MANKATO- Minn. The Mankato MoonDogs are excited to welcome former Minnesota Twins outfielder Tom Brunansky to Franklin Rogers Park as a special guest for opening day. Brunansky played in Major League Baseball from 1981 to 1994 for five teams including the Angels, Twins, Cardinals, Red Sox, and Brewers. In his 14-season career, he batted .245 with 271 home runs and 919 RBI's in 1800 games. He finished his career with 1543 hits in 6289 at bats, 69 stolen bases, and 306 doubles. In addition, Brunansky was a starter on the World Champion 1987 Twins in what was arguably his best season with the team. Younger Twins fans will know Brunansky as the Twins hitting coach from 2012-2016.
The MoonDogs will open their 16th season on May 31st, 2017 when they take on the Rochester Honkers at 7:05 at Franklin Rogers Park. Brunansky will be on hand to sign autographs for fans and throw out the ceremonial first pitch. Fans are encouraged to stay after the game for the MoonDogs postgame fireworks extravaganza presented by Wealth Enhancement Group.
The team will consist of an unusually high number of returning players this year after they made the playoffs in 2016 and set the franchise record for regular season wins at 46. Fans can expect to see the familiar faces of Brett Newberg, Drew Fearing, Tyler Lesley, Jordan Kozicky, Ricky Digruglliers, Alvaro Rubalcaba, and Cooper Powell at the Frank again this summer. The Northwoods League is also welcoming two new franchises to the league this season, the Fond Du Lac Dock Spiders and the Bismarck Larks, with the Larks playing in the North Division.
Single- Game Tickets go on sale on May 1, 2017 online at http://northwoodsleague.com/mankato-moondogs/ or by calling (507)-625-7047.
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The Mankato MoonDogs are a member of the finest developmental league for elite college baseball players, the Northwoods League. Playing its 23rd season of summer collegiate baseball, the Northwoods League is the largest organized baseball league in the world with 18 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, more than 150 Northwoods League players have advanced to Major League Baseball, including Cy Young Award winner Max Scherzer (WAS) and MLB All-Stars Chris Sale (CWS), Jordan Zimmermann (DET), Curtis Granderson (NYM), Lucas Duda (NYM) and Ben Zobrist (CHC). All league games are viewable live via the Northwoods League portal. For more information, visitwww.mankatomoondogs.com or download the new Northwoods League Mobile App on the Apple App Store and set the MoonDogs as your favorite team.
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The Northwoods League is the proven leader in the development of elite college baseball players. The 23-year old summer collegiate league is the largest organized baseball league in the world with 20 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, more than 160 Northwoods League players have advanced to Major League Baseball, including two-time Cy Young Award winner Max Scherzer (WAS), two-time World Series Champion Ben Zobrist (CHC) and MLB All-Stars Chris Sale (BOS), Jordan Zimmermann (DET), Curtis Granderson (NYM) and Lucas Duda (NYM). All league games are viewable live via the Northwoods League website. For more information, visit www.northwoodsleague.com or download the Northwoods League Mobile App on the Apple App Store or on Google Play.
