Baseball will always be synonymous with summer.

There is nothing like cracking open a fresh bag of sunflower seeds, kicking back and catching nine innings of hardball with a couple friends.

Sure, I love the Twins but with gas prices soaring to $3.50 per gallon and a small loan needed to purchase concession food, it’s becoming tougher and tougher to justify shelling out at least $80 per person to sit through what has become mediocre baseball at Target Field.

Now, I don’t suggest anyone boycott our beloved nine from the Twin Cities, but if you’re interested in high quality baseball for a fraction of the cost, I suggest catching any one of the three Northwoods League baseball teams within a two-hour drive of Owatonna, two of which are less 60 minutes away (Rochester Honkers and Mankato MoonDogs). If you’re willing to travel just a little further, there are four more teams within three hours.

But before I go any further, I’m going to take a moment to explain to the non-hardcore baseball fan exactly what NWL baseball really is.

First, it’s not “town ball” as I’ve heard some people call it. Far from is actually.

The NWL is an NCAA officially sanctioned wooden bat summer league. In order to play, you have to be enrolled in college and a member of your institution’s team. Most of the players come from high-level Division I schools, though every club has a number of NJCAA Division I and NCAA Division II players.

The purpose of the league — as a large portion of the players will be drafted — is to prepare young ballplayers from across the country for the grind of an intense professional career. Games are played in minor-league style stadiums with promotions and contests taking place in between innings.

Attendance ranges between 500 to several thousand depending on the fan base. Wisconsin cities like La Crosse, Madison and Eau Claire have high attendance rates while places like Willmar and Alexandria often average below 700 people per game.

Living in Rochester, I’ve caught quite a few Honkers games over the last three summers. Though the team has historically been one of the most stable franchises in the league, wins have been hit or miss lately.

But that never seems to matter.

One of things I enjoy most about NWL games is that fact that nowhere else would you be able to see a player from, say, Winona State square off against a fireballer from a school like USC.

It’s great, because the big school guy doesn’t always win either.

Another aspect of these games I appreciate, as I briefly mentioned before, is the cost. In Rochester I can get through the gates for only $6 and spend less than $10 per person on food and be quite satisfied. Not to mention parking is free. No one will ever pay more than $30 to see a game either as each ballpark in the NWL is equipped with a “party deck” that includes unlimited drinks and food for around $25.

And the action on the field; it’s pretty sweet too.

The Honkers alone have 10 players from what would be considered major Division I schools, including all-conference catcher from the University of Minnesota Matt Halloran. Though pitching typically reigns supreme as the players get used to swinging wooden bats, offense is rarely punch less and fielding is precise and slick.

But the Honkers aren’t the only team I suggest you see. Mankato is essentially the same distance away and La Crosse, one of the most exciting places to watch a game in the league, is within two hours.

Copeland Park in La Crosse features a two-tier party deck and some of the best cold beer specials in the league. Box seating is generous behind the plate as fans can enjoy the action from a number of angles throughout the ballpark.

In Eau Claire, a city I used to call home, Carson Park is one of the most historic venues in the league as the former home of Hank Aaron and a Minor League team affiliated with the Milwaukee Braves. The stadium’s brick façade is unique and charming. Like La Crosse, its party deck is massive with an extended menu and beer specials.

Reach sports reporter Jon Weisbrod at 444-2375, or follow him on Twitter.com @OPPJonW