Citing the potential for conflicts with a league salary cap, the St. Paul Saints (independent; American Association) are requesting to exempt players from Minnesota minimum wage law. (more…)
Tag Archives | minnesota
Northwoods League exploring Blaine ballpark
Another effort to bring a summer-collegiate Northwoods League team to the National Sports Center in Blaine, Minn., will be studied in the coming two months. The National Sports Center in suburban Minneapolis is a large, multifacility complex housing arenas, soccer facilities and ballfields; it’s been eyed for several years by the Northwoods League and potential […]
Marcusen Park receiving offseason facelift
Marcusen Park, the former home to independent-league and summer-collegiate baseball in Austin, Minn., is receiving an offseason upgrade. Now home to high-school and amateur baseball, Marcusen Park was formerly home to the Southern Minny Stars, which played in the independent Prairie League and then the summer-collegiate Northwoods League. It’s a classic, intimate little ballpark that first […]
Preserving a ballpark with berms
Chaska Athletic Park, a short-lived pro venue and a bastion of Minnesota amateur baseball, is a picturesque, classic facility threatened every spring by flooding — but city officials are working to change that. A riverfront site is sought-after these days for new ballparks; of course, back in 1950 when the ballpark was built by volunteers, […]
In memoriam: Harmon Killebrew
Harmon Killebrew, a gentle slugger who put the Minnesota Twins on the map and later served as an effective ambassador for the game of baseball, passed away this morning in a Phoenix hospice after battling esophageal cancer. He was 74. Killebrew, signed out of Payette High School in rural Idaho by scout Ossie Bluege, made […]
Could Ted Mondale help build a new Saints ballpark?
With the Metrodome needing serious repairs and the Minnesota Vikings (NFL) and St. Paul Saints (independent; American Association) asking the public to pony up for new facilities, Ted Mondale is proposing a Twin Cities-area stadium authority to address the issues. You may recognize the name: he’s the son of former vice-president Walter Mondale and a […]
Dayton proposes $20M for new Saints ballpark
We’re a long ways from any money actually changing hands, but a bid from the St. Paul Saints (independent; American Association) for state funding is off to a good start, as it’s made Minnesota Gov. Mark Dayton‘s initial bonding proposal, presented today to the State Legislature. Dayton released a wish list for a billion-dollar bonding […]
Twins relocating trees behind center field at Target Field
The Minnesota Twins will be relocating 14 pine trees currently planted past the center-field wall after players complained about them being a distraction at the plate. No word on how the pitchers feel about the move. In general, Twins batters weren’t that thrilled about playing at Target Field, despite the obvious team advantage of having […]
St. Paul makes Saints ballpark state-funding priority
Good news for the St. Paul Saints (independent; American Association) in their pursuit of a new ballpark: the city of St. Paul is actually backing up its stated support of the project with a real commitment to seek state funding at the upcoming legislative session. The Saints braintrust has been pushing a replacement for Midway […]
First look: Proposed St. Paul Saints ballpark
The St. Paul Saints (independent; American Association) will be taking another run at state funding for a new downtown ballpark, this time with a design of sorts in hand and a game plan that includes lots of support from the local business community. Gone is Mike Veeck‘s vision of a ballpark oriented to the west […]
Twins set attendance record in first Target Field season
You don’t think there was some pent-up demand for outdoor baseball in Minnesota? The Twins set a season attendance record at Target Field yesterday, despite playing at a very small venue by MLB standards. “We are thrilled to have achieved this record during our Inaugural Season at Target Field,” said Dave St. Peter, Twins President. […]
Midway Stadium / St. Paul Saints
It is the ballpark that put independent baseball on the map, the place where Mike Veeck and crew honed their skills at turning a minor-league baseball game into a three-ring circus. Oh, and some pretty good baseball has been played here over the years as well. Here’s a look at Midway Stadium, the home of […]
Bill Taunton Stadium / Willmar Stingers
Taunton Stadium is, at first glance, pretty reminiscent of other ballparks in the summer-collegiate Northwoods League. Then it hits you: the grandstand is exactly the same as found in Copeland Park, home of the La Crosse Loggers; the grandstand, put up in 2005 after a tornado wiped out the old grandstand, was built off the […]