May 11, 2021

Official Kitchener Panthers News Release

KITCHENER, ONT. - The Kitchener Panthers are pleased to announce the signing of infielder Lucas Diluca (LaSalle, Ont.) for the 2021 season.

Diluca is a prime example of a player taking the Junior College route to get to where they need to be. In 2018, he played for Cayuhoga Community College in Ohio where he batted .415 with an OBP of .560, scoring 56 runs, stealing 20 bases with 36 RBIs and two home runs. For his efforts, he was named to the Canadian Baseball Networks’ All-Canadian College Second Team in 2018.

His performance landed him a scholarship to Eastern Illinois University (NCAA Division 1). So far during the 2021 campaign, he is batting .275, with a .388 OBP, 39 hits, 34 walks and had 13 RBIs in 41 games out of the leadoff spot.

“I had the privilege of coaching Lucas for five years. He has the smoothest hands of any infielder I’ve seen in some time. He is an on base machine and Kitchener fans will come to adore him as he’s one of the more coachable players I’ve ever coached,” said Panthers Field Manager Don Menard.

The Kitchener Panthers are a member of Canada’s top baseball league, the Intercounty Baseball League. The 102-year-old summer league is one of the oldest baseball leagues in the world, with the league established in 1919, drawing significantly more fans, in a friendly ballpark experience, than any league of its kind.