Northwoods League

Overview

Established in 1994, the Northwoods League was the first for-profit summer collegiate baseball league. It has more teams and plays more games than any other summer collegiate baseball league. Many of the teams in the league play in ballparks formerly occupied by professional clubs from the Midwest League, Prairie League, Northern League, and Frontier League. The wooden bat circuit allows some communities deemed too small for professional ball to continue to enjoy high-quality, competitive, wood bat baseball during the summer months. The Northwoods League was the first summer collegiate baseball league to broadcast on the ESPN network, and currently webcasts all of its games.

The primary baseball function of the league is to develop players while college baseball teams are not allowed to work out. All players in the league must have NCAA eligibility remaining in order to participate. The league is amateur, and players are not paid, so as to maintain their college eligibility. Graduated senior pitchers are also eligible to play in the Northwoods League. Each team may have four of these players at a time.

History

In 1994, The Northwoods League (NWL) held its first season with five charter teams, the Rochester Honkers, Wausau Woodchucks, Dubuque Mud Puppies, Kenosha Kroakers and Manitowoc Skunks. The Honkers won the league's first championship. The Waterloo Bucks were added in 1995. The Mud Puppies moved to St. Cloud, Minnesota after the 1996 season, becoming the St. Cloud River Bats. The Skunks franchise folded in 1997. In 1998, the league expanded to eight, adding the Brainerd Mighty Gulls, Grand Forks Channel Cats and Southern Minny Stars. The Stars had shifted to the NWL from the independent Prairie League. The Kroakers franchise folded after the season. The league was able to maintain eight teams in 1999 by adding the Mankato Mashers. Also in 1999, Wausau rebranded to the Wisconsin Woodchucks.

In 1999, Jeff Weaver became the first NWL alum to appear in a Major League Baseball game, debuting with the Detroit Tigers. Weaver had played with Dubuque in 1995.

In 2000, the Southern Minny Stars moved to Minot, North Dakota. The Minot Greenheads played one lone season in 2000 before phasing out of the league. The Channel Cats also folded in 2000, leaving the league without a North Dakotan team until 2017. In 2001, two new franchises were added to the NWL, the Alexandria Beetles and Madison Mallards. In 2002, the Mashers changed their nickname to the MoonDogs. After the 2002 season, the Brainerd Mighty Gulls folded. In 2003, three new teams brought the NWL's total back to ten. The league's geographic footprint extended internationally when the Thunder Bay Border Cats of Ontario were added. The Duluth Huskies and La Crosse Loggers also joined. In 2004, the league expanded by two, adding the Eau Claire Express and Brainerd Blue Thunder.

In 2003, Juan Pierre became the first NWL alum to win a World Series, doing so with the Florida Marlins. Pierre played for Manitowoc in 1996.

In 2007, the Green Bay Bullfrogs and Battle Creek Bombers were added, bringing the total number of teams to fourteen. The Bombers represented the league's first foray into Michigan. Actor Tyler Hoechlin, just a few years removed from his award-winning performance in Road to Perdition, played for the Bombers while pursuing a baseball career. He missed some potential acting opportunities, including a meeting with Francis Ford Coppola, due to Northwoods League action.

In 2008, George Sherrill became the first NWL alum to appear in an MLB All-Star Game, representing the Baltimore Orioles. Sherrill had played for Kenosha in 1997 and 1998. The following summer, both Curtis Granderson (Mankato, '01) and Ben Zobrist (Wisconsin, '03) played in the midsummer classic. Also in 2009, Andre Ethier (Rochester, '02) became the first NWL alum to win a Silver Slugger Award. Two years later, he became the first alum to win a Gold Glove Award.

In 2009, the Brainerd Blue Thunder renamed themselves to the Brainerd Lakes Area Lunkers. In 2010, the league added the Willmar Stingers and Wisconsin Rapids Rafters, expanding to sixteen total teams. The Lunkers folded after the 2011 season. The league remained at sixteen teams in 2012 by adding the Lakeshore Chinooks of Mequon, Wisconsin, whose ownership group included Baseball Hall of Fame member Robin Yount. In 2012, the St. Cloud River Bats changed their nickname to the Rox.

In 2013, while playing for the Chinooks, future MLB standout Harrison Bader lived with Craig Counsell and his family at their home in Whitefish Bay, Wisconsin. Also in 2013, Max Scherzer (La Crosse, '04) became the first NWL alum to win a Cy Young Award, doing so as a member of the Detroit Tigers.

In 2013, Alexandria changed their nickname to the Blue Anchors. In 2014, the league expanded by two, continuing eastward expansion with the Kalamazoo Growlers and adding a charter city back to the mix with the Kenosha Kingfish. The Blue Anchors ceased operations following the 2015 season. In 2016, the Rockford Rivets were added, becoming the league's first team in Illinois. The NWL returned to North Dakota in 2017 with the Bismarck Larks while adding another Wisconsin team with the Fond du Lac Dock Spiders. This put the league at an even twenty teams.

In 2017, two former La Crosse Loggers, Scherzer and Chris Sale, faced each other as the starting pitchers in the 2017 Major League Baseball All-Star Game, with Scherzer representing the Washington Nationals and Sale the Boston Red Sox. The same matchup was repeated in the 2018 Major League Baseball All-Star Game. In 2019, Pete Alonso (Madison '14) became the first NWL alum to win National League Rookie of the Year, doing so as a member of the New York Mets. He also won the Major League Baseball Home Run Derby for the first time that year.

In 2019, two franchises shifted from other leagues to the NWL, bringing the total number of teams to 22. The Traverse City Beach Bums of the Frontier League was renamed the Pit Spitters after moving to the NWL. The Kokomo Jackrabbits were brought over from the Prospect League, nickname retained, and were the first NWL team in Indiana. Also that season, the Bullfrogs changed their nickname and played as the Green Bay Booyah.

In 2020, some teams cancelled their season due to the COVID-19 pandemic. For those teams that did play, instead of playing within their usual divisions, they played in hub regions, with some creating temporary teams. The Kingfish competed against the K-Town Bobbers, with both teams based in Kenosha and sharing a stadium. In Traverse City, the Pit Spitters competed against the Northern Michigan Dune Bears and Great Lakes Resorters. The Bombers and Growlers competed in a Michigan South Division, with the latter adding the Kalamazoo Mac Daddies as a temporary team. In Bismarck, the Larks competed against the Mandan Flickertails and Bismarck Bull Moose. All six of these temporary teams were disbanded after the 2020 season.

In 2021, the Thunder Bay Border Cats were again unable to compete in the league due to pandemic border restrictions. The league responded by creating a travel-only team called the Minnesota Mud Puppies. The Mud Puppies took their nickname from the original Dubuque franchise. Players trained and lived in the greater Twin Cities area but did not have a home stadium, playing all away games. In 2022, two teams changed their nickname. After three seasons as the Booyah, Green Bay became the Rockers. In Battle Creek, the Bombers renamed themselves the Battle Jacks. Additionally, the Wisconsin Woodchucks changed their place name designator to Wausau, reverting to the full team name they used in the early years of the NWL. In 2023, the league continued to expand its North Dakota presence, returning to Minot with the Minot Hot Tots. Also that year, the Border Cats returned to the league after three missed seasons. Despite this, the Mud Puppies continued to operate as a travel team.

In 2023, the Northwoods League announced plans to create a new softball league, with teams initially playing in current NWL stadiums that are temporarily converted for softball. The softball league initially consisted of four teams, based in Madison (Madison Night Mares) and La Crosse, Wisconsin (La Crosse Steam); Mankato, Minnesota (Mankato Habeneros); and Minot, North Dakota (Minot Honeybees). The softball league had its inaugural season in 2024, with the Habaneros being awarded the championship.

In 2024, the Badlands Big Sticks of Dickinson, North Dakota were added. The Big Sticks had been a franchise in the Expedition League through 2021 and the brand was resurrected in the new league. The Royal Oak Leprechauns were also added that season. The Leprechauns were formerly of the Great Lakes Summer Collegiate League, and their addition to the NWL increased the number of Michigan-based teams to four. After the 2024 season the Jackrabbits ceased operations. The Mud Puppies were also deactivated for 2025.

In 2025, the softball branch of the NWL expanded with the addition of the Wausau Ignite. For 2026, the league will expand to Grand Forks, North Dakota; it will be the first Northwoods League Softball team to play in a non-Northwoods League Baseball stadium. This also represents a return of the league to Grand Forks after the Channel Cats went belly-up in 2000. On November 11, 2025, the team's name was revealed as the Grand Forks Spitfires.

In 2025, it was announced the NWL would be returning to Indiana in the form of the Richmond Flying Mummies. After being sidelined for 2025, the league announced the Mud Puppies would return again in 2026. The NWL will field 26 baseball teams and 6 softball teams in 2026.

Competition

Teams play 72 games scheduled from Memorial Day to the 2nd Saturday in August, while the playoffs take place the week after, starting on that Sunday and ending usually on Friday. The season itself is broken into two halves, with the winners of each half in each of the four sub-divisions playing against each other to determine a sub-divisional champion in a best-of-three series. The sub-divisional champions then meet in a winner-take-all game to determine a divisional champion. The divisional champions then meet in a winner-take-all game for the league championship.

In small cities it may be hard to find the financial stability in a newly-founded baseball league. League leaders realized they needed to gain significant revenue from sponsors in order to succeed. According to league chairman and co-founder Dick Radatz, Jr, two-thirds of the revenue comes from sponsors and the remainder from ticket sales, concessions, and team merchandise. Radatz also noted the importance of having the sponsor revenue before the beginning of the season.

Teams

Baseball teams

Map of baseball teams

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Baseball franchise timeline

DateFormat = yyyy ImageSize = width:900 height:auto barincrement:25 Period = from:1994 till:2027 TimeAxis = orientation:horizontal PlotArea = right:140 left:20 bottom:20 top:0

Colors = id:barcolor value:rgb(0.99,0.7,0.7) id:line value:black id:bg value:white

PlotData= width:20 textcolor:black shift:(5,-5) anchor:from fontsize:s bar:1 color:orange from:1994 till:end text:Dubuque Mud Puppies (1994–1996), St. Cloud River Bats (1997-2011), St. Cloud Rox (2012–present)

bar:2 color:yellow from:1994 till:1999 text:Kenosha Kroakers (1994–1998)

bar:3 color:yellow from:1994 till:1998 text:Manitowoc Skunks (1994–1997)

bar:4 color:orange from:1994 till:end text:Rochester Honkers (1994–present)

bar:5 color:orange from:1994 till:end text:Wausau Woodchucks (1994–1998), Wisconsin Woodchucks (1999–2021), Wausau Woodchucks (2022–present)

bar:6 color:orange from:1995 till:end text:Waterloo Bucks (1995–present)

bar:7 color:yellow from:1998 till:2003 text:Brainerd Mighty Gulls (1998–2002)

bar:8 color:yellow from:1998 till:2001 text:Grand Forks Channel Cats (1998–2000)

bar:9 color:yellow from:1998 till:2001 text:Southern Minny Stars (1998–1999), Minot Greenheads (2000)

bar:10 color:orange from:1999 till:end text:Mankato Mashers (1999–2001), Mankato MoonDogs (2002–present)

bar:11 color:yellow from:2001 till:2016 text:Alexandria Beetles (2001-2012), Alexandria Blue Anchors (2013-2015)

bar:12 color:orange from:2001 till:end text:Madison Mallards (2001–present)

bar:13 color:orange from:2003 till:end text:Duluth Huskies (2003–present)

bar:14 color:orange from:2003 till:end text:La Crosse Loggers (2003–present)

bar:15 color:orange from:2003 till:2019 text:Thunder Bay Border Cats (2003–2019, 2023-present) bar:15 color:orange from:2023 till:end

bar:16 color:yellow from:2005 till:2012 text:Brainerd Blue Thunder (2005-2008), Brainerd Lakes Area Lunkers (2009-2011)

bar:17 color:orange from:2005 till:end text:Eau Claire Express (2005–present)

bar:18 color:orange from:2007 till:end text:Battle Creek Bombers (2007–2021), Battle Creek Battle Jacks (2022–present)

bar:19 color:orange from:2007 till:end text:Green Bay Bullfrogs (2007–2018), Green Bay Booyah (2019-2021), Green Bay Rockers (2022-present)

bar:20 color:orange from:2010 till:end text:Willmar Stingers (2010–present)

bar:21 color:orange from:2010 till:end text:Wisconsin Rapids Rafters (2010–present)

bar:22 color:orange from:2012 till:end text:Lakeshore Chinooks (2012–present)

bar:23 color:orange from:2014 till:end text:Kalamazoo Growlers (2014–present)

bar:24 color:orange from:2014 till:end text:Kenosha Kingfish (2014–present)

bar:25 color:orange from:2016 till:end text:Rockford Rivets (2016–present)

bar:26 color:orange from:2017 till:end text:Bismarck Larks (2017–present)

bar:27 color:orange from:2017 till:end text:Fond du Lac Dock Spiders (2017–present)

bar:28 color:yellow from:2019 till:2024 text:Kokomo Jackrabbits (2019–2024)

bar:29 color:orange from:2019 till:end text:Traverse City Pit Spitters (2019–present)

bar:30 color:orange from:2023 till:end text:Minot Hot Tots (2023-present)

bar:31 color:orange from:2021 till:2024 text:Minnesota Mud Puppies (2021-2024, 2026-) bar:31 color:orange from:2026 till:end

bar:32 color:orange from:2024 till:end text:Badlands Big Sticks (2024-present)

bar:33 color:orange from:2024 till:end text:Royal Oak Leprechauns (2024-present)

bar:34 color:orange from:2026 till:end text:Richmond Flying Mummies (2026-) ScaleMajor = gridcolor:line unit:year increment:2 start:1994

Softball teams

Map of softball teams

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Softball franchise timeline

DateFormat = yyyy ImageSize = width:900 height:auto barincrement:25 Period = from:2024 till:2050 TimeAxis = orientation:horizontal PlotArea = right:140 left:20 bottom:20 top:0

Colors = id:barcolor value:rgb(0.99,0.7,0.7) id:line value:black id:bg value:white

PlotData= width:20 textcolor:black shift:(5,-5) anchor:from fontsize:s bar:1 color:orange from:2024 till:2027 text:La Crosse Steam (2024–present)

bar:2 color:orange from:2024 till:2027 text:Madison Night Mares (2024–present)

bar:3 color:orange from:2024 till:2027 text:Mankato Habaneros (2024–present)

bar:4 color:orange from:2024 till:2027 text:Minot Honeybees (2024–present)

bar:5 color:orange from:2025 till:2027 text:Wausau Ignite (2025–present)

bar:6 color:orange from:2026 till:2027 text:Grand Forks Spitfires (2026–present)

ScaleMajor = gridcolor:line unit:year increment:2 start:2024

Champions

Baseball Champions

From 1995-2018, the league championship series was a best-of-3 between the two division champions. When the league expanded in 2019, the championship became a one-game playoff.

2020 Pod Champions

Softball Champions

Notable Northwoods League alumni

As of the end of the 2025 MLB season, 411 former Northwoods League players have appeared in Major League Baseball. The following is a list of notable standout players.

• Pete Alonso, Madison Mallards, 2014
• Brian Anderson, Lakeshore Chinooks, 2012
• Nick Anderson, Brainerd Lakes Area Lunkers, 2010
• Harrison Bader, Lakeshore Chinooks, 2013
• Drake Baldwin, Madison Mallards, 2021
• Clint Barmes, Kenosha Kroakers, 1998; Waterloo Bucks, 1999
• Austin Barnes, St. Cloud River Bats, 2010
• Michael Busch, St. Cloud Rox, 2017
• Kole Calhoun, Eau Claire Express, 2007–09
• Alex Call, Eau Claire Express, 2013-14
• Noah Cameron, Willmar Stingers, 2020
• Kristian Campbell, Duluth Huskies, 2022
• Mark Canha, St. Cloud River Bats, 2008
• Matt Chapman, La Crosse Loggers, 2012
• Denzel Clarke, Kokomo Jackrabbits, 2019
• Ernie Clement, Wisconsin Rapids Rafters, 2015
• Isaac Collins, Duluth Huskies, 2017
• Allen Craig, Alexandria Beetles, 2003/2005
• Brandon Crawford, Mankato MoonDogs, 2005
• Paul DeJong, Wisconsin Woodchucks, 2014
• Lucas Duda, Alexandria Beetles, 2006
• Dane Dunning, Waterloo Bucks, 2014
• Caleb Durbin, Rockford Rivets, 2019; Fond du Lac Dock Spiders, 2020-21
• Andre Ethier, Rochester Honkers, 2002
• TJ Friedl, St. Cloud Rox, 2016
• Mitch Garver, St. Cloud River Bats, 2010–11
• Tony Gonsolin, Madison Mallards, 2015
• Curtis Granderson, Mankato Mashers, 2001
• Mitch Haniger, Green Bay Bullfrogs, 2009
• Tyler Hoechlin, Battle Creek Bombers, 2007
• Nico Hoerner, Madison Mallards, 2016
• Griffin Jax, Eau Claire Express, 2015
• Connor Joe, Duluth Huskies, 2012
• Tony Kemp, Rochester Honkers, 2011
• Bobby Kielty, Kenosha Kroakers, 1996
• Zach McKinstry, Waterloo Bucks, 2015
• Jakob Marsee, Great Lakes Resorters, 2020; Kokomo Jackrabbits, 2021; Traverse City Pit Spitters, 2022
• Nick Mears, Willmar Stingers, 2017-18
• Mark Melancon, Duluth Huskies, 2004
• Garrett Mitchell, Mankato MoonDogs, 2018
• Pat Neshek, Wisconsin Woodchucks, 2000
• Lars Nootbaar, La Crosse Loggers, 2016
• Joey Ortiz, Willmar Stingers, 2018
• Chad Patrick, Traverse City Pit Spitters, 2019-20
• Brandon Pfaadt, Mankato MoonDogs, 2018
• Juan Pierre, Manitowoc Skunks, 1996
• Kevin Pillar, Wisconsin Woodchucks, 2010
• A. J. Puk, Waterloo Bucks, 2014
• Chris Sale, La Crosse Loggers, 2008
• Max Scherzer, La Crosse Loggers, 2004
• Victor Scott II, Fond du Lac Dock Spiders, 2020-21
• Marcus Semien, Alexandria Beetles, 2009-10
• George Sherrill, Kenosha Kroakers, 1997
• Chandler Simpson, Fond du Lac Dock Spiders, 2021
• Drew Smyly, Duluth Huskies, 2009
• Ryan Spilborghs, Madison Mallards, 2001
• Gavin Stone, Battle Creek Bombers, 2019; Great Lakes Resorters, 2020
• Bryson Stott, Wisconsin Rapids Rafters, 2017
• Matt Strahm, Rochester Honkers, 2011
• Kyle Teel, Wisconsin Rapids Rafters, 2020-21
• Eric Thames, La Crosse Loggers, 2007
• Jose Trevino, Madison Mallards, 2012
• Louis Varland, Willmar Stingers, 2017–18
• Daulton Varsho, Eau Claire Express, 2015–16
• Alex Vesia, Mankato MoonDogs, 2016
• Jeff Weaver, Dubuque Mud Puppies, 1995
• Josh Willingham, Southern Minny Stars, 1998–99
• Jacob Wilson, Mankato MoonDogs, 2021
• Jordan Zimmermann, Eau Claire Express, 2006
• Ben Zobrist, Wisconsin Woodchucks, 2003

Umpiring

The Northwoods League, in addition to being a developmental league for players and coaches, is also a developmental league for umpires. The concentrated game schedule, travel, and Minor League-like game conditions give NWL umpires a pre-professional experience. Since the League's inaugural season in 1994, 44 of its former umpires have furthered their careers in affiliated professional baseball.

The League recruits its umpires from the two umpire schools whose curricula have been approved by the Professional Baseball Umpire Corps. (PBUC): The Minor League Umpire training Academy and Harry Wendelstedt School for Umpires. The umpires ultimately chosen are usually among the top school graduates who were then selected to the pre-season, PBUC sponsored Umpire Evaluation Course.

The NWL contracts with eleven three-man crews during the regular season, a six-man crew during the mid-season All-Star game, and six umpires for both the divisional playoffs and championship series.

References

References

1. (September 18, 2025). "Northwoods League Alumni in Major League Baseball".
2. "Donovans sign to play summer ball".
3. "History".
4. "NWL Alumni".
5. Gross, Ed. (October 16, 2016). "From Teen Wolf to Superman: in depth with Tyler Hoechlin". [[Empire (magazine).
6. "Once Craig Counsell's houseguest, Cardinals rookie returns to Milwaukee to help beat Brewers".
7. (January 8, 2024). "Northwoods League Softball Unveils Inaugural Season Schedule".
8. (December 4, 2024). "Wausau Welcomes Northwoods League Softball Team for 2025".
9. (April 9, 2025). "Wausau Softball Club Debuts New Name and Branding".
10. (2025-08-12). "Northwoods League Softball Coming to Grand Forks, ND".
11. Schlossman, Brad Elliott. (2025-08-12). "Here's a chance to name the new Grand Forks Northwoods League softball team". [[Grand Forks Herald]].
12. Miller, Tom. (November 11, 2025). "Grand Forks' new Northwoods League softball team will be the Spitfires". [[Grand Forks Herald]].
13. (March 29, 2025). "Northwoods League adds Richmond, Indiana for 2026".
14. "Minnesota Mud Puppies".
15. Platt, Adam. (June 22, 2018). "How the Northwoods League quietly became the dominant baseball league in the Upper Midwest".
16. "Teams". Northwoods League.
17. Grossfield, Edie. (August 17, 2009). "We are the champions". [[Post-Bulletin]].
18. (August 16, 2013). "Mallards Capture First Northwoods League Championship Since 2004". Northwoods League.
19. Hunt, Michael. (August 21, 2014). "Lakeshore Chinooks named top summer collegiate team".
20. (October 19, 2015). "Champion Kingfish reel in another honor".
21. (2020). "NWL 2020 Standings".