Brewers prep for state run

File photo by Travis Rosenau
New Ulm Brewers’ Ayden Jensen takes off for second during a Region 2C amateur baseball playoff game against Hanska at New Ulm’s Johnson Park on Aug. 3.

NEW ULM — The New Ulm Brewers are preparing for their sixth straight trip to the Class C Minnesota State Amateur Baseball Tournament when they face the St. Bonifacious Saints in their Class C state tournament game at 6:30 p.m. Saturday in Green Isle.

The Saints, from the Crow River League, defeated Wanamingo 9-4 this past Saturday in Belle Plaine.

Saint Bonifacious is making its first state appearance in 35 years.

Michael Barnes is the Saints’ ace and got the win in the state opener, going six innings and allowing two runs. He also added a double, home run and three RBIs.

Seven players for the Saints had at least one hit, with Hawken Hedlund adding a solo home run and was a single shy of the cycle.

The Brewers, champions of Region 2C, received a first-round bye last week.

New Ulm, 26-4 on the season, is a close mirror image of last year’s team.

“We are pretty much the same team as last year with a year’s more experience,” Brewers manager Al Flor said. “We have a couple of kids who started playing college baseball and a couple who moved up the ranks in college.

“Our goal every year is to get to the state tournament and then it is one game at a time. You want to make it to Labor Day. My goal is to be one game better than we did last year so that would be Sunday of Labor Day weekend.”

Flor said that getting the first-round bye — which some teams do not like — depends on the year.

“And the team and the health of your team,” he said. “This year is different in that we do not have as many kids who are in college and then missing players in the state this season because of prior conflicts.”

This season the Brewers are led on the mound by the one-two punch of right-hander Mitch Bockenstedt and southpaw Ethan Stade.

“But we have a deep pitching staff,” Flor said. “We have four starters and multiple other people who can pitch. We picked up two relievers (Mark Schommer of Searles and Carter Benz of Lamberton) in the draft is big for us.”

Bockenstedt and Stade are backed up by other solid starters in Sam Keckeisen and Wade French, along with Adam Slander.

“Sam has proven to be a solid starter for us so we really have five guys,” Flor said.

While pitching is a big factor in any state tournament game, Flor thinks that an experienced offense over the last few state tournaments has been the telling tale.

“You have to have good pitchers to shut down good offenses,” he said. “That is something that we have and we are swinging some of our best bats right now that we have swung in a long time.”

This year the Brewers carry a .330 team batting average into this Saturday’s game and New Ulm’s pitching staff has a 2.20 ERA.

“The ERA is better than last year,” Flor said. “And our WHIP (walks plus hits per inning pitched) is 1.14 — that is pretty good. Our biggest challenge will be throwing strikes and getting ahead in the count. That is where we fluctuate sometimes.”

Flor said that defensively the Brewers have solid infielders.

“But our outfield is spectacular — when they are out there, nothing drops,” he said.

Flor knows that for not only his team but all teams, the first state game is the one where you need to get by.

“You need to get going and once you get going, it is easier to keep going,” he said. “That first game is a big deal.”

Fior said that success for the Brewers will depend on the veterans showing up to play and then the younger players stepping up.

“Everybody wants to pound out 20 hits in a game but realistically when you are facing the other team’s best pitcher, that is not usually the case.”

When asked if he believes the Brewers can make a deep run in the state tournament, Flor was brief but optimistic.

“I believe so,” he said.