David Eckstein to speak at Semoball Awards

St. Louis Cardinals fans in the area likely remember the three years that David Eckstein spent with their favorite team. How could you forget the shortstop known for his scrappiness or his stellar performance in the 2006 World Series that led to him being named World Series MVP?

Cards, and Eckstein, fans are in for a treat. The former MLB player was announced as the keynote speaker for the 2017 Semoball Awards on Tuesday at HealthPoint Fitness in Cape Girardeau.

This year's Semoball Awards, which recognizes high school athletes and coaches from 57 high schools in Southeast Missouri, will be held July 8 at the Bedell Performance Hall at Southeast Missouri State University's River Campus.

The Semoball Awards are presented by SoutheastHEALTH and sponsored by First Midwest Bank (Official Bank Sponsor), Athlon Sports, the St. Louis Cardinals, SEMO ESPN Radio, rustmedia and your local newspaper.

"We're excited to have David be the next in a line of outstanding speakers to participate in the Semoball Awards," Semoball.com and Southeast Missourian sports editor Josh Mlot said. "He really connected with fans during his 10-year Major League career, and I expect he'll do the same thing from the River Campus stage."

Tickets for the fourth annual award show are on sale now. More information on that, and to nominate winter and spring sport finalists, are available at semoball.com/awards.

We look forward to hearing David's message this summer and hope you'll embrace the opportunity to hear him speak.