Once again, the annual Firecracker 92 American Legion baseball tournament will bring many of the top teams from the Midwest and beyond to Rochester this weekend.
The Firecracker starts Friday and runs through Sunday's 2 p.m. championship game. The event brings 16 teams to town, utilizing four different baseball fields.
The Rochester Eagles are the only city team not participating. The Rochester A's, Redhawks and Patriots are all entered and each of their home fields will be host locations for games throughout the weekend. The tournament also will utilize Baseball Complex No. 4 at RCTC.
The 16-team field is loaded with talented teams from Minnesota, Wisconsin, Canada and Nebraska. The Rochester Amateur Sports Commission hosts the tournament, with assistance from the Legion programs in town, according to the RASC's Jay Fanta, who is the tournament director.
There will be a new champion this weekend. Last year's champion, Excelsior, is not returning. In fact, the tournament will have a completely new champion; Calgary won the two previous years and Worthington was champion in 2011.
ADVERTISEMENT
"The Sports Commission, with assistance from the Rochester American Legion baseball programs, has continued to transform the Firecracker tournament into one of the top Legion tournaments in the Midwest," Fanta said. "We are fortunate to have such great community support and assistance throughout the course of this weekend, which continues to make the Firecracker a desirable tournament to attend for some of the top teams in the region."
The top team in the tournament is likely to be Plover, Wis. Plover was the Wisconsin state champion last year and went on to finish as the national runner-up.
The 16-team tournament has been divided into four pools and each team will play three games on Friday and Saturday. The four pool winners advance to the championship semifinals, while the other remaining teams will compete in a round-robin playoff.
The Patriots (6-4) are the hosts of Pool A, with games at John Adams Middle School. Plover, Maple Plain and Chanhassen also are in Pool A.
The Redhawks (6-9) are hosts of Pool B, with games at Mayo High School's Dale Massey Field. Tri-City Maroon (Irondale), Winnipeg and Omaha, Neb., also are in Pool B.
The A's (10-7) are hosts of Pool C, with games at Century High School. Oconomowoc, Wis., Moose Lake, Minn., and Burnsville are the other Pool C teams.
Austin is the lone local team in Pool D. Those games will be played at RCTC's Baseball Complex No. 4. Other Pool D teams include La Crosse, Wis., Thunder Bay and Minneapolis Post 1.
Pool play opens at 3 p.m. Friday, and every team will play one game on opening night. Saturday all teams will play two games, starting at 9:30 p.m.
ADVERTISEMENT
FIRECRACKER 92 SCHEDULE
POOL A
(Rochester Patriots, Plover, Wis., Maple Plain, Minn., Chanhassen, Minn. -- Games at John Adams Middle School)
FRIDAY
Patriots vs. Plover, 3 p.m.
Maple Plain vs. Chanhassen, 5:30 p.m.
SATURDAY
Maple Plain vs. Patriots, 9:30 a.m.
ADVERTISEMENT
Chanhassen vs. Plover, noon
Plover vs. Maple Plain, 2:30 p.m.
Patriots vs. Chanhassen, 5 p.m.
POOL B
(Rochester Redhawks, Tri-City Maroon (Irondale, Minn.), Winnipeg, Omaha, Neb. -- Games at Dale Massey Field)
FRIDAY
Redhawks vs. Tri-City, 3 p.m.
Winnipeg vs. Omaha, 5:30 p.m.
ADVERTISEMENT
SATURDAY
Winnipeg vs. Redhawks, 9:30 a.m.
Omaha vs. Tri-City, noon
Tri-City vs. Winnipeg, 2:30 p.m.
Redhawks vs. Omaha, 5 p.m.
POOL C
(Rochester A's, Oconomowoc, Wis., Moose Lake, Minn., Burnsville, Minn. -- Games at Century High School)
FRIDAY
ADVERTISEMENT
A's vs. Oconomowoc, 3 p.m.
Moose Lake vs. Burnsville, 5:30 p.m.
SATURDAY
Moose Lake vs. A's, 9:30 a.m.
Burnsville vs. Oconomowoc, noon
Oconomowoc vs. Moose Lake, 2:30 p.m.
A's vs. Burnsville, 5 p.m.
POOL D
ADVERTISEMENT
(Austin, La Crosse, Wis., Thunder Bay, Minneapolis Post 1 -- Games at RCTC's Baseball Complex #4)
FRIDAY
La Crosse vs. Austin, 3 p.m.
Thunder Bay vs. Minneapolis, 5:30 p.m.
SATURDAY
Thunder Bay vs. La Crosse, 9:30 a.m.
Minneapolis vs. Austin, noon
Austin vs. Thunder Bay, 2:30 p.m.
La Crosse vs. Minneapolis, 5 p.m.
GOLD BRACKET
(Overall champion, site TBD)
SUNDAY
Pool A winner vs. Pool B winner, 9 a.m.
Pool C winner vs. Pool D winner, 11:30 a.m.
Championship game, 2 p.m.
PLAYOFFS
(Round-robin for remaining teams, site TBD)
SUNDAY
Pool A #2 vs. Pool B #2, 9 a.m.
Pool C #2 vs. Pool D #2, 9 a.m.
Pool A #3 vs. Pool B #3, 9 a.m.
Pool C #3 vs. Pool D #3, 11:30 a.m.
Pool A #4 vs. Pool B #4, 11:30 a.m.
Pool C #4 vs. Pool D #4, 11:30 a.m.
