Catcher Trey Fikes (pictured) is one of seven returning players on the Border Cats 2025 roster.
The Thunder Bay Border Cats open the 2025 Northwoods League season this evening on the Memorial Day holiday south of the border when they travel to Eau Claire for the start of a two-game series against the Express. The Cats under new manager and Toronto native Joe Ellison feature seven players from last year’s club that finished 35-34, good for third place overall in the Great Plains East Division.
Catcher Trey Fikes (Three Rivers CC) returns after a solid season where he hit .295 in 39 games and also threw out an outstanding 32 percent of would-be base stealers. Also back with the Cats are pitcher Parker Burgess (Florida SouthWestern State College), pitcher Griffin Catto (Southern Illinois University), pitcher Carter Wall (University of Utah), infielder Greg LaChance (University of Illinois), outfielder Ty Hamilton (Florida SouthWestern State College) and outfielder/catcher Jacob Miller (Jefferson CC), who will join the squad for the second half of the season. The Cats also have some local flavour with the addition of infielder/pitcher Porter Jorgenson (Valley City State University, who saw some action with his hometown team during the 2023 campaign.
Thunder Bay will send righthander Ethan Froud (Pratt CC) to the mound in the season opener against Eau Claire with first pitch at Carson Park scheduled for 6:05pm ET. Other newcomers to keep an eye on are first baseman Hayden Stringfellow (Bossier Parish CC) and Jeremy Sheffield (Georgetown University), who plays both corner positions at first and third base
The Cats will play 72 games this season including their home opener this Wednesday night at 6:35pm against the Rochester Honkers at Port Arthur Stadium. It’s “Weenie Wednesday” with 2-for-1 hot dogs and the first 500 fans receive a 2025 Magnetic Schedule courtesy of Official Parcel Service and Roach’s Taxi. During the four-game homestand, there’s also fireworks following Friday’s game with the Honkers, which starts at 7:35pm.
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The Thunder Bay Border Cats 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. Entering its’ 32nd season, the Northwoods League is the largest organized baseball league in history with 24 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, nearly 2400 NWL alums have been drafted and over 380 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 (TOR), two-time World Series Champions Ben Zobrist and Brandon Crawford and World Series Champion Chris Sale (ATL). As well as 2019 Rookie of the Year and 2019/2021 Home Run Derby Champion Pete Alonso (NYM) and 2023 World Series Champion, MLB All-Star, MLB Gold Glove, two-time Silver Slugger winner and two-time All-MLB first team shortstop Marcus Semien (TEX). League games are viewable live on Northwoods League+ (at watch.northwoodsleague.com), ESPN+, and the Northwoods League Network. Learn more and find complete streaming schedules at watchnwl.com. For more information, visit www.bordercatsbaseball.com or download the new Northwoods League Mobile App on the Apple App Store or on Google Play and set the Border Cats as your favourite team.