There are numerous young teams in Minnesota’s Single A baseball this year, and then there are the Mariners. There are nineteen members on the team, with an amazing nine seventh graders. Coach Ward Wallin says, “The young kids are holding their own, but we can’t afford for any of our older players to get sick or injured.” Thus far, the Mariners have wins against Carlton and McGregor and have dropped games against Cherry and South Ridge and suffered a walk off loss to Mesabi East.
The pitching staff is led by Jake Stadler and Jacob Carpenter with significant contributions from Chase Mallory and Braylon Hoff.
This was a rivalry week for the Mariners with a road game against the Two Harbors Agates Tuesday before hosting the Cook County Vikings on Thursday and Mt. Iron on Friday. Playoffs in 7A begin the Tuesday after Memorial Day with South Ridge and Cherry the favorites, and Ely always a factor in the tournament.
Junior Jake Stadler says, “We don’t have lots of players so we like to laugh and complain about that, but all in all it’s going pretty well and we are having fun. Two seventh graders typically start and I am very pleased about how all the young guys are fitting in and contributing.” The Mariners have only one senior, Chase Mallory, who plays a variety of positions. Stadler said, “The first win, a one-run win over Carlton-Wrenshall was the highlight of the season so far. It gave us a lot of confidence.” Junior lead off hitter Andrew Wehrman has shown great improvement this year. “I have worked really hard on my eye and hand coordination and I hope it pays off this season. We may not win every game but we have great team chemistry. We like each other and work well as a team.”
