Published On: July 27th, 2009

By: Tim Beasley

The Duluth Huskies made a big splash in the NWL and in the baseball world by hiring former MLB manager and recent Team China coach Terry Collins to manage their team through the end of the season. Collins is a long time friend of Huskies owner Bobby McCarthy. The hire of Collins has rejuvenated the Huskies players in the midst of a rough season. GM Craig Smith and McCarthy wanted to ensure that the players go back to their respective schools as better players and having had a good experience in Duluth and the NWL. Collins hire will give those players an experience that many college kids can only dream of. He has a reputation as a great teacher of the game and is excited to pass on as much knowledge as he can during the last couple weeks of the season.

I had the privilege of getting to chat with Collins prior to the game Saturday with Thunder Bay. He is genuinely excited to be in Duluth and to work with the Huskies players. He was also excited to get out of the Florida heat for a few weeks! He spent Saturday morning taking a drive up Minnesota’s North Shore along Lake Superior, one of the most scenic drives in North America. His vast experience in the game has provided a lot of good stories and he was more than willing to share some of them. Collins down-to-earth demeanor and genuineness was very impressive and it was an honor for my wife Kati and I to get to spend some time with him and the Huskies management Friday and Saturday.

Sunday I was able to catch two pivotal games in the North Division. I started out with the 1pm game in Brainerd between the Lunkers and Mankato MoonDogs. The Lunkers were completely shut down by MoonDog starter Jake Petricka who recorded 16 ground ball outs in his 8 innings. Petricka is currently at Indiana State but prior to that he pitched at Iowa Western CC where I spent my first two years of college. When the Iowa Western coaches signed Petricka out of Faribault, MN High School a few years ago they commented on how he reminded them of me with a similar frame (6’5″, 185lbs) and arm action. He has progressed very nicely since then and I wish him luck and hope he stays healthy unlike me!

Sunday evening was the final game of an exciting two game series with the second half division leaders from St. Cloud and Rochester. Following the Brainerd game I made the hour trek south of Brainerd to St. Cloud, which is on my way back home to the Twin Cities. Rochester was impressive and came out victorious for the second straight night to take a two game lead. St. Cloud was my pick to win the second half and despite the setback I’m not ready to give up on them. It should be an exciting race that will come down to the last weekend when St. Cloud visits Rochester on Friday and Saturday August 7 & 8. Alexandria, Brainerd and Thunder Bay will all have their chances to make a run as well with plenty of inter-division games left on the schedule and if one gets hot things will get really interesting.

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