Lookouts Daniel Palka Named Southern League Player of the Month

MARIETTA, GA – The Southern League of Professional Baseball Clubs announces the Southern League-MiLB.com Player of the Month for June. Rightfielder Daniel Palka of the Chattanooga Lookouts (Minnesota Twins) was selected for the honors after crushing 13 homeruns and driving in 30 runs.

Over 26 games played during June, Palka led all of baseball with a .802 slugging percentage and tied for tops with his 13 homers. The rightfielder from Lyman, South Carolina batted .302 with 20 runs, 29 hits, 19 extra-base hits, 77 total bases, three doubles, three triples, 13 walks and three stolen bases. Palka crushed Southern League pitchers last month, pacing the circuit in runs, extra-base hits, RBI, slugging and OPS. With more dominating numbers, the Georgia Tech product collected 21 more total bases and seven more homeruns than the next highest totals in the loop.

In 22 of his 26 games, Palka recorded at least a base hit or drove in a run. His most impressive stretch came from June 6 to 12, culminating with a League Player of the Week nod. Over those seven games, the SL homerun leader poked four longballs with 10 RBI and a .345 batting average. His biggest night came in a 15-1 victory over Jacksonville on June 9, going 2-for-3 with three runs, two homeruns, four RBI, a pair of walks and a stolen base.

After being named an All-American at Georgia Tech, the Arizona Diamondbacks selected Palka with their third round pick of the 2013 draft before a trade in November of 2015 sent the slugger to the Twins organization. Palka has proven sustained excellence through his young minor league career, being selected to three consecutive All-Star Games including his most recent, the 2016 SL classic in Mississippi.