ST. CLOUD ROX vs.MANKATO MOONDOGS

August 3-6 

Joe Faber Field (St. Cloud, Minnesota) | ISG Field (Mankato, Minnesota) 

 

St. Cloud: 39-24, 15-12 second half 

Mankato: 32-32, 17-13 second half 

 

Monday, August 3 – 6:35 p.m. | Joe Faber Field 

Pitching: RHP Emerson McKnight (2-1, 2.08 ERA) vs. TBA 

Watch: FloSports 

Listen: 93.9FM/1390 AM Granite City Sports Radio 

Promotion: Bark in the Park. Bring your K-9 friend to the ballpark to help support the Tri-County Humane Society. Enter through the 1st base gate with dogs. Presented by Companions Animal Hospital 

Promotion: The Rox will wear special jerseys for the game that will have selected dog photos on the jersey. 

 

Tuesday, August 4 – 6:35 p.m. | ISG Field 

Pitching: RHP Manning West (4-0, 3.13 ERA) vs. TBA 

Watch: FloSports 

Listen: 93.9FM/1390 AM Granite City Sports Radio 

 

Wednesday, August 5 – 6:35 p.m. | Joe Faber Field 

Pitching: TBA vs. TBA 

Watch: FloSports 

Listen: 93.9FM/1390 AM Granite City Sports Radio 

Promotion: Kickball Giveaway. (1st 300 Kids). Presented by St. Cloud Subaru 

 

Thursday, August 6 – 6:35 p.m. | Joe Faber Field 

Pitching: TBA vs. TBA 

Watch: FloSports 

Listen: 93.9FM/1390 AM Granite City Sports Radio 

Promotion: Baseball Bingo Night. Fans we will receive a baseball bingo card at the gate for their chance at winning great prizes. Presented by Treasure Island Resort & Casino 

Promotion: Special Olympics Minnesota Night. 

Promotion: Thirsty Thursday: 2 for 1 Miller Lite Cans (pregame only). 

 

Follow the Game  

• Follow along to every Northwoods League game on the NWL scoreboard, and get up to the minute information with the Play-by-Play feature.  

• All matchups, home and away, can be streamed on FloSports with a subscription.  

• Every game of the 2026 season can be heard on 93.9FM and 1390AM Granite City Sports Radio, and on the Granite City Sports website. Dylan Budd, Danny Berg, and Riley Klaus call every game from the Eide Chrysler St. Cloud Studios. 

 

Recounting Badlands 

The Rox swept through the Badlands Big Sticks this past weekend in a two-game series, with two very different results posted. 

Saturday saw the Rox score four unanswered runs through the first five innings, with three scoring in the third. Colton Rother had a two-RBI single and Brett White had a sac fly in that third inning. The Big Sticks rallied back in the late innings and got the tying run to third base in the ninth, but JR Tollett came in to shut the door and pick up his first save, inducing a strikeout to close the game, preserving a 5-4 Rox win. Brandon Pelechowicz got the start and tossed 5.1 scoreless innings, allowing just four hits. Rother and Brett Griffiths had the only St. Cloud hits in the game, recording two each. Jackson Akin racked up two RBIs on the game as well. 

Sunday is when the bats came out to play for St. Cloud, cruising to a 16-3 victory. The Rox jumped out to a 3-0 lead in the first when Colton Rother belted a home run to right field and then tacked three more in the fourth when Jackson Legg recorded a two-RBI single and Rother ripped an RBI triple. The floodgates opened in the fifth when St. Cloud brought home six runners, highlighted by a Rother two-RBI single. Three more came across in the eighth inning, which included Levi Nyberg reaching base for the first time with the Rox, and Jackson Akin singled home a run. Hunter Poe made his first start in three weeks and delivered a quality start in his return to the rotation. He dealt for seven innings and allowed just two runs while striking out three. Owen Estabrook finished the day 3-for-6, including a seventh-inning home run to right and three RBIs. Luke Haney had his first hit of his Rox career, and finished the day with two of them plus an RBI. 

With the wins, the Rox won the season series against the Big Sticks 9 games to 3. 

 

St. Cloud vs. Mankato 

• This will be the final four meetings of the regular season between St. Cloud and Mankato. The Rox have a 5-3 series lead over the MoonDogs so far. 

• • The two split a two-game set in late June, and the Rox swept a two-game series in early July. All of those games were played at ISG Field. 

• • In a mid-July home-and-home series, the teams won their respective home games. The Rox won a slugfest at Joe Faber Field, and the MoonDogs won a 2-0 pitchers duel in Mankato. 

• • Last week, the Rox and MoonDogs split a two-game series in St. Cloud where both games went to extra innings. 

• Since 2020, the Rox are 34-31 against the MoonDogs in the regular season. 

• The teams have met twice in the postseason in that stretch. The MoonDogs won a best-of-three series last year over the Rox, and St. Cloud swept Mankato in 2021 in a best-of-three.  

• The Rox are seeking their first winning season against the MoonDogs since 2022. 

• The Rox and MoonDogs will meet for the final time in the regular season from August 3-6 for a four-game series, and three of those games will be played in St. Cloud. 

 

Northwoods League Standings Update 

Click here to view the Northwoods League standings as of Monday, August 2.

Great Plains West 

• Badlands, Minot, and Bismarck are all eliminated from playoff contention. 

• St. Cloud’s elimination number from winning the second half is 3 

• • Any combination of 3 Willmar wins and 3 St. Cloud losses 

• Willmar’s magic number to clinch the second half championship is 4 

• • Any combination of 4 Willmar wins and 4 Mankato losses 

In the overall record, the Rox have a magic number of 3 to clinch home-field advantage in the first round of the playoffs. 

Great Plains East 

• Eau Claire and La Crosse will represent the Great Plains East in the playoffs. 

• Both teams are tied at 41-22 entering Monday’s games. 

• • If the season were to end today, the Great Plains East representative would have home field advantage in the Great Plains championship game. 

Great Lakes West 

• Wisconsin Rapids is eliminated from playoff contention. 

• Madison clinched the first half title but was eliminated from winning the second half. 

• Fond du Lac’s elimination number is 3. 

Great Lakes East 

• Kalamazoo, Battle Creek, and Richmond are eliminated from playoff contention. 

• Kenosha clinched the first half title, and has an elimination number of 2 in the second half.

 

Familiar Foes 

Probable pitchers Emerson McKnight and Manning West are no stranger to the Moondogs. McKnight will throw his fourth game against Mankato, a team he holds a 1-1 record on with an ERA of 2.76. Manning West will start his third game against the Moondogs, standing at 1-0 with an ERA at 3.00. 

 

Rother Rolls 

Colton Rother has won back-to-back All-Star Trophy & Awards Star of the Game nods with both games against Badlands. On August 1, Rother went 2-2 with a run, two RBI, two HBP, and a stolen base. The next day, he tied a Rox single-game record with 7RBI, and was a double away from the cycle. He totaled a 3-4 day, four runs, a triple, and his first home run of the season. He is 11 for this last 16. 

 

Rox against the Northwoods League 

With six games left in the regular season, the Rox are consistently placing themselves near the top of many of the NWL’s statistical leaderboards. 

Offense 

• Batting Average (.275, 4th) 

• Runs (481, 4th) 

• Hits (577, 3rd) 

• Triples (15, 4th) 

• Runs Batted In (409, 5th) 

• Walks (449, 2nd) 

• Hit By Pitch (128, 1st) 

• Stolen Bases (269, 1st) 

• On-Base Percentage (.425, 1st) 

• OPS (.793, 6th) 

Pitching 

• ERA (4.84, 5th) 

• Pitching Wins (39, 5th) 

• Strikeouts (598, 4th) 

• K/9 (9.62, 3rd) 

 

Rox Tame the Canines 

Through eight games against the MoonDogs so far, several St. Cloud hitters have been able to put a leash on the opponent’s pitching. 

• Owen Estabrook is 7-for-16 with two doubles and a home run, scoring four times. Estabrook has four RBIs and four walks. 

• Brett Griffiths is 7-for-18 with three runs scored, two doubles, a triple, and a home run. Griffiths has five RBIs and two walks, to go along with three steals. 

• Austin Haley is 4-for-11, scoring twice and swatting a home run. He has also driven in three runs. 

• Jackson Legg is 7-for-22, scoring seven times and ripping a triple. He has driven home seven runs, walked five times, and has given two sac flies and a sac bunt. 

• Tanner Recchio is 8-for-25 with seven runs scored, a double and a triple, and six RBIs. Recchio has walked six times and stolen seven bases. 

• Colton Rother is 10-for-17 with five runs scored, a double, and six RBIs. He has five walks and has been hit by two pitches as well. 

 

Rox Records 

With six games to play for St. Cloud, there are multiple records that are within reach for the Rox to potentially match or even break. The records listed below do include statistics recorded in playoff games. 

• Runs scored 

• • Current: 481 

• • Record: 494, 2024 

• Runs batted in 

• • Current: 409 

• • Record: 455, 2024 

• Walks 

• • Current: 449 

• • Record: 467, 2023 

• On-base percentage 

• • Current: .425 

• • Record: .391, 2024 

• On-base plus slugging (OPS) 

• • Current: .793 

• • Record: .791, 2024 

• Strikeouts (pitching) 

• • Current: 598 

• • Record: 695, 2023 

 

Recchio’s Records 

Utility man Tanner Recchio is known for his speed, and his speed has killed opponents in their game planning. He looks to continue to make his mark on the Rox record books. 

In the late game of the July 23 double-header against Thunder Bay, Recchio stole his 67th base of the 2026 season, officially tying him with Larry Edwards’ mark that he set last season. Recchio accomplished the feat in 51 games, while Edwards needed 69 to reach it last year. One day later, on July 24, Recchio officially took the record for himself when he stole second base in the sixth inning. 

After setting the new Rox single-season stolen base record at 34 last season, Recchio surpassed that number on July 3 by taking his 35th base of the season. He needed 44 games to steal 34 bases in 2025 and needed just 35 games this year to take 35 bases. 

He broke the NWL stolen base mark on June 21, swiping his 91st career bag against the Minot Hot Tots. Recchio stole 34 bases apiece in 2023 with the Minnesota Mud Puppies and in 2025 with St. Cloud. 

The record was held for 18 years by Joey Bonadonna, who stole 90 bases for the Duluth Huskies and the Madison Mallards from 2005-2008. Bonadonna played three seasons in Minor League Baseball, getting 600 at-bats and took 42 bases. Larry Edwards also had 90 in his league career entering 2026, and was the fastest to do so, getting the accolade in 116 games. Recchio eclipsed the mark in 111 games. 

Recchio has become the third St. Cloud player to be in the Northwoods League record book. Chris DeMara recorded four shutouts in 2001, and Britt Carmicheal pitched 80 games from 1997 to 1999. 

 

Rox Break Team Record 

Known for running their opponents into the ground by using their speed, the Rox are in pursuit of positioning themselves as one of the fastest teams ever in the Northwoods League. 

The Rox broke the single-season stolen base record for one team in the Northwoods League on July 26 with their 252nd stolen base, clinched against the Mankato MoonDogs. St. Cloud only needed 58 games to break the record, averaging 4.5 stolen bases per game. 

The 2024 Willmar Stingers previously held the top spot on their own with 251 steals back in 2024, one-upping their previous record of 247 in 2023. 

St. Cloud is on pace to not just break the Stingers’ record, but shatter it. The Rox are currently projected to finish with close to 300 stolen bases by season’s end. 

 

Rox to the Pros 

The 2026 Major League Baseball First-Year Player Draft was held on July 11 and 12 for eligible high school and college prospects to enter the professional ranks. A total of seven former Rox players were drafted by one of the 30 MLB teams. 

• Tyson LeBlanc (Kansas): Round 2, Pick 61 to the Detroit Tigers 

• Kade Lewis (Wake Forest): Round 4, Pick 132 to the Cleveland Guardians 

• Brady Ballinger (Kansas): Round 7, Pick 216 to the Detroit Tigers 

• Marcus Kruzan (Minnesota): Round 12, Pick 371 to the Milwaukee Brewers 

• Dallis Moran (Stetson): Round 16, Pick 474 to the St. Louis Cardinals 

• Weber Neels (Minnesota): Round 19, Pick 566 to the Arizona Diamondbacks 

• J.P. Robertson (Mississippi): Round 20, Pick 598 to the San Francisco Giants 

Additionally, the Rox had two pitchers on their 2026 roster earn undrafted free agent contracts post-All Star break. 

Righty Brady Stuart earned a contract with the Los Angeles Angels on July 16. Stuart pitched in three games for the Rox, with his best outing being his final one, going 2.2 innings against Mankato on July 15 and striking out three. Stuart is the reigning consensus Division 3 National Pitcher of the Year amongst multiple outlets, pitching to a 1.85 ERA in 18 outings with Endicott (MA). 

Rox closer Brandon Jaenke earned a contract with the Texas Rangers on July 17. Jaenke appeared in 11 games for St. Cloud this season, not allowing a single run and giving up just seven hits while striking out 22, and recorded five saves in the process. In his Rox career, which began in 2022, he pitched in 72 games as a member of the Rox. That includes two trips to the postseason and three appearances in the All-Star Game. He sports a record of 6-2 with 24 saves in 98 innings, pitching to a 3.58 ERA. Nearly half of the outs Jaenke recorded with the Rox were strikeouts, and finished with a 13.68 K/9. 

Learn more about the draftees here. 

 

Postseason Bound 

On June 24, the Rox officially clinched the Great Plains West first half championship following an 8-3 victory over the Badlands Big Sticks. The win moved St. Cloud to 21-10 at the time and was the first team in the Northwoods League to secure a playoff spot. The La Crosse Loggers (Plains East), Madison Mallards (Lakes East), and Kenosha Kingfish (Lakes West) secured the other first half titles. 

After cruising to a divisional championship, the Rox secured the top spot in the Great Plains on the final day of the first half. St. Cloud entered June 29 down 10 winning percentage points to La Crosse, and after a Rox 9-4 win over Bismarck and a 17-5 Loggers loss to Eau Claire, the Rox earned the top slot. 

2026 will mark the eighth straight summer that the Rox will be playing beyond the regular season. St. Cloud has gone 9-8 in playoff games since 2021. 

 

About Faber Field  

Joe Faber Field is located on the westside of St. Cloud in the city’s Municipal Athletic Complex.  The complex features two of the finest baseball fields in the state – Dick Putz Field and Joe Faber Field. Additionally, the complex features Veterans Public Golf Course and two ice arenas, Torrey Arena and Ritsche Arena. The park opened in 1998 and has a capacity of 2,000 people.   

  

Attend a Rox Game 

Fans can visit stcloudrox.com and hover over the drop-down “Tickets” menu on the homepage. Fans can also call 320-240-9798 for ticket information or can visit the ticket office inside the Municipal Athletic Complex’s ice arena lobby during regular business hours. 

 

Up Next  

The Rox finish up the regular season with the Minot Hot Tots at home beginning Friday for two games. Friday’s game starts at 7:05 p.m., and Saturday’s game begins at 6:05 p.m. 

Following that, the Rox will begin postseason play on Sunday, August 9. Either the game played on August 9 or August 10 will be played at Joe Faber Field. Fans can purchase tickets here.