year at the plate in 2024. He slashed .295/.395/.607, which totals a 1.002 OPS. Gatewood hit 33 home runs and drove in a league-best 121 runs, which broke the Gastonia franchise RBI record set by Josh Sale (104) in 2021.
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Gastonia Baseball Club concluded it’s first season of operations with Zawyer Sports & Entertainment – a sports ownership group with professional teams operating in the U.S. and the fourth season for the franchise at CaroMont Health Park in the FUSE District of Gastonia. The Baseball Club had a historic inaugural season, leading the Atlantic League with 83 wins and 201 home runs. Gastonia went 46-17 in the first half of the season, which is the highest winning percentage (.730) in a single half in league history. The Club became the first organization with multiple 200+ home run seasons and set the league record for highest win percentage in a three-year span (.651 from 2022-2024).