NORTHWOODS LEAGUE ANNOUNCES
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Date: March 27, 2009
Loggers to Host Swedish National Team in Exhibition
(LA CROSSE, WI) Logger fans will be able to get a sneak peek at the 2009 edition of the La Crosse Loggers this year on Tuesday, May 26 when the Lumbermen play host to the Swedish National Baseball team in a 7:05 p.m. exhibition game at Copeland Park, presented by Festival Foods.
Tickets for this event will go on sale beginning April 1 when single game tickets for all 2009 regular season games go on sale. Just $2 for reserved seating to the general public and $1 tickets will be available to all season ticket holders. All “Logger Nation” members will receive their tickets free of charge.
May 26 will be a big day of baseball at The Lumber Yard as the Loggers vs. Swedes exhibition game will follow a 3:30 p.m. contest between the Central High Red Raiders and Tomah High Timberwolves. Gates will open at 6:00 p.m. for the Loggers exhibition game. Logger players that have arrived in La Crosse will be on hand to meet fans before and after the game. The exhibition game will not count towards Northwoods League play.
The Swedish National Baseball Team is preparing for the 2009 Baseball World Cup in the fall, by playing exhibition games against three prominent teams from the Northwoods League, making stops in Brainerd, Minn. and Madison as well La Crosse, Wisc.
The 2009 Baseball World Cup is being played for the 38th year and is organized by the IBAF, the world governing body for baseball. The tournament will be held in seven different countries all over Europe – from Moscow, Russia to Barcelona, Spain. Sweden will host one group stage at the new national park for baseball in Sundbyberg. Other groups are being played in Regensburg, Germany; and Prague, Czech Republic.
The second round is played in the Netherlands (Amsterdam/Rotterdam/Haarlem) and Italy, where a total of 18 host cities will be part of a nation-wide exhibition of the finest national teams of the world.
In total, 92 games will be played in the 2009 Baseball World Cup, in an effort to market baseball as a world class game, being played all over the world and deserving of a comeback in the 2016 Olympic Games.
Team Sweden’s goal is to advance to the second round, thereby competing for the eight final playoff spots of the World Cup. The national team program of Sweden is considered one of the top six in Europe, despite having only around 1,000 licensed players in the country. Some of the best players play in the United States, with pitcher Christian Staehely (Seattle Mariners Minor Leagues) and 2B Adam Sorgi (Philadelphia Phillies Minor Leagues) as the top players, together with home grown veteran shortstop Rickard Reimer, who has played professionally in South Africa and the Netherlands. Talented prospects include pitcher Oscar Carlstedt,
catcher Robin Lausen and pitcher Bryan Berglund, who all have attracted the interest of MLB scouts.
The coaching staff includes Jim Dimick, long-time coach at St. Olaf College in Northfield, MN. Coach Dimick is a former president of the American Baseball Coaches Association and a MLB International Envoy Coach, who also has coached for two seasons in the Swedish League. Dimick will participate as a specially invited coach for this three-game tour.
