Two local baseball players earned team MVP awards and made their respective all-star teams in their first year with Major League Baseball organizations.

Ty Kelly and Kyle Jensen, both 2006 graduates of St. Mary’s High School and former Tracy Little League players, finished their rookie years in pro baseball in October.

Kelly played with the Class A Aberdeen Ironbirds, part of the Baltimore Orioles organization, and batted .286, with a home run, 12 runs batted in and five doubles. He played third base and second base for the Ironbirds. He also had the fewest strikeouts per plate appearance in the New York-Penn League, putting the ball in play an average of nine out of every 10 of his 260 plate appearances.

Jensen was the most valuable player for the Jamestown Jammers, part of the Florida Marlins organization and also in the New York-Penn League. Jensen led his team in triples, with five for the year. He also hit four home runs and had 24 runs batted in, and his 83 total bases was the second-best stat for his team.

They ended up playing against each other in the New York-Penn All-Star game in August. Kelly hit a double and scored a run for the American League All-Stars on their way to a 4-2 win, and Jensen, on the National All-Stars, drew a walk and stole second base.