Two days remain in the regular season for amateur baseball teams in Region 13C.
There are two league games on the schedule for Saturday and seven more on Sunday.
Jackson plays both days, but each is a non-league game.
The Bulls are at Wells Saturday and host Luverne at Wacker Field Sunday. The Redbirds defeated Jackson in a league game earlier this season.
Windom has earned the number one seed from the First Nite League and a bye into the region playoffs as the Pirates have concluded their league schedule with a 15-4 record.
Jackson has concluded league play with a 13-6 record. Fairmont is 11-6 with two games to play on Sunday.
The Martins host Worthington at 1 p.m. and then host a Milroy Irish team that controls its fate to earn the No. 1 seed from the Gopher League.
Fairmont owns the tiebreaker over Jackson according to the Region 13C Twitter feed.
The teams split their season series with each team winning at home. The Bulls won 4-2 at Wacker Field on June 12 and the Martins won 13-3 at Herb Wolf Field on July 6.
If Fairmont wins twice Sunday, the Martins would get the tiebreaker as they were 9-3 vs. First Nite League teams and the Bulls were 8-4.
Milroy is 16-1 and can earn the top seed from the Gopher League and a bye in the league playoffs with two wins Sunday. The Irish are at Mountain Lake before heading to Fairmont.
Luverne has finished 17-2 and owns the tiebreaker over the Irish.
The teams split one-sided games as Milroy won 11-2 and Luverne won 14-2. The Redbirds win the tiebreaker, which is fewest runs allowed head-to-head, 13-16.
Standings
First Nite League
Windom Pirates 15-4
Jackson Bulls 13-6
Fairmont Martins 11-6
Fox Lake Foxes 7-10
Lakefield Frogs 7-11
Mountain Lake Lakers 5-11
Heron Lake Lakers 2-16
Gopher League
Milroy Irish 16-1
Luverne Redbirds 17-2
Hadley Buttermakers 12-5
Adrian A's 6-11
Ruthton Royals 5-13
Pipestone A's 5-13
Worthington Cubs 2-15
League games only
Friday, July 15
Pipestone 5, Ruthton 4
Saturday, July 16
Jackson at Wells, 2 p.m.
Adrian at Hadley, 2 p.m.
Windom at Pipestone, 6 p.m.
Sunday, July 17
Worthington at Fairmont, 1 p.m.
Milroy at Mountain Lake, 1 p.m.
Luverne at Jackson (non-league), 2 p.m.
Lakefield at Adrian, 2 p.m.
Fox Lake at Heron Lake, 2 p.m.
Ruthton at Hadley, 2 p.m.
Milroy at Fairmont, 5 p.m.
Fox Lake at Mountain Lake, 5 p.m.
Wednesday, July 20
Playoffs start
Leavenworth at Windom, 7:30 p.m
Dunker earns 200th win
Bill Dunker, who began his amateur baseball career in 1997 with the Jackson Bulls, recorded his 200th career win on Sunday.
He is now a manager-player for the Veseli Warriors. Dunker started and did not allow a hit in five shutout innings as Veseli defeated the Shakopee Coyotes 8-1 at Joe Schleper Stadium. He walked four and struck out six.
Here’s the final out of the game:
Dunker graduated from Jackson High School in 1997 and began his amateur baseball career with the Bulls that summer.
"Billy was a great kid," Jackson manager Scott Bahr said last summer when Dunker announced his retirement as a player from the St. Patrick Irish. A few months later he announced he would manage Veseli and he has expanded his role to player-manager.
"He started playing for us when we just started becoming really, really good,” Bahr commented. “He probably would have played on most teams and he had to play a role with us and it shows what can happen in amateur baseball. He was the backup shortstop. When Lincoln (Wacker) went in to pitch he got to play and then he was our Game Three starter so whenever we had a third game he'd get to start."
Dunker earned the first 10 wins of his career wearing the Orange and Navy of the Bulls.
He didn’t pitch in his first season with Jackson before going 5-2 in 1998 and 5-3 in 1999.
The Bulls played in the state tournament each of the three seasons with Jackson, starting a remarkable run.
Only once in his career has Dunker not ended his season as a player participant at the state tournament.
Dunker played with Eagle Lake from 2000-2003. He was drafted by Waterville for the 2000 state tournament.
In 2001, Eagle Lake didn’t make the tournament and Dunker wasn’t drafted.
Dunker was drafted by the St. Patrick Irish for the 2002 state tournament and in the opening game of the state tournament vs. St. Francis, Dunker entered the game in relief, and pitched five and two-third innings, only giving up one hit.
Later in that year's state tournament, he pitched the 17th no-hitter in state tournament history in a win over Pierz.
In 2003, Dunker was drafted by the Austin-Hayfield Athletics, who made it to the championship game, losing to Green Isle.
In 2020, St. Patrick made it to the state championship game, losing to Fairmont in Springfield. Last year in final season with the Irish, St. Patrick made it to the state quarterfinals.
Dunker moved to the New Prague area in 2004 and his past connections and good fortune with St. Patrick drew him to sign with the Irish.
He continued to play in state tournaments, being drafted in the years St. Patrick did not qualify.
What makes the state tournament special, Dunker says is, “Every player on every team plays all summer to play there. The entire state of baseball gathers in one area for three weekends. It becomes a fraternity of sorts after a while. You run into people that you haven’t seen for a year or more, but you always have something to talk about. There are no strangers. I’ve been so lucky to play in them, given that I know people who have never played in one.
“When you get to the tournament, take some time to enjoy it, you may never play in one again,” he said.
Dunker realizes he’s had some good fortune over this long run.
“I’ve been remarkably healthy injury-wise, and I’ve had such good people around me,” he said. “I’ve been able to take something away from all of them. Learning from coaches, veteran players on my own team and others, and even fans, I feel has helped me along the way. People like Wade Wacker and Pat Frank in the Jackson days, and Kevin Geislinger in Eagle Lake, and Monte Hennen, John Johnson and Jeff Bjerke now with St. Patrick. Those guys have all been there before me, and drawing off that can only help.”
For several years, Dunker added to his inning workload playing and pitching for the 35-and-over St. Patrick Shamrocks, helping that team to three straight Class A Federal League championships in one stretch.
Here's the year-by-year listing of Dunker’s state tournament participation:
1997: Jackson Bulls
1998: Jackson Bulls
1999: Jackson Bulls
2000: Waterville Indians (draftee)
2001: Did not participate
2002: St. Patrick Irish (draftee)
2003: Austin-Hayfield Athletics (draftee)
2004: St. Patrick Irish
2005: St. Patrick Irish
2006: St. Patrick Irish
2007: Elko Express (draftee)
2008: St. Patrick Irish
2009: Cannon Falls Bears (draftee)
2010: Hampton Cardinals (draftee)
2011: St. Patrick Irish
2012: St. Patrick Irish
2013: New Prague Orioles (draftee)
2014: St. Patrick Irish
2015: St. Patrick Irish
2016: Prior Lake Mudcats (draftee)
2017: Faribault Lakers (draftee)
2018: St. Patrick Irish
2019: St. Patrick Irish
2020: St. Patrick Irish
2021: St. Patrick Irish
Luke Becker
Fairmont graduate Luke Becker is hitting .291 for the Kentucky Wild Health Genomes of the independent Atlantic League.
In 68 games he has 75 hits in 258 official at bats. Becker leads the team in runs batted in with 46 and home runs with 12, is second in triples with two and third in doubles with 14. He has walked 33 times and has an on-base percentage of .367.
Becker walked and scored a run Friday in a 5-0 Genomes win over the Long Island Ducks at Wild Health Field in Lexington.
One of Becker’s teammates is Khris Davis, who signed with team on June 30
.With Oakland just four years ago in 2018 Davis led Major League Baseball in home runs with 48 and was second in RBIs with 123.
There was also a name Minnesota Twins fans likely remember that was the designated hitter and batted second for Long Island Friday night
Lew Ford played with the Twins from 2003-2007 and played in the postseason in three of those seasons.
In fact, in 2004 he received votes in the American League Most Valuable Player balloting.
The then-27-year-old filled in for an injured Torii Hunter and hit .299 with 15 home runs, 72 runs batted in, and 20 stolen bases.
Ford was with Baltimore in 2012 for another playoff run.
He then played in Asia, the Mexican League and various Minor League parks around the country and joined the Ducks last season.
It’s his third stint with the club. He played in 2009 and 2011 and has now been with the team since 2013. He was the Atlantic League Player of the Year in 2014.
He has spent 12 seasons with the team, eight as a player-coach.
Ford, who will turn 46 years old on Aug. 12, was strictly serving as hitting coach this season until being activated recently.
In seven games, he is hitting .357 (10-28) with two doubles and two home runs. He also picked up his 2,.500th professional hit.
Ford’s manager with the Ducks is also a former Twin but is much more remembered for his time with the New York Mets.
Wally Backman played with Minnesota in 1989 after spending the first nine seasons of his career with the Mets, winning the World Series in 1986. That’s the year where Boston’s Bill Buckner’s Game 6 error sent the World Series to Game 7
Before his playing career was over Backman played one season with the Pirates, two with the Phillies and one with the Mariners.
Derek Shoen
Truman native Derek Shoen is hitting .275 for the Mankato MoonDogs of the Northwoods League.
In 27 games he has 28 hits in 102 official at bats. Shoen has five doubles, one triple and three home runs. He has 15 runs batted in and has walked 15 times for an on-base percentage of .393.
Mankato plays its next eight games at home. The MoonDogs host the Duluth Huskies tonight and Sunday before the three-day Northwoods League All-Star Break. The Minnesota Mud Puppies will be at ISG Field in Mankato Thursday and Friday, the Bismarck Larks are in town next Saturday and Sunday and the LaCrosse Loggers visit Monday and Tuesday, July 25-26.