Pair of D-SC batsmen hitting the field with 2017 Menomonie Eagles

By Cara L. Dempski

MENOMONIE — Two former Dunn-St. Croix baseball players did not hang up their gloves and cleats after high school.

Boyceville’s James Palmer will have the opportunity to play baseball at UW-Stout next spring, where he will join former Elk Mound player Brandon Bohl, but that is not the only thing the former conference rivals have in common.

Palmer and Bohl are also playing with the Menomonie Eagles this summer as part of the team’s pitching staff.

The former Mounder, Bohl, transitioned smoothly from college play to the Wisconsin Baseball Association team, while Palmer had to get his high school team as far as he could in WIAA tournament play before joining the Menomonie team.

Tyler Hamann, the team’s scheduler, recruiter, and assistant manager said the Eagles have a long-standing tradition of being not only a good baseball team, but also being a group of good people. He indicated he kept potential team member’s attitudes and personalities in mind when he started recruiting.

“It’s not my goal to go out and just recruit as many people as I can,” Hamann explained. “We want people who are not just good players, but also good people.”

The Eagles’ assistant manager said seeking out not only quality athletes, but decent people from the communities surrounding Menomonie has worked out well for the team. He said he has been trying to get some of the best young players he can find from not just UW-Stout and Menomonie High School, but also from Elk Mound and Boyceville.

He asked Mounder players Trey Mohr and Ethan Kjellberg if they were interested in playing with the Eagles in 2017, but both expressed their preference for playing on the Eau Claire American Legion team.

Hamann hopes he will have some prospects from the Colfax baseball program soon.

Palmer pitched in a June 6 road game just one week after pitching the final game of his high school career in a WIAA regional semifinal against Eau Claire’s Regis Catholic High School. There were not yet statistics listed for Palmer’s outing in the Eagles’ trip to Carson Park match-up against the Eau Claire Cavaliers, but Hamann expressed excitement at how Palmer performed, and the young hurler’s potential.

Boyceville baseball coach Michael Roemhild said he was not surprised the Eagles asked Palmer to play for them.

“James can hang with the best of them,” Roemhild noted. “It will be fun and different to watch him play this summer. I am used to being in the dugout, not on the bleachers, when James is pitching. I think this will be good preparation for him before college ball starts.”

Bohl, who took credit for a single win in his first year pitching for UW-Stout’s Blue Devils, was described by Blue Devil head coach Ben Kincaid as passionate and fun to work with.

“His (Bohl’s) work ethic is what separates him from other players,” Kincaid said. “He always wants to learn more about the game and become a great pitcher.”

Hamann has also noted Bohl’s curiosity, and indicated the former Mounder is always picking his brain about baseball.

“It’s not just about the game, either,” Hamann said. “He wants to learn more about the mental game.”

In addition to serving as one of the team’s pitchers, Bohl is also assisting Hamann and team manager Luke Welch with marketing and advertising this season. The Blue Devil criminal justice student is promoting the team’s youth nights, which involves local youth teams warming up with the Eagles, being recognized before the game, and then standing with the Eagles’ players while the national anthem is played.

Youth nights are held at all home games, which take place at Menomonie’s Wakanda Park.  

One new thing Bohl has been helping promote is home game beer sales. Hamann said all the money generated by the beer sales will go to the Menomonie Baseball Association in the hopes the funds will help polish up the Eagles’ home field.

“The goal is to get more people there (Wakanda Park) to earn enough money to make that park immaculate,” Hamann explained.

Fans of local baseball are encouraged to seek more information about the Menomonie Eagles at their website, http://www.ballcharts.com/team/?team=MenomonieEagles.