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Baseball Day Minnesota 2026: Key Takeaways & More

May 11, 2026
Parker Hageman
Prep Baseball Minnesota

 
Delano, Minnesota—There are towns in Minnesota where baseball is something people watch. In Delano, it’s something people inherit.

The city will celebrate its 150th anniversary later this summer, though baseball arrived before the paperwork did. Delano officially incorporated in 1876. The first known baseball club predates it by a year. Around here, the game and the town have spent generations growing side by side, stuck together like pine tar on the handle of a bat that’s seen too many summer nights to count.

You could feel it Saturday.

By mid-morning, The Muni was already alive. By afternoon, it was overflowing. And by night, Baseball Day Minnesota, now in its third year, had again turned one of the state’s most historic ballparks into the epicenter of Minnesota high school baseball.

The Muni itself feels like a monument to the sport’s permanence in Delano. Built just 20 years after the town’s founding, the stadium has evolved with time while refusing to lose its soul. The concourse buzzed with thousands of fans. Kids chased foul balls all over the park. Families leaned against fences and talked baseball between innings. Everywhere you looked, there was evidence that this wasn’t simply a showcase event dropped into town for a day. This was baseball in a place built around it.

And for eight programs on Saturday, there was something bigger at play than wins and losses. They became part of a lineage. Part of a community where baseball is less pastime than identity. On emerald turf surrounded by decades of history, Baseball Day Minnesota once again proved why Delano remains one of the beating hearts of the sport in this state.

GAME SUMMARY: HOPKINS VS BUFFALO

 

Player of the Game: Dylan Lindstrom

+ There may not be a hotter bat at Baseball Day Minnesota than Dylan Lindstrom. The uncommitted 2027 catcher wasted little time making noise, following a Frank Mausser double with a two-run blast in the opening inning to give the Royals an early cushion. He wasn’t done there either, launching a leadoff solo shot in the fourth for his second homer of the day. Lindstrom finished 2-for-4 with three RBI and two runs scored, earning Player of the Game honors in another loud offensive showing.

+ Frank Mausser continued his own strong spring alongside him. The Iowa Central commit stuffed the stat sheet, going 3-for-4 with two doubles, a home run, two RBI and two runs scored. His two-run shot in the fourth stretched the Royals’ lead to 6-2 and continued what has quietly been a productive senior campaign. Through 18 games, Mausser is now slashing .333/.443/.529 with eight extra-base hits.

+ On the mound, Baylor Paul looked every bit the part of a high-follow arm. The 6-foot-7 St. John’s commit made his sixth start of the spring and overpowered Buffalo hitters with a difficult angle, low release and riding fastball that played well out of the hand. Paul worked 82-84 and touched 86 while mixing a 70-72 mph curveball, piling up eight strikeouts across four innings while allowing just two hits in the win. There still appears to be considerable upside remaining for the future Johnnie.

Baylor Paul - (05/10/2026)

+ Buffalo’s best offensive punch came from Aiden Marconett, who collected the Bisons’ lone extra-base hit with a double and later scored. The Sioux Falls commit went 1-for-3 on the day and continues to provide value in the middle of the lineup despite his long-term future likely being on the mound. The lone senior on Buffalo’s roster is now hitting .316/.458/.526 with five extra-base hits and a team-leading 12 RBI.

GAME SUMMARY: BIG LAKE VS MONTICELLO

Player of the Game: Carson Deibele & Cale Holthaus

+ Monticello wasted no time jumping on Big Lake starter Jackson LaRoche, ambushing the Hornets early with three straight hits from the top of the lineup. Adam Brenny and Carson Deibele opened the game with singles before Cale Holthaus ripped a two-run double into the gap to give the Magic a quick 2-0 lead. Holthaus would go on to share Player of the Game honors after a loud 2-for-3 afternoon that included a double, triple and two RBI. The uncommitted junior continues to translate his explosive raw power into game production after posting a 100.6 mph exit velocity at March’s Preseason All-State. Through the spring, Holthaus is now slashing .447/.536/.830 with 12 extra-base hits.

+ Dom Marschel added another blow in the second inning with a solo homer to extend the Magic lead. The uncommitted junior finished 1-for-3 with the long ball and later slammed the door shut on the mound, working a clean 1-2-3 seventh inning while striking out a pair to earn the save.

+ On the mound, Carson Deibele showed why he's a fast riser in our rankings. The uncommitted right-hander punched out 14 across six innings, allowing just two earned runs on four hits and one walk. Deibele ran the fastball up to 89, a notable jump from the 87.4 mph peak he posted at the Preseason All-State in March, and consistently showed confidence attacking hitters on the inner half. With a lean, athletic 6-foot-3 frame and more physical projection remaining, the No. 51-ranked player in Minnesota’s 2027 class continues trending upward.

+ Big Lake still showcased one of the more intriguing one-two pitching combinations in the state with Jackson LaRoche and Owen Wilczek. Despite surrendering four runs over two innings, LaRoche flashed why he remains one of the top-ranked arms in the class. The 6-foot-3, 226-pound left-hander ran the fastball up to 88, working effectively to the outer third against right-handed hitters while mixing both the breaking ball and changeup for strikes.

+ Wilczek, a 2024 Future Games alum and Cincinnati commit, steadied things out of the bullpen and shut down Monticello over the final four innings. The 6-foot-6 right-hander allowed just two hits while striking out three, operating up to 87 mph and filling the zone with all three pitches. He leaned heavily on his breaking stuff and did a quality job limiting hard contact throughout the outing.

+ Offensively, Big Lake struggled to generate much against Monticello’s pitching staff, but Brendan Goedke provided a bright spot. The Hornets hitter showed a direct, flat path through the zone and finished 2-for-4 with a two-run home run.

GAME SUMMARY: CHANHASSEN VS ORONO

Player of the Game: Zachary Daly

+ Chanhassen’s offense erupted in a big way, with the Storm launching three home runs and piling pressure on the Spartans throughout the afternoon. Leading the charge was uncommitted senior Will Maschka, who turned in one of the more complete performances of the day. With Chanhassen holding a slim 2-1 lead in the third, the 6-foot-1 backstop stayed on an outer-half pitch and drove an RBI double the other way into right field. He followed with an RBI single in the fifth before capping his afternoon with a solo homer in the seventh. Maschka also did quality work behind the plate handling starter Zach Daly and the Storm pitching staff.

+ Before Maschka’s offensive surge, Cole Kambeitz jump-started the Storm offense with a two-run homer to left in the second inning. The Loras commit finished 3-for-4 with two RBI and a run scored.

+ Chanhassen continued to separate in the fifth when uncommitted junior Bennett Musolf, a recent varsity call-up, followed Maschka’s RBI single with a three-run blast that broke the game open and pushed the Storm lead to 7-1.

+ On the mound, Zach Daly controlled the game by relentlessly attacking the strike zone and mixing pitches effectively. The future Johnnie mostly operated at 82-84 mph with the fastball, but consistently pitched backwards and kept a dangerous Spartan lineup off balance with his off-speed mix. Daly came within one out of a complete game before hitting the century pitch mark and handing the ball to Sam Minton for the final out. His ability to navigate one of the stronger lineups in the state earned him Player of the Game honors.

+ Despite collecting eight hits — five of them for extra bases — the Spartans managed just two runs against the Storm staff. Easton Ahrens, a Chandler-Gilbert commit, led the way offensively, finishing 2-for-3 with a pair of doubles, while Chaz Brookins, Keegan Flansburg and Rory Kvern each added doubles of their own.

+ Brookins’ extra-base hit may have been the loudest of the group, barreling a first-inning double while showing impressive ability to keep his hands inside the baseball and drive a pitch the other way. The Gustavus commit continues to produce at a high level this spring, now hitting .531/.600/.776 with 10 extra-base hits in 16 games.

GAME SUMMARY: MAHTOMEDI VS DELANO

Player of the Game: Cody Loida

+ Cody Loida once again sat in the middle of Mahtomedi’s offensive attack, helping ignite the Zephyrs’ scoring surge early with a two-run double in the third inning before later coming around to score on a Connor Finn ground ball. After Delano clawed its way back into the game, Mahtomedi responded with a decisive seven-run sixth inning, and Loida delivered the biggest swing of the frame with a two-run single that pushed the Zephyrs ahead 7-3. The 6-foot-3 Sioux Falls commit finished 2-for-4 with a double, four RBI and two runs scored, earning Player of the Game honors.

+ When Delano tied the game at three in the fifth, Peyton Erickson entered out of the bullpen and quickly shut the door on the Tigers’ momentum. The Southeastern commit attacked hitters with a low-to-mid 80s fastball that featured quality arm-side life and paired it with a sweeping slider that generated consistent swing-and-miss. Every out Erickson recorded came via strikeout in a dominant relief appearance.

+ Delano starter Brody Geislinger did his part to keep the Tigers within striking distance throughout the afternoon. The 2025 Senior Future Games alum worked five innings, allowing two earned runs on four hits and four walks while punching out nine. Geislinger touched 90 mph but mostly settled into the 85-88 range, mixing both a curveball and slider effectively to keep Mahtomedi hitters uncomfortable. The Iowa Central commit continues to put together a strong spring, now sitting at 3-1 with a 2.18 ERA and 44 strikeouts across 25.2 innings.

+ Offensively, Delano pieced together a balanced effort with seven different hitters recording knocks. Geislinger and Grant Bruett each contributed doubles for the Tigers.

EVENT SPONSOR:
Twins Community Fund

GAME SPONSORS:
Metro Baseball League | Kwik Trip | Variant | Love The Grind
 
CONTRIBUTING SPONSORS:
St. Paul Saints | The Minnesota Star Tribune | Tuffy's Treats | CorTrust Bank | State Farm-Bryce Deter
King Chiropractic | Downtown Social | D&J's Glove Repair | The Realty Lab | Ameriprise Financial-Thomas Steidl     
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