The best the Northwoods league has to offer converged on Madison
for the 2003 league All-Star game on Wednesday night. The
best talent of the league’s two divisions squared off in what
became a hitting showcase as the North Division rallied to beat the
South 8-7 in front of an All-Star record 4,310 spectators.
Mallards manager Darrell Handelsman had the
honor of managing the South due to the Madison club’s 22-10 record
in the first half of the season. St. Cloud River Bat’s
manager Tom Fleenor took the reigns of the North Division
all-stars.
The North took the early lead scoring runs in
each of the first two innings. Jon Olsen of the Mallards was
awarded the starting job for the South, giving up one run on two
hits and a walk. Eddie Camacho of the La Crosse Loggers gave
up three singles for the South in the second inning, accounting for
the North Division’s second run.
Madison’s Corey Cabral, one of eight Mallards
representing the South, had control issues in the top of the fifth
inning; allowing two runs on two hits, an error and a hit
batsman.
Ben Zorbist of the Waterloo Bucks put the
South on the board in the bottom of the fifth inning with a
bases-loaded double, bringing the South back within one run at
4-3.
The game built to a 6-6 draw at the end of
eight, but the North scored in the top of the ninth.
Dramatically, Handelsman’s South squad forced extra frames as the
team’s seventh run of the game crossed the plate on a wild
pitch.
The North put together a string of two out
singles in the top of the 10th off of La Crosse’s Ben
Stanczyk to score the game’s winning run. Duluth’s Steve
Plucinski shut the door in the bottom of the tenth as the South
recorded three straight groundouts. St. Cloud’s J.P. Martinez
picked up the win for the North Division
Alexandria outfielder Tom Wolf was named the
game Most Valuable Player after going 2-4 with an RBI and two runs
scored.
The Mallards team personnel made the All-star
game a daylong affair with the festivities kicking off at 12:30
with the All-Star luncheon. Two-time National league batting
champion Tommy Davis and Texas Rangers assistant general manager
Dan O’Brien addressed Northwoods League players and coaches who
gathered on the right field deck at Warner Park. Both
speakers addressed primarily the players focusing on the advantages
of work ethic and mental preparation in both baseball and in
life. Also in attendance was Milwaukee Brewers manager Ned
Yost, who took in the luncheon and the game while watching his son
Ned Jr. The Younger Yost was selected as a catcher for the South
Division all-stars.
In the mid-afternoon sun the All-Stars
presented their skills in an organized scouting combine.
About a dozen major league scouts were on hand for the both the
tryout and the game evaluating the best the league has to
offer.
In true All-Star fashion, six players from
each division competed in a home run derby an hour before game
time. Rochester’s Chris Nowak came away with the title
out-dueling Mankato’s Jeremiah Piepkorn for the trophy.
