Staff

Front Office

Heather Mills

Chief Financial Officer

Phone815-651-2040

The 2020 season will be Heather’s 12th year in professional baseball and eighth with the Joliet Slammers. She joined the Slammers in 2013 as Box Office Manager, in 2015 was promoted to Assistant General Manager, and in 2016 was named the General Manager. Heather previously worked for the Kane County Cougars and the Memphis Redbirds, where she won a PCL Championship.

In the few spare moments Heather isn’t at DuPage Medical Group Field, she enjoys reading, baking, taking photographs, visiting Chicago’s museums, and catching Cubs games at Wrigley Field. Despite not being the Heather Mills that was married to Paul McCartney, she is also a Beatles fan. Heather enjoys sharing random useless trivia and farm facts with the office. Her goal in life is to appear on Jeopardy!

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John Wilson

Executive Vice President of Baseball Operations/Chief Revenue Officer

Phone815-651-2032

Emailjwilson@jolietslammers.com

John comes to the Slammers with significant, high-level experience in sports. Wilson is a graduate of Indiana State University and has worked in sports since 2004. He has spent time with the Minnesota Timberwolves of the NBA, Tampa Bay Buccaneers of the NFL, Sacramento River Cats and Pawtucket Red Sox both Triple A affiliated baseball teams, and most recently served as General Manager of the Frontier League’s Southern Illinois Miners.

Lauren Rhodes

Assistant General Manager

Phone815-651-2041

Emaillrhodes@jolietslammers.com

Lauren is a Blackburn College graduate with a degree in Sport Management. While at Blackburn, she played three years of softball and assisted with coaching one year due to injury. This will be Lauren's fifth season with the Slammers. Prior to being hired by the Slammers, Lauren interned with the Chicago Bandits Professional Softball Team.

In her spare time you will find her obsessing over Harry Potter, the Packers, and her dog Stella.

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Ken Miller

Director of Community Relations

Phone815-651- 2036

EmailEmail:kmiller@jolietslammers.com

Ken is a lifelong Coal City resident and has been a part of the Slammers team for 10 years. Ken is no stranger to the sports world – having coached high school sports for 47 years.

In 2016, Ken was inducted into the Illinois Football Coaches Associations Hall of Fame. Congratulations Ken! In addition, Ken has worked in the education field for 34 years. He currently serves as an Officer and Board member of the Pitch and Hit Club of Chicago, Chicago’s Professional Baseball Organization. He has been a member for the past 20 years. Outside of work, Ken enjoys charity work and visiting with his five grandchildren.

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Lauren Baca

Director of Marketing and Corporate Services

Phone815-531-0514

Emaillbaca@jolietslammers.com

Lauren is a graduate of Carthage College with a degree in Public Relations and Communications. She began her career at an integrated PR and Marketing firm before chasing her dream of working within the sports industry. Since then, she has been a publicist for a three-time World Series Champion, interned with The New York Mets, and worked for the collegiate-level Kenosha Kingfish.

Brianna Avalos

Director of Promotions

Phone815-232-4712

Emailbavalos@jolietslammers.com

Brianna is a first generation college student from North Central College with a degree in Marketing & Management. During her time there, she was captain of the cheerleading team and was involved in many organizations like Sport Management Association and Weekend Programming. She was a cheerleader for 14 years and now is a cheerleading coach at her high school. Before the Slammers, she completed an internship with the Kane County Cougars and was awarded Employee of the Month in August of 2021. Other organizations she has been a part of in the sports industry include the Chicago Bears and the Chicago Fire Football Club.

When she is not working, she enjoys spending time with her dogs, cheering for Chicago sports teams, and watching rom-coms with friends. She is also the proud owner of 115 Spotify playlists (and counting).

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Trey Wolters

Box Office Manager

Phone815-205-3500

Emailtwolters@jolietslammers.com

While growing up, in Coldwater, OH, sports have always been Trey's passion, and he honored his passion by playing a variety of sports throughout school. After high school graduation, he chose to attend Bowling Green State University ('21) and earn a B.A. in Sport Management. He is excited to be moving to Illinois to begin his career in the sports industry.

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Luis Morales

Group Sales Representative

Phone815-242-5461

Emaillmorales@jolietslammers.com

Originally from Chicago, IL, this is Luis’s first season with the Joliet Slammers as our group sales representative. Luis is a super fan of everything Chicago Cubs and the UFC. In his spare time, Luis practices Brazilian Jiu Jitsu and is on the hunt for the best pizza spot in Will County.

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Coaching

Dan Schlereth

Field Manager

Emaildschlereth@jolietslammers.com

Prior to joining the Slammers, Schlereth was a first round draft pick in 2008 by the Arizona Diamondbacks, and made his Major League Baseball (MLB) debut in May 2009. Later that same year, he and Max Scherzer were traded to the Detroit Tigers as part of a three-team trade. During his time with the Detroit Tigers, 2009-2012, Schlereth won the American League Central and, after suffering an injury, was a member of the team that competed in the 2012 World Series. The Tigers non-tendered Schlereth’s contract in the fall of 2012, and Schlereth went on to play for ten other MLB organizations’ minor league teams in thirteen years.

Matt Shepardson

Bench Coach

Emailbaseball@jolietslammers.com

Matt joins the Slammers as the Quality Assurance Coach for the 2022 season. He brings certifications and advanced training in baseball analytics, swing analysis and coaching, pitching fundamentals, and mental skills and performance. He has spent the last seven seasons with Illinois Hawks baseball and softball, and also has experience in player evaluation and scouting.

Wes Anderson

Pitching Coach

Anderson currently serves as the Minooka High School baseball team pitching coach. He also works as the Pitching Coordinator for Mission360 and in 2020 served as the roving pitching coach for the Joliet Slammers Collegiate League.

Anderson played for Minooka High School before pitching for Joliet Junior College, advancing to the NJCAA DIII College World Series in 2000. He is Driveline Foundations of Pitching and Basics of Pitch Design certified, as well as being Rapsodo Baseball Pitching certified.

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