Season Highlights

May 15th – Paul Petit (Eau Claire Cavaliers) throws a no-hitter and finishes with 16 strikeouts in a 19-0 win over the Cadott Red Sox. The game ended after 7 innings.

May 22nd – Logan Boettcher (Osseo Merchants) throws a no-hitter in a 14-0 win over Beef River Bullfrogs. The game ended after 7 innings.

May 22nd – Tyler Hermann (Eau Claire Cavaliers) goes 5 for 5 in a 12-2 win over the Jim Falls Sturgeons.

June 15th – Logan Boettcher (Osseo Merchants) throws a one-hitter in a 17-0 win versus the Cadott Red Sox.

June 15th – Luke Eide (Osseo Merchants) throws a one-hitter in a 11-0 win against the Cadott Red Sox.

June 19th – Logan Boettcher (Osseo Merchants) throws a no-hitter in a 10-0 win over Whitehall Wolves.

June 19th – Blake Johnson (Eau Claire Bears) throws a one-hitter in a 10-0 win over Beef River.

June 23rd – Paul Petit (Eau Claire Cavaliers) throws a one-hitter against Beef River Bullfrogs in a 10-0 win.

July 3rd – Paul Petit (Eau Claire Cavaliers) and Corey Fischer (Eau Claire Cavaliers) throw a combined two-hit shutout to defeat the Stanley Slammers 8-0.

July 7th – The North wins the CRBL All-Star game 6-5 with Paul Petit recieving the MVP.

May 15th – Paul Petit (Eau Claire Cavaliers) throws a no-hitter and finishes with 16 strikeouts in a 19-0 win over the Cadott Red Sox. The game ended after 7 innings.

May 22nd – Logan Boettcher (Osseo Merchants) throws a no-hitter in a 14-0 win over Beef River Bullfrogs. The game ended after 7 innings.

May 22nd – Tyler Hermann (Eau Claire Cavaliers) goes 5 for 5 in a 12-2 win over the Jim Falls Sturgeons. 

June 15th – Logan Boettcher (Osseo Merchants) throws a one-hitter in a 17-0 win versus the Cadott Red Sox.

June 15th – Luke Eide (Osseo Merchants) throws a one-hitter in a 11-0 win against the Cadott Red Sox.

June 19th – Logan Boettcher (Osseo Merchants) throws a no-hitter in a 10-0 win over Whitehall Wolves.

June 19th – Blake Johnson (Eau Claire Bears) throws a one-hitter in a 10-0 win over Beef River.

June 23rd – Paul Petit (Eau Claire Cavaliers) throws a one-hitter against Beef River Bullfrogs in a 10-0 win.

July 3rd – Paul Petit (Eau Claire Cavaliers) and Corey Fischer (Eau Claire Cavaliers) throw a combined two-hit shutout to defeat the Stanley Slammers 8-0.

July 7th – The North wins the CRBL All-Star game 6-5 with Paul Petit recieving the MVP.

August 3rd – Osseo Merchants defeat the Tilden Tigers 12-6 to win their fourth straight CRBL championship.

Season Notes

There were nineteen .400+ hitters this year in league play, the highest mark since 1993 and the most in a single-season since the return to wood bats in 2001.

The EC Bears’ Todd Lasher became the 8th player in CRBL history to surpass the 400 hit mark. Todd now sits at 7th place all-time with 418 hits.

The EC Bears’ Brian Menard now has 435 career hits, good for 5th place all-time.

Josh Briggs of the EC Rivermen is now 10th place all-time in hits with 383 knocks.

Slugger Ryan Freitag of the Osseo Merchants is now tied for 6th place all-time in home runs at 49 with Tilden great Mitch Steinmetz.

Freitag also strengthened his top spot for career on base percentage. The big lefty now has a career OBP. of .557, in part propelled by the single-season CRBL record he set for base on balls this season with 28.

The EC Cavaliers’ player/manager Matt Miller and Whitehall veteran Tyler Manley are currently tied for the all-time lead in stolen bases with 144 apiece.

Stanley’s lead-off man extraordinaire Kevin Christorf moved in to 3rd place all-time in batting average with a healthy .395 career mark.

Andy Niese of the EC Rivermen became the CRBL’s all-time leader in total bases with 806, breaking the previous record of 804 held by Tilden legend, Randy Baier.

Niese has also become the league’s all-time leader in singles with 447, breaking the former mark of 442, held by Bloomer and CRBL legend Scott Stuckert.

There were six no-hitters spun this season. Osseo lefty Logan Boettcher and Whitehall righty Alex Byom each threw two no-no’s, tying a single-season record. In total, there have been 63 no-hitters thrown in 91 seasons of CRBL play.

Logan Boettcher’s league leading four shutouts tied a single-season mark accomplished seven previous times, including by Boettcher himself in 2016.

With a 33 and 6 career record, Boettcher currently sits as the CRBL’s all-time leader in winning percentage at .846.

The EC Rivermen’s Tyler Gray is now tied for 3rd all-time with CRBL hall of famer Russ Nelson in wins with 82.

Currently with 910 career strikeouts, Gray is the fourth pitcher in league history to cross the 900 K barrier.

With an 8 and 3 record and 11 decisions in 2019, Bloomer righty Curtis Dachel moved up to 9th place all-time in decisions with 89.

Beef River manager Scott Sorenson has managed 323 CRBL games, good for 2nd place all-time to former Bloomer Woodticks manager Scott Stuckert’s final count of 486.

Additionally, Sorenson moved in to 2nd place all-time in managerial wins with 178. The leader in that category is Augusta’s Jan Krueger with 186 career victories.

League Statistical Leaders

Hitting

*Minimum 44 at-bats

Pitching

The Chippewa River Baseball League (CRBL) will host it’s playoff series starting Wednesday July 31st. Four teams have qualified for CRBL postseason play – Osseo Merchants (#1), Tilden Tigers (#2), Eau Claire Bears (#3) and Eau Claire Cavaliers (#4).

The Merchants will host the Cavaliers at 7:30 pm at Jon Soiney Memorial Field in Osseo. The Tigers will host the Bears at 7:00 pm at Casper Park in Chippewa Falls. Saturday’s championship game will be hosted by the higher seed at 12:30 pm on August 3rd. 

CRBL Championship

Wildcard Wednesday	Championship Saturday
Eau Claire Bears
July 31, 2019 5-11 Casper Park
	Tilden Tigers
	August 3, 2019 6-12 Jon Soiney Memorial Field
Tilden Tigers
Eau Claire Cavaliers
July 31, 2019 4-7 Jon Soiney Memorial Field
	Osseo Merchants
Osseo Merchants

Wildcard Wednesday	Championship Saturday	Wildcard Wednesday
Eau Claire Bears		Eau Claire Cavaliers
July 31, 2019 5-11 Casper Park	Tilden Tigers	July 31, 2019 4-7 Jon Soiney Memorial Field
	August 3, 2019 6-12 Jon Soiney Memorial Field
	Osseo Merchants
Tilden Tigers		Osseo Merchants

The Osseo Merchants have won the past three CRBL championships and will have a chance to defend their title at home as the #1 seed.

The north and south participants for the Chippewa River Baseball League (CRBL) All-Star game have been selected by the 12 team managers. Hosted by the Cadott Red Sox at Cadott High School on July 7th at 1 pm, it represents the league’s 63rd all-star game. The Eau Claire Bear’s have the most players represented with nine players selected.

North All-Stars

North squad will be coached by Matt Miller (Eau Claire Cavaliers). Starting line-up to be determined at game time.

South All-Stars

South squad will be coached by Luke Anderson (Osseo Merchants). Starting line-up to be determined at game time.

Facts and Information

• 63rd All-Star game in CRBL history
• 47th match-up within the North vs. South format. The years for this series include: 1950, 52, 55-56, 67, 72-73, 84-2007, and 2009 to present.
• The South leads the series 31 to 15.
• The South won last year (2018) in Whitehall, 8 to 3. Ryan Freitag (OF/Osseo) was named MVP.
• The EC Rivermen’s Andy Niese will be making his 20th All-Star game appearance, the most of anyone playing in this year’s contest, and tied for the most all-time in CRBL history with Bloomer legend Scott Stuckert.
• Eau Claire Bear Todd Lasher will be making his 13th all-star game showing while teammates Brian Menard and Reed Pecha will each be making their 11th appearance each.
• Augusta’s James Gilbertson will be appearing in his 10th CRBL All-Star game.
• The first All-Star game in CRBL history took place in 1909 with the Eau Claire Giants beating the Chippewa Valley League All-Stars 1 to 0 at Driving Park in Eau Claire.
• The last time Cadott hosted a CRBL All-Star game was in 1950. In that game, the North was victorious 9 to 0 over the South Division.
• The Chippewa River Baseball League Hall of Fame will officially induct and recognize four more individuals at this year’s All-Star classic. This will bring the total to 72 members. That elite group represents just .576 of 1% of the estimated 12,500+ people that have been part of the league’s rich history.

First Half News & Notes

May 15th – Paul Petit (Eau Claire Cavaliers) throws a no-hitter and finishes with 16 strikeouts in a 19-0 win over the Cadott Red Sox. The game ended after 7 innings.

May 22nd – Logan Boettcher (Osseo Merchants) throws a no-hitter in a 14-0 win over Beef River Bullfrogs. The game ended after 7 innings.

May 22nd – Tyler Hermann (Eau Claire Cavaliers) goes 5 for 5 in a 12-2 win over the Jim Falls Sturgeons. 

June 15th – Logan Boettcher (Osseo Merchants) throws a one-hitter in a 17-0 win versus the Cadott Red Sox.

June 15th – Luke Eide (Osseo Merchants) throws a one-hitter in a 11-0 win against the Cadott Red Sox.

June 19th – Logan Boettcher (Osseo Merchants) throws a no-hitter in a 10-0 win over Whitehall Wolves.

June 23rd – Paul Petit (Eau Claire Cavaliers) throws a one-hitter against Beef River Bullfrogs in a 10-0 win.

Todd Lasher recorded his 400th hit in CRBL league play.

The Wisconsin Baseball Association (WBA) and Chippewa Rivers Baseball League (CRBL) Champion Osseo Merchants will defend their title starting April 28th when they open against the Eau Claire Rivermen. A year ago, eight teams from the Chippewa Rivers Baseball League (CRBL) qualified for the Wisconsin Baseball Association (WBA) Tournament with the Beef River Bullfrogs and Stanley Slammers receiving automatic bids as host sites. Below is the full list of teams that participated in the 2018 WBA tournament.

• Beef River Bullfrogs
• Stanley Slammers
• Osseo Merchants
• Tilden Tigers
• Whitehall Wolves
• Eau Claire Bears
• Eau Claire Cavaliers
• Eau Claire Rivermen

The 91st season of CRBL baseball will open April 27th when the Jim Falls Sturgeons travel to battle the Bloomer Woodticks. Twelve teams will compete for the 2019 Chippewa Rivers Baseball crown playing a 22-game CRBL schedule. It truly is incredible to consider that over 12,500 individuals have played in the CRBL over an 111-year span of time dating back to 1908.

Notable 2019 CRBL Schedule Dates

• CRBL All-Star Game – Sunday, July 7th, 2019 Hosted by Cadott Red Sox @ Cadott High School Field
• Osseo hosts CRBL triple header – Saturday July 13th @ Jon Soiney Memorial Field starting at 1 pm.
  • Augusta Athletics vs. Eau Claire Bears
  • Eau Claire Rivermen vs. Whitehall Wolves
  • Beef River Bullfrogs vs. Osseo Merchants
• Wildcard Wednesday – July 31st, 2019 – Sites To Be Determined
• Championship Saturday – August 3rd, 2019 – Site To Be Determined

Two longtime CRBL umpires retired after the 2018 season. Glen Waterhouse (25 years of service) and Art Zwiefelhofer (36 years of service) will no longer make a third strike call. Coaches, players and fans would like to extend a big thank you to both umpires for the work they performed over their extensive careers.

This editors picks for the North and South Division along with championship picks are below:

Winners of the North Division: Eau Claire Cavaliers
Winners of the South Division: Eau Claire Bears
Wildcard Picks: Whitehall Wolves & Osseo Merchants

Championship Game: Eau Claire Cavaliers defeat the Osseo Merchants

Follow www.crblbaseball.com all season long for updated scores, standings and schedule. You can download the 2019 CRBL schedule to your Apple, Outlook or Google Calender. Any schedules changes will update automatically once downloaded to your calendar.

The 2019 Bloomer Fightin’ Woodticks are looking to build off of the progress that was made last year. The 2018 Woodticks went 10-12 and were a couple close games away from possibly being part of the WBA playoffs for the first time in several years.

They are returning most of the players from the 2018 core as well as adding some fresh, young players that are eager to contribute! Please come on down to support the Fightin’ Woodticks at hallowed Stuckert Field on a nice summers day and enjoy some baseball, food, drinks, fun, and the newer tradition of the occasional fish fry.

We also like to take this time to thank all of our sponsors that have stayed with us through the years as well as the new supporters of the Woodticks! These local businesses are the reason that we can play year in and year out thanks to the generosity.

This year’s Fightin’ Ticks roster is as follows: Curtis Dachel, Erik Abrahamson, Brett Stuckert, Corey Poirer, Jesse Linsmeyer, Tanner Linsmeyer, Jake (Mallard) Malinowski, Caleb Mikl, Sean Hurt, Noah Lane, John Barr, Zach Ruf, James Palmer, Dylan Martinson, Matt Schley, Nick Prill, Chris Korger, Brent Sarauer, and 2nd year manager Sam Elling. For the 2nd straight year the Woodticks have a young roster full of potential and maybe this is the year? Come on down to find out!

The Cadott Red Sox are back for another exciting year of CRBL baseball! The 2019 season will mark the 9th season for the Red Sox. The Sox will be relying on a familiar cast of players this season, with thirteen returning players from 2018 including four all stars.

Cadott’s all stars from a season ago are catcher Jake Arneson, pitcher Ben Poppe, 2nd baseman Harley Oemig, and outfielder Bennett Bowe. Other veteran players that will be relied on heavily this year include Ryan Davis, Mike Danielson, Eric Bourget, Austin Goettl, Shawn Sedlacek, Casey Schara, Josh Chrusciel, Dylan Davis, and Nelson Wahl. Dakota Leis will be back in the fold this year after several years away from the team. There are also a couple new recruits that the Red Sox are excited to have joining the team this year. Rick Danielson will be back again for his 3rd season as manager.

The Red Sox also have some exciting news to share with the fans. This season we are honored to host the CRBL All Star game. The game will be played Sunday July 7th at the high school field. Fans will have a chance to watch some of the premier baseball talent in the Chippewa Valley.

Once again the Red Sox would like to thank our great fans and and all of our sponsors. Without all of your support and generosity we wouldn’t be able to have a team so thank you!! We hope to see everybody at the field this season!

Roster
Jake Arneson, Eric Bourget, Bennett Bowe, Josh Chrusciel, Mike Danielson, Dylan Davis, Ryan Davis, Alex Glomski, Austin Goettl, Quentin Goettl, Andrew Gunderson, Dakota Leis, Austin Najbrt, Harley Oemig, Ben Poppe, Casey Schara, Shawn Sedlacek, Nelson Wahl

The Eau Claire Cavaliers is an amateur baseball organization that started in 1971.

The Cavaliers finished with a 17-5 league record and won back to back CRBL North Division Titles.

The Cavaliers look to continue their success on what they have achvieved in the past two seasons as a member of the Chippewa River Baseball League. Returning from the last years team is All-CRBL First Baseman Tom Mewhorter (.394 AVG, 17 2B, 51 RBI), CRBL Honorable Mention Jake Jenneman (7-2, 77 K’S, 3.88 ERA), and CRBL Rookie of the Year Paul Petit (.386 AVG, 3 2B, 1 3B, 19 SB and went (3-2, 38 K’S, 4.44 ERA).

Other returning are Jordan Wilson (.425 AVG, 11 2B, 3 3B, 5 HR, 33 RBI, 16 SB), Tyler Herman (.405 AVG, 12 2B, 1 3B, 5 HR, 31 RBI).

Field Manager Matt Miller returns for his fifith season and will lead the Cavaliers into competition in the Chippewa River Baseball League in 2019.

The Cavaliers would like to wish all of teams of the Chippewa River Baseball League the best of luck in the league in 2019. We invite all baseball fans to come to Carson Park for baseball action at its best this summer.

The 2018 Sturgeon season could best be described as chaotic. A two-year trend of attrition left the team without most of the regulars from 2016.

Among those Jim Falls counted on, the need to moonlight—to take on paying jobs—superseded the desires to be available for many games. As a result, a set lineup eluded erstwhile manager Matt Nelson, one of only two players, along with the departed Mike Cohen (12 R, 17 SB), who appeared in every game. As a result, the Sturgeons enter 2019 in full rebuild mode.

New manager Nick Pitsch assumes the job of compiling a dependable roster to build on for this year and beyond. Gone are such hitters as Landon Mueller (.429), Matt Nelson (.359), and the ageless Steve ”Pickle” Nelson (.321), the team’s honorable mention All-CRBL player. Among returning veterans besides Pitsch are Justin Martell (.375), the steady Bob Maurer (.243), and pitcher Dylan Waters (51.2 IP). The hope is that several young players who have shown promise will form a core for long-term future growth. Some of them got a taste of CRBL ball last year, notably Luke Schemenauer (4-5, .800) and Peter Thaler (5-12, .417). Watch this spot next year for names of others who may explode upon the scene this season.

If the snows finally melt, the Sturgeons hope for some hot times in the old town with several fresh and exciting faces. Come see this school of Sturgeons grow. Welcome to 2019.

“The Sturgeons mourned the passing of long- time umpire, Maynard Bergeron in March.” “Thanks for the memories, Maynard!!!”

The Slammers finished the 2018 season 6-16 and hosted the 2018 WBA regionals losing to Wausau 10-0.

The Slammers had four players in the 2018 All-Star game hosted by Whitehall: Luke Merritt was the starting pitcher and Keith Smasal, Brandon Wright, and Kevin Christorf were reserves. Brandon Wright was the Slammers Honorable Mention All-CRBL selection. The Slammers will be looking at the young players along with the few veterans remaining to help make 2019 a successful season. The Slammers would like to wish everyone in the CRBL good luck on the upcoming second and look forward to a great summer of baseball.

Roster: Kevin Christorf, Keith Smasal, Kasey Van Den Heuval, Ryan Joten, Brandon Wright, Brandon Herrick, Reece Drost, Scott Horn, Tanner Henderson, Clayton Peters, Noah Gilingham, Bryan Mason Neil Hebert, Collin Meyer, Luke Merritt, Matt Drost, Jeremy Bremness, Zach Edwards, Zak Ingersol, Ian Lagasse, Cole Ciokiewicz, Shane McQuilllan, James Zastrow, Jakob Rosemeyer, Bryce Lingen
Manager: Brandon Geist
Assistant Manager: Brian Smasal

After coming up short in the WBA State Tournament, the Tilden Tigers wills set their sites high for the upcoming 2019 season. They will return the core group of guys from the previous few years.

Jon Schoch, Austin Lemay, Jordan Steinmetz, Nolan Baier and Cole Zwiefelhofer will round out the outfield as years passed. Carl Krumenauer, Drew Steinmetz, Alex Ruf, and Sam Sorenson will shore up the infield. PJ Lequia, Ben King, Justin Ignarski, and Carl Krumenauer look to take a majority of the innings on the mound. We will be adding some younger talent in Dane Weiland, Couper Fosvick, and Lucas Steinmetz to our roster. Jake Bohl will later in the season after coming off surgery last year. Ryan Baier will stick to managerial duties. We are thankful for the opportunity to play at the beautiful Casper Park again for the upcoming season. We want to thank our local sponsors for helping us out and giving us an opportunity to play the game that we all love! GO TIGERS!

Roster: Nolan Baier, Austin Lemay, Cole Zwiefelhofer, Alex Ruf, Ben King, Dane Weiland, Drew Steinmetz, Jordan Steinmetz, Lucas Steinmetz, Justin Ignarski, PJ Lequia, Carl Krumenauer, Chase Stoffel, Jon Schoch, Sam Sorenson, Jake Bohl

Manager: Ryan Baier

While 2018 was a tough year record-wise for the Augusta Athletics, they did produce some banner individual seasons.

Matthew Gilbertson was named to his fifth All-Star Game, and was named Honorable Mention All-CRBL. He just missed making his first, All-CRBL Team, finishing fourth among outfielders in the voting. Matthew led the A’s in batting average at .404, hits with 26, runs with 15, doubles with 5 and RBI with 14. He was also the only Athletic to play in all 22 games.

Congratulations to Grant Witcraft on being a finalist for the CRBL’s “Rookie of the Year”. Grant had a terrific season, batting .262 and finished in the Top 5 on the team in at-bats and hits.

Pitcher/Third Baseman James Gilbertson was chosen to play in his eighth All-Star Game and First Baseman William Mallett-Brown was selected to his first All-Star Team!

In addition to those three, the A’s return a number of players who both have experience in the league, yet are under the age of twenty-five! Peyton Bethke, J.J. Breaker, Isaiah Gilbertson, Mitchell Hong, Quinn Kirchoff, Kayne Korger, Josh LaGow, Zac LaGow, Trevor Fischer, and Mitch Hong will comprise the nucleus of an improving franchise.

2019 is the 40th Anniversary of Jan Krueger’s Augusta Athletics! It is also the 25th Anniversary of the club’s 1994 Wisconsin Baseball Association State Championship! There will be much to celebrate this summer at Jan Krueger Diamond at Memorial Field in Augusta!

As another season of Bullfrogs Baseball begins, the team is looking to continue to stay alive and compete in the tough south division of the CRBL. Some new face’s along with the returning vet’s will continue to provide opportunities for players and fan excitement.

Be sure to come out to the “Swamp” and support and cheer on the Bullfrogs this year. It’s going to be another exciting summer of baseball, as we host the area’s and state’s best amateur baseball teams. Three big promotional nights are planned again this season. Thank you to all our loyal and generous sponsors and fans for your support! As always……..”RIP IT, RIP IT”

Roster: KYLE BALASH, BRENDEN MCCABE, DUSTIN NELSON, TAYLOR RATHKE, CAL SAROU, LOGAN BERG, ZACH BERG, TIM PRINCE, NICK FLATER, KYLE MAUG, JESSE VEN ROI, JOVOHN MASTERS, DOUG RENTZ,

Coach: SCOTT SORENSON

The 2019 Eau Claire Bears look to keep things rolling after another successful season in which the Bears won 17 games in Manager Chevy Tollefson’s first year.

The Bears had a great run in the WBA playoffs last year winning their regional in haugen to advance to state last season. The Bears came up short in the State Tournament losing in the first round.

Individually the bears had one All CRBL player last year in Sam Janni. Janni led the CRBL last season in hits last year with 36 and finished the year batting .474. Bears also would like to recognize Brian Menard as he collected 23 hits last season bringing his career total to 410 hits. That makes Menard only the 7th player in history to surpass 400 hits and makes him number 7 in all time hits. To top it of Menard also tied Jim Falls Legend Roger Bergeron for the all time record for triples with 14. Also to mention Reed Pecha was awarded an honorable mention all CRBL award.

The bears will look to continue their run of success this year returning their main core of players but also adding a couple of notable CRBL players as well. 2018 ALL CRBL award winners Todd Lasher and Jimmy Anderson will join the Bears to round out an already explosive offense. And newcomer Jonathan Novas looks to bring an exciting new bat and arm to the roster. The Bears are excited to start their second season at Cinder City Park in Altoona. We hope to bring you another exciting season this year and look to bring home some gold. GO BEARS!

ROSTER: Chevy Tollefson, Todd Lasher, Jeremy Nicolai, Austin Neu, Sam Janni, Josh Halling, Ty Fadness, Jake Sandstrom, Dan Olsen, Reed Pecha, Alex Jinkins, Brian Menard, Jim Thill, Matt Lunde, Jimmy Anderson, James Gunderson, Blake Johnson, Jordan Dickerson, Matt Flesher, J.R. Lukes, Jonathan Novas, Alex Mazata

2019 marks the third season of play for the Eau Claire Rivermen. Established in 2017, the ‘Men have been right on the cusp of qualifying for the CRBL playoffs each of their first two seasons.

Sporting an 11 and 11 record in 2018, the Rivermen had an incredible nine games decided by one or two runs. During those nail biters, they managed to swim away with six wins and three losses.

The 2019 version of the ‘Men will have several familiar faces, as stalwart veterans Josh Briggs, Tyler Gray (2018 All-CRBL, Utility), Andy Niese (2018 All-CRBL, Catcher), Zach Parr, Hans Soukup, and Sawyer Sturz return for another round of CRBL battles.

Solidifying their place in CRBL and Rivermen lore are returning standouts Matt Alley (2018 CRBL Honorable Mention, Utility), Dayton Gutsch, Dalton Hutton, and Alex Rocksvold.

The mound staff for the guys in Navy Blue and Grey will be built on the right-handed arms of ironclad durable Tyler Gray, hard throwing Jesse Urbanek, and crafty James Davis. The additions of big lefty Will Petrosky as well as young righty Cade Osborn will provide needed depth and variety for Eau Claire’s newest amateur baseball team.

The Eau Claire Rivermen would like to sincerely thank our loyal fans and generous sponsors as we eagerly look forward to playing baseball in 2019. GO RIVERMEN!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Roster: Matt Alley, Shane Boettcher, Wes Boyarski, Josh Briggs, James Davis, Joel Effertz, Dayton Gutsch, Tyler Gray, Dalton Hutton, Andy Niese, Zach Parr, Will Petrosky, Dave Roubal, Alex Rocksvold, Jordan Ruppelt, Tim Schaller, Sawyer Sturz, Carson Soukup, Hans Soukup, Jesse Urbanek, Tim Wilson

After two seasons of knocking on the door, the Merchants finally kicked it in, defeating the Sparta Miller 7-0 for the WBA state title.

Along the way, the boys went 20-2 in CRBL action (33-2 overall), won the South division, captured their third straight CRBL championship, as well as the prestigious Plum City Memorial Day tournament crown. All 25 men on the roster contributed along the way. Pitching and stellar defense were the strengths of the 2018 squad, along with an unwillingness to give up. Many games were decided late or in extra innings. The Merchants look to return the bulk of last year’s team, along with a few new faces. Things look bright for the 2019 season. Thanks to the businesses and individuals in the area who continually sponsor and donate to our many fund-raising causes. Without them none of this would be possible. See you at Jon Soiney Field at Merchant Park this summer. WWMD!

The Wolves finished the season 19-3 in league play and 20-6 overall. The Wolves will once again rely on pitching and defense as their strength. The pitching staff will once again be led by the strong arms of our veterans Alex Byom, Scott Hovell, Troy Sharp, and Zak Pronschinske.

Newcomers Blake Theisse, Jon Cieminski, and Isaac Marley look to give the Wolves quality innings this year. All our younger pitchers will need to prove that they can get good CRBL hitters out by minimizing walks and free bases.

The defense behind these pitchers is led by our veterans Tyler Manley, Scott Hovell, Nate Pronschinske, Kyle Servais, and Alex Petroski. We will be looking for Sam Schweisthal to replace long-time utility player and strong hitting Brad Schank, who retired after last season. We will miss his play and leadership. Brett Lettner, who was a rookie in the league last year, will be an infielder we will count on this year as well. The Wolves speedy outfield is led by centerfielder Trent Vondrasek. On either side of Trent will be Isaac Marley and Peyton Slaby. Max Ferguson handles the catching duties and is a big part of holding down opposing team’s running game. You have to score runs to win titles as well and in the offensive department the Wolves are led by Scott Hovell, Trent Vondrasek, Kyle Servais, Max Ferguson, Alex Byom, Tyler Manley, and Zak Pronschinske. The Wolves will be playing a tough 25 game schedule this year so all players on the roster will have opportunities to contribute.

The Whitehall Wolves would like to thank our sponsor Dave Pientok of Tri-City Sanitation and the entire Whitehall community for their support of Wolves baseball. We would also like to thank Tom & Connie from Newcomb Valley Inn for hosting and supporting our annual fundraiser each year. Finally, we would like to thank Mary Little, Terry Taylor, and Butch Halama for their tremendous coverage of Wolves’ baseball. These guys cover nearly every Wolves’ game no matter where we play. We hope to see you at the park this summer for some exciting Chippewa River Baseball League games.

Manager: Louie Ferguson

Roster: Trent Vondrasek, Alex Byom, Max Ferguson, Tyler Manley, Scott Hovell, Troy Sharpe, Sam Hirshbeck, Alex Petroski, Payton Slaby, Kyle Servais, Zach Pronschinske, Sam Schweisthal, Collin Manley, Nate Pronschinske, Jon Ciemenski, Blake Theisse, Zach Theisse, Brett Lettner, Isaac Marley, Parker Windjue, and Trace Bjorge

The 2019 Chippewa Rivers Baseball League (CRBL) schedule has been released for its 91st season. With 12 teams split into two divisions – North and South – each team will play a 22 game league schedule. A total of 132 CRBL games take place over a 93 day regular season. Some notable dates on the schedule are listed below:

• League Opener – April 27th, 2019 – Jim Falls Sturgeons @ Bloomer Woodticks
• CRBL All-Star Game – Sunday, July 7th, 2019 Hosted by Cadott Red Sox @ Cadott High School Field
• Osseo hosts CRBL triple header – Saturday July 13th @ Jon Soiney Memorial Field starting at 1 pm.
  • Augusta Athletics vs. Eau Claire Bears – 1 pm
  • Eau Claire Rivermen vs. Whitehall Wolves – 4 pm
  • Beef River Bullfrogs vs. Osseo Merchants – 7 pm
• Wildcard Wednesday – July 31st, 2019
• Championship Saturday – August 3rd, 2019

Follow www.crblbaseball.com all season long for updated scores, standings and schedule. You can download the 2019 CRBL schedule to your Apple, Outlook or Google Calender. Any schedules changes will update automatically once downloaded to your calendar.