BOONE, N.C. – App State outfielder Banks Tolley has signed his first professional contract with the Missoula PaddleHeads.
The PaddleHeads are part of the Pioneer League, an independent professional baseball league that operates as one of Major League Baseball’s partner leagues.
Tolley, who was named a second-team All-American by ABCA/Rawlings and a third-team selection by D1Baseball, had one of the best seasons in App State history in 2024.
The senior center fielder led the Sun Belt Conference in home runs (26), slugging percentage (.781), and OPS (1.265), while ranking second in batting average (.379) and RBIs (77). He also ranked fourth in on-base percentage (.484), fifth in runs scored (70), and tied for seventh in hits (85). Tolley was named the Sun Belt Newcomer of the Year and a first-team all-conference selection.
Tolley, along with Georgia’s Charlie Condon and Austin Peay’s Lyle Miller-Green, were the only Division I players in the country to have at least a .375 batting average, 25-plus home runs, and 75-plus RBIs. He tied for 13th nationally in home runs and 17th nationally in RBIs, while also ranking in the top 50 for batting average.
The Ole Miss transfer set the single-season program record with 26 home runs, surpassing the previous record of 17.
Tolley recorded five multi-homer games and registered the second three-homer game in program history. His walk-off blast in the 10th inning secured a win over Georgia Southern on May 16, clinching a top-six seed in the Sun Belt Tournament for the Mountaineers.
In Montgomery, Ala., Tolley went 5-for-16 with a double, a homer, and six RBIs in four games, earning a spot on the Sun Belt All-Tournament team.
He also posted 27 multi-hit games and 21 multi-RBI games, hitting safely in 29 of his final 35 contests. Tolley set the App State single-season records for home runs (26), RBIs (77), and total bases (175). He ranks second in single-season history for runs scored (70) and slugging percentage (.781).
Tolley joins Austin St. Laurent (Seattle Mariners), Drew Holderbach (Mahoning Valley Scrappers, Florence Y’alls), and Dante Chirico (Florence Y’alls) as members of the 2024 squad to sign professional contracts.
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