Stingers Announce 2016 Opening Night Guest

WILLMAR, MN – The Willmar Stingers of the Northwoods League are excited to announce that former Minnesota Twin Terry Steinbach will be this year’s opening night guest. Steinbach will throw out the ceremonial first pitch for the 2016 Home Opener presented by Marcus Construction at 7:05 p.m. on Tuesday, May 31^st at Bill Taunton Stadium against the Duluth Huskies.

Fans will be able to meet Terry Steinbach, take photos and get his autograph when gates open at 6 p.m. The first 500 fans through the gates will receive a 2016 magnet schedule and all fans will be treated to a post-game fireworks extravaganza.

Steinbach, a native of New Ulm, Minn., attended the University of Minnesota where he led the Golden Gophers to the 1982 Big Ten title and was named the 1983 Big Ten Player of the Year. He was then drafted during the summer of 1983 by the Oakland Athletics in the ninth-round of the amateur draft. Just three years later, he made his major league debut in September of 1986, hitting a home run in his first at-bat. Steinbach became the Athletics starting catcher the next year, holding that position for 10 major league seasons.

He was an American League All-Star Most Valuable Player in 1988 and was named back to the elite squad again in 1989 and 1993. Steinbach began a World Series Champion in 1989 as the Athletics swept the San Francisco Giants in four games. This was the first World Series sweep since 1976 and the showdown became known as the “Earthquake Series” as an earthquake took place prior to Game 3.

After Steinbach’s career with the Athletics, he spent three season playing for the Minnesota Twins before retiring following the 1999 season. In his career, he played in 14 MLB seasons, appearing in 1,546 games, had a .271 batting average, hit 162 home runs and batted in 745 runs. Steinbach returned back to the Twins organization in 2012 serving as the bench coach for two years under former manager Ron Gardenhire.

He and his wife Mary are now retired living in Minnesota, and spend time following their son Jake who is a part of the baseball program at the University of St. Thomas.

The entire season for the Stingers will feature some unique and familiar promotional nights throughout the summer. The Stingers & J.D. Kreps Financial Group have teamed up to honor nine local military veterans with their very own baseball card. Veterans can be nominated for this unique experience and will be honored as part of a Flag Day celebration on June 14^th.

Live music will again be performed at the Bee Hive as Blues Brothers Night presented by Fischer Laser Eye Center returns on August 4^th. The very next night, on August 5^th, the ballpark becomes a Jimmy Buffett fan’s ideal place for Margaretville Night presented by Double J Concrete & Masonry. There will be a plethora of giveaways again including hats, t-shirts, jerseys, bobbleheads, backpacks, team poster, baseball cards and lunch boxes.

To view the full 2016 promotional schedule, click here: 2016 Promotional Schedule

Single game tickets for the 2016 season, the Stingers seventh in Northwoods League, will go on-sale Monday, May 2^nd at 10 am. Fans will be able to purchase tickets at willmarstingers.com, the Stingers tickets office located at Bill Taunton Stadium, or by calling 320-222-2010.

The 2016 season is presented by Marcus Construction. “From start to finish we’ll make your job easier and build a facility you will be proud of.

The Willmar Stingers are a member of the finest developmental league for elite college baseball players, the Northwoods League. Playing its 22nd season of summer collegiate baseball in 2015, 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 140 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 Website. For more information, visit www.willmarstingers.com.