La Crosse, Wis. – The La Crosse Loggers announced today that former Major League Baseball executive and current COO of the Field of Dreams, Dan Evans, will headline their 19th Winter Baseball BBQ. The annual hot stove event will be held on Thursday, February 16 in the Riverside Ballroom at the La Crosse Center in downtown La Crosse and this year’s event will once again feature an induction ceremony of the 2023 class by the La Crosse Area Baseball Hall of Fame group.
A former General Manager of the Los Angeles Dodgers (2001-2004), Evans has been in professional baseball for four decades and has had decision-making roles with five different Major League franchises including the Chicago White Sox, Toronto Blue Jays, Chicago Cubs and Seattle Mariners.
Evans was recently named the Chief Operating Office of Go The Distance Baseball, LLC that oversees The Field of Dreams movie site in terms of strategy, events, operations and personnel and he works hand-in-hand with the CEO, Hall of Famer Frank Thomas. Among his highlights with The Field of Dreams movie site are the hugely successful regular-season games played there over the past two seasons. The 2021 matchup between the White Sox and Yankees was the largest television audience of a regular-season baseball game in 16 years. Evans also orchestrated the 2020 addition of Baseballism’s Field of Dreams store on the movie site and has attracted over 100 days of baseball tournaments with Baseball Factory to the Field of Dreams movie site that is currently undergoing significant renovations. Construction began last fall to install nine new baseball diamonds, a youth player dormitory and a new hotel. Additionally, a new permanent 3,000-seat stadium will be built by 2025 to house college and international tournaments, high school games and such events as concerts, festivals and be a potential future home of big-league games.
The Chicago native began his baseball journey as an intern for the Chicago White Sox while studying at DePaul University and was eventually promoted to Assistant General Manager/Director of Baseball Operations. After nearly 20 years, Evans resigned from the White Sox after their 2000 Central Division Championship season. During his tenure in Chicago, he was responsible for drafting or acquiring the likes of Hall of Famer Frank Thomas, Tom Seaver, Robin Ventura, Paul Konerko and Bo Jackson, among others. In addition, Evans was the Assistant General Manager during Michael Jordan’s baseball career.
Evans then became the Executive Vice President and General Manager of the Los Angeles Dodgers from 2001 to 2004 and was the primary architect of the Dodgers’ 2004 West Division champions, their first playoff club in eight years at the time. Evans’ winning percentage (.546) as the General Manager is the second-best in Los Angeles Dodgers history to-date. Among his draftees were All-Star outfielder Matt Kemp and catcher Russell Martin and he also acquired Dave Roberts, Hideo Nomo, Hall of Famer Rickey Henderson and Brian Jordan during his time in LA.
Along with his knack for finding high-end talent on the field, Evans also hired Kim Ng (baseball’s first female General Manager) twice in his career, once when Ng secured an internship role for the White Sox in 1991 and again when she became the Dodgers’ VP/Assistant General Manager prior to the 2002 season.
The long-time baseball executive is also a consultant for numerous sports and worldwide baseball-related matters as he mentors the highly-acclaimed Sports Management Worldwide “Baseball GM and Scouting” course and was recently appointed to the Board of Directors and named President of Baseball Operations for Athelytix Inc and is a SABR National Board of Director.
Evans, who resides in Denver, Colo., was also a founding board member of the Professional Baseball Scouts Foundation.
Tickets for the Loggers 19th Winter Baseball BBQ will go on sale Friday morning, January 6, at 8 a.m. Tickets can be purchased online or by calling the Loggers ticket office at 608-796-9553. Fans can also visit the Loggers office at 1225 Caledonia Street, La Crosse between 8:30-5, Monday thru Friday. Individual tickets can be purchased to the event for just $25. Corporate reserved tables of eight are also available by contacting the Loggers ticket office. All tickets include a catered meal and the Winter Baseball BBQ program. Doors will open to the public at 5:00 p.m. for a social hour, followed by the program at 6:35 p.m.
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The La Crosse Loggers are a member of the finest developmental league for elite college baseball players, the Northwoods League. The Northwoods League is the proven leader in the development of elite college baseball players. Now in its’ 29th season, the Northwoods League is the largest organized baseball league in the world with 22 teams, drawing significantly more fans, in a friendly ballpark experience, than any league of its kind. A valuable training ground for coaches, umpires, and front office staff, 300 Northwoods League players have advanced to Major League Baseball, including three-time All-Star and 2016 Roberto Clemente Award winner Curtis Granderson, three-time Cy Young Award winner and World Series Champion Max Scherzer (NYM), two-time World Series Champions Ben Zobrist and Brandon Crawford (SFG) and World Series Champion Chris Sale (BOS). As well as 2019 Rookie of the Year and 2019/2021 Home Run Derby Champion Pete Alonso (NYM) and 2021 All-Star, MLB Gold Glove winner and 2019 Second Team All-MLB shortstop Marcus Semien (TEX). All league games are viewable live via the Northwoods League website. League games are viewable live at watchnwl.com and on ESPN+. For more information, visit www.lacrosseloggers.com or download the new Northwoods League Mobile App on the Apple App Store or on Google Play and set the Loggers as your favorite team.
