Rochester Redhawks riding high into state Legion tournament on home field
Jul. 25—ROCHESTER — It was an inauspicious start for the Rochester Redhawks, one that did not at all predict what they've done in the last month.
The Redhawks have won 15 of their last 16 games, including romping to an unblemished 4-0 record in a Division I SubState 1 American Legion baseball tournament.
They
beat Winona 13-7 in the title game
Saturday.
The Redhawks will take all of the confidence and good feelings generated from that awesome stretch to the state tournament. It won't travel to do it, with Rochester hosting the 16-team tournament for the first time in 20 years.
The 21-7 Redhawks lead off against Bemidji at 12:30 p.m. Thursday, then play Washburn at 3 p.m. On Friday, they meet Eden Prairie at 12:30 p.m. All three of those pool-play games are at Massey Field.
They'll do it with their 3-4 start to this season in their rear-view mirror.
"Our guys are showing up to work and getting better each day," said Redhawks coach Tom Senne, who had a handful of players from his standout Mayo spring team elect to play club baseball this summer instead of Legion ball. That forced new players into key roles. Two of the most crucial ones have been incoming-sophomores Kyle Leopold and Lincoln Majerus, the team's starting shortstop and second baseman, respectively.
Both have been excellent the past month, including Leopold often dazzling at shortstop. It's the kind of progress that has keyed the Redhawks' second-half surge.
"With the young guys, we had to find (players) who could handle these spots," Senne said. "Finding the right guys for the right positions, that was important to fill those gaps. Those younger guys, they're starting to really adjust to the speed of the game. And we had some older guys who have taken the younger ones under their wings and really helped them out."
The Redhawks have no better example of mentorship than Kyle Prindle. A 2022 Mayo graduate who spent last school year playing baseball at Edgewood College in Madison, Wis., Prindle thrilled Senne when he agreed to play for the Redhawks this summer, Prindle meeting the age requirement for Legion eligibility.
A third baseman and catcher for the Redhawks, Prindle has been just as vital with his leadership as with his stellar play.
"Kyle Prindle has been unbelievable," Senne said. "He's like having a fifth coach out there. I couldn't have been more happy then when he came back to play with us."
Prindle, who is batting a team-leading .455 with five home runs, has eaten up his "player/coach" role for his team.
"I love kind of being a mini coach in a sense," Prindle said. "I like that the guys can come up to me and ask me about something and that they then listen and apply it. I've just really liked this environment. I'm so glad I came back."
Prindle is one of a host of older players who have the Redhawks believing they can accomplish big things in a state tournament they've not participated in since 2014.
Among them are 2023 graduates Mason Leimbek and Kasey Carlson. Leimbek has had a monster spring and summer (batting .409 with a team-leading 10 doubles). Carlson is the team's pitching ace (5-0, 1.5 ERA). Alec Sadowy is right behind him with a 4-0 record and also a 1.5 ERA.
Carson Beavers has also been on a tear, batting .444.
Winona's pitching didn't come through in Saturday's championship game with the Rochester Redhawks. But that has been a rarity for the LeJetz. Winona enters the state tournament with an impressive 2.36 team ERA.
"This is one of the strongest pitching staffs we've had," Winona coach Gary Hoeppner said. "We can roll out five different starting pitchers who are all good."
The one generally getting rolled out first is Cody Hundorf, who's among five players on this Winona team who are 2022 high school graduates. An incoming-sophomore pitcher at Winona State University, Hundfordf is 7-2 for the LeJetz, with a 2.03 ERA. The left-hander throws in the mid-80s.
"Cody also has good off-speed pitches and he pounds the strike zone," Hoeppner said. "He's a crafty lefthander."
Marcus Winter and Jack Spiten are regarded as Winona's next best pitchers. Both have terrific ERAs, Spiten's .933 and Spiten's 2.38. All of that excellent pitching has had the LeJetz on a tear, especially the second half of the season. Winona has won 11 of its past 13 games, both of the losses to the hard-hitting Redhawks.
"We are playing really well," Hoeppner said. "We've peaked at the right time. We started off slow in June, but once we got rolling, we've played really good baseball."
Center fielder Cole Schossow has been Winona's top hitter, batting .387. Jon Going has also had a nice year at the plate. The third baseman is batting .329 and has four triples and two doubles.
Winona is making its first appearance at state since 2018. The LeJetz begin at 10 a.m. Thursday, playing Prior Lake. At 12:30 p.m. they play St. Michael, both those pool-play games at John Adams Middle School's Alumni Field.
State tournament pairings
La Crescent rode a fantastic pitching performance by Jack Welch in
beating Caledonia 2-0 in the Division II SubState 1 American Legion baseball championship
Sunday. Welch, a 2022 La Crescent graduate who pitched this past year at Luther College, tossed a one-hitter over seven innings en route to the win. He walked just one and struck out one.
La Crescent picked up single runs in the third and sixth innings.
Brady Grupa, Eli McCool, Mayes Boyer, Mitchell Reining, Kale Baker and Zack Bentzen each had one hit for La Crescent. Reining stroked a double.
La Crescent's Southeast SubState championship win lands it in the Division II American Legion state tournament. The event is Friday-Sunday, July 28-30, in Roseau. It will face Proctor in the state quarterfinals on Friday.
