LA CROSSE — Winning the first-half championship in the Great Plains East Division of the Northwoods League afforded the La Crosse Loggers some luxuries over the final 38 games.
With a spot in the first round of the playoffs secured, field manager Josh Frye could experiment with his lineup more than opponents as he emphasized preparation over success.
The fruits of that begin Sunday when La Crosse (37-33 overall, 15-22 second half) hosts Duluth (45-26, 23-13) in a 5:05 p.m. first pitch at Copeland Park.
The game kicks off a best-of-three sub-division series that switches to Duluth on Monday and Tuesday. The winner advances to a one-game divisional playoff, where qualifiers for the championship game are determined.
“It feels like we started the season yesterday,” Frye said. “But here we are about 75 days in.
“It feels good to know that there are more games ahead after (Saturday), and we have a good group of guys, and I think we have a good chance to make a good run again.”
The Loggers, who finish the regular season by hosting Rochester Saturday, lost 8 of 12 regular-season games to the Huskies and were beaten twice in a three-game series played at Copeland the final week of July.
“Their strengths are probably in their offense, but that’s a strength for us, too,” Frye said. “One of our biggest strengths, and it’s been the case most of the year, is our pitching.
“If we can attack the zone and compete, usually good pitching beats good hitting.”
Left-hander Luis Pablo Navarro (2-0) of Tulane has been a consistent starting pitcher down the stretch for the Loggers. He has started 4 of the 5 games in which he has appeared and owns an ERA of 1.33 with 23 strikeouts, 11 walks and 8 hits allowed over 20 1/3 innings.
Navarro has not pitched against Duluth.
Right-hander Austin Berggren (0-1, 4.01 ERA) of Miami (Ohio) has started 3 times and pitched 24 2/3 innings over 6 appearances. He has allowed 29 hits but has 24 strikeouts against five walks and pitched six innings, allowing three earned runs on 7 hits with 5 strikeouts over 6 innings in a no decision against Duluth on July 19.
Right-handers Mason Beltrand (2-0, 3.58 ERA) of Winona State and Jack Mount (2-0, 1.69 ERA) of Wichita State have been the arms used the most out of the bullpen and have combined for 26 appearances.
Beltrand has allowed 2 earned runs over his last 10 1/3 innings and has 28 strikeouts and 14 walks over 32 2/23 innings. Mount has pitched in 11 games and has 8 hits and 8 walks allowed to go with 22 strikeouts over 16 innings.
With the late addition of Georgia Gwinett infielder Jackson Cobb and outfielder Joseph Quelch, the Loggers have had little trouble hitting the baseball or scoring runs.
Cobb and Quelch have 32 hits over 70 at-bats, and 12 of those hits have gone for extra bases. Cobb is batting .514 with 14 RBIs in 10 games and Quelch .368 with 9 RBIs in 9 games. They have combined for 3 home runs, 6 doubles and 3 triples.
Outfielder Carson Ohland of Grand Canyon University (Ariz.) is batting .338 with 13 doubles, 16 stolen bases and 38 RBIs over 53 games, and has 13 hits over the past 6 games.
Outfielder Eli Small of Florida Atlantic holds down a .313 average and leads the Loggers with 54 RBIs. He has 5 home runs, 14 doubles and 23 stolen bases.
Outfielder Savion Flowers, who will play for Kansas, leads the team with 6 home runs and ranks second to Small with 44 RBIs. He has also drawn 37 walks and stolen 12 bases.
While the preference would have been to have a little more success in the second half, come out with the better overall record and own the home-field advantage against Duluth, Frye is confident that his team can take advantage of the chance to set a tone on Sunday.
“Playing at home this weekend (twice against Rochester before the playoff opener) and again on Sunday kind of keeps us in our routine,” Frye said. “On top of that, we hope we can bring in a big crowd with the Copeland Crazies and set ourselves up.
“If we win the first game, we just have to win one more.”
