The American Association of Professional Baseball announced today that Gary SouthShore RailCats centerfielder Korry Howell was selected as the 2026 Defensive Player of the Year.
Howell is a 28-year-old from Chicago that played in the Milwaukee Brewers and San Diego Padres organizations. The power-speed threat made history after homering for the 20th time on Monday to become the first RailCats player to be a 20-20 and 20-30 in history. Howell had 116 hits with a .308 batting average and an OPS of .910.
Howell defensively had a .992 fielding percentage with just two errors. The speedster used his first step, efficient routes and reading the ball off the bat to make incredible plays in the outfield. Howell is the second RailCat to win Defensive Player of the Year, joining Jose Gonzalez who won the award as a catcher in 2016.
“I have never seen a player track a ball down in centerfield like Korry did this year.” RailCats Manger Jeff Isom said. “Korry saved so many runs and hits for our pitchers, I am glad that he is being recognized for his efforts this season.”
