March 09, 2007

Ambrose, a native of St. Thomas, Ontario, played 2 seasons with the London Majors.  In 2006 Ambrose batted 0.293 with 11 rbi in 12 games.  In the 2005 season, he batted 0.386 with 3 homeruns and 18 rbi in 31 games.  Mike was named 1st team allstar 2nd baseman for the 2005 season.

Ambrose completed his collegiate career at UNC Charlotte by being named to the Atlantic 10's All-Conference First Team as a shortstop. He led the team with a .366 batting average, 83 hits, 16 doubles, six triples, and 17 stolen bases. Ambrose was second on the club with 51 RBI and a .515 slugging percentage. He played in 110 straight games over his two-year career with the 49ers. He was the only two-time A-10 Player of the Week in 2006 and placed among the top 12 in 12 different hitting categories for the season, including batting average (fourth), hits (second), RBI (fifth), and triples (tied for second).
"This was a transaction that made a lot of sense," said general manager Ross Vecchio. "We had received solid reports about him, and according to the coaches at UNC Charlotte, the Pirates were the team that most heavily scouted Mike. Additionally when we were looking at Mike, the Pirates were one of the Major League Clubs that gave us good reports on him. We're very happy for him as he will get a chance with them this March to make one of their clubs."

During his junior season in 2005 Ambrose stole a team-high 20 bases in 26 attempts, and he tied for the lead with six home runs and was second on team in RBI (44), slugging percentage (.509) and triples (5). He had a season-ending 12-game hitting streak from April 30 to May 21 which was the team's longest in 2005.
Off the field, this Atlantic10 Scholar-Athlete of the Year posted a 3.92 grade point average as a psychology major. He earned ESPN the Magazine First Team Academic All-American honors in 2006, becoming the first Charlotte baseball player ever to be named to the national first team. He closed his career by posting a 4.00 grade point average over his last two semesters to earn a spot on Charlotte's Chancellor's List.